Pizza & Beer in the East Village

I love getting into NYC whenever possible and if I time it right I can be there in about 30 mins. Last night I went to dinner in the East Village. Since it was raining, I found a close parking spot on the street which is always a nice bonus. We first had a drink at the Ducks Bar on east 12th St and 1st Ave.  then we moved on to Motorino which is two doors down. It's a small restaurant with tiny tables. It was packed so we waited outside till our table was ready.

Clams Oreganata

As soon as we walked in we smelled the amazing aromas. We sat and perused the menu which is intriguing. What's different about this place is the odd pizza toppings that one might not consider normally but somehow they work. We ordered the Fennel Salad and sautéed mortadella for appetizers. Both were very good.  The salad was made with olives, oranges, and just the right amount of dressing.  For our pizza we chose the Ramp Pizza which was the special and a Clams Oreganata Pizza. If you've never had ramps, they are delicious. They are a sort of spring onion and only in season for a short time. On pizza they are quite delicious.  The Clams Oreganata too was a surprise.  It was garlicky and briny and rich all at the same time.  I think what made the pizza even better though was the crust.  It was thin and charred and while often I throw out the end crust because it's chewy, this crust had me wanting to start on the "wrong" end.

The one pizza that intrigued me the most was the one topped with brussels sprouts.  Since we didn't have that one I decided I would have to return here to try it next time.  As we were leaving the guy at the table next to us had a brussels sprout pizza brought to him and it smelled and looked awesome. Motorino's house red, a Montepulciano d' Abbruzo, is nothing to write home about but it was fine with pizza.  They do have other wines on the list that are quite good.

It was raining harder as we left but not wanting to end the evening just yet, we decided to go have a beer at the corner Ale House on 12th St & 2nd Ave and then headed home.

Ramps Pizza