New York Mag’s Underground Gourmet sizes up a few newish pizza joints in Brooklyn to see how the latest crop of slice purveyors is faring in a landscape dominated by old masters like Di Fara and Totonno’s. Here’s the rundown:
South Brooklyn Pizza, Carroll Gardens: An “unabashedly amateur approach has given rise to a distinct style: ovoid in shape, medium-thin-crusted, with a simple sauce of crushed San Marzano tomatoes and a medley of cheese, including fresh mozzarella, fontina, Asiago, and Parmigiano-Reggiano (but not, McGown takes pains to ensure, all in the same bite). It’s not the cheese combo, tasty as it is, that sets South Brooklyn apart, but its signature char.”

Toby’s Public House, South Slope: “Toby’s twelve-inch pies are much more satisfying than your typical pub grub, and the olive-oil-anointed Bufalina D.O.C., in particular, demonstrates an ideal sauce-to-buffalo-mozzarella balance. Toby’s pies are wet toward the middle, thin and crisp around the edges, and nicely kissed with wood-smoke flavor.”

Roberta’s, Bushwick: “The aesthetic is part Franny’s and part Queen’s Hideaway, to invoke two other celebrated Brooklyn restaurants, and even without the pizza, Roberta’s would be a worthy destination. Its pies, like those of Brooklyn itself, might not be easily categorizable, but they’re eminently unique and handcrafted, with attitude to spare.”

Pizza, New-Brooklyn Style [New York Magazine]
Photo of a Roberta’s pie by jwh3000.