Attention Pizza Fans!

[Guest]

Stickman maybe can mention it, too?

[Guest]

I wish someone else here would hurry up and try this place so I'll know I'm not dreaming.

 

 

 

I felt myself being magically pulled back to Soi 31 tonight for another round. This time I was more daring and ordered something that I wasn't completely sure what it would be. It was under a column of more expensive pizzas (240 baht), and was called the "D.O.C.".

 

 

 

What came was a standard tomato-sauce-and-mozzarella pizza, with the addition of raw, quartered cherry tomatoes, raw rucola (aka "arugula" aka "rocket") leaves, and thick shavings of REAL parmesan cheese. It was utterly perfect: better than almost any pizza you can find in the US, and at least as good as you would find in Italy wandering into a pizzeria at random.

 

 

 

If you sit with your back to the door (so that you don't see the passing tuk-tuks and occasional elephant) you can easily imagine that you are in a back-alley, blue collar taverna in Naples. Nothing fancy or pretentious, but extremely comfortable. And amazingly Italian.

 

 

 

There was a decent crowd this evening, almost all Italian men with their Italian-speaking Thai girlfriends/wives. The Thai waitresses also speak Italian (I think one of them is the owner's wife).

 

 

 

I am still having a hard time believing this place is in Bangkok. It's that good!

 

 

 

My only complaint so far is that the menu is only in Italian, and there is no explanation in any language what is on the pizzas. OK, so that's no problem with the margerita and siciliana. But what about the "birthday" pizza or the "vulcano" or the "esoterica"? Got me, and I didn't have the patience to ask what each one was individually. According to the waitress, though, a new menu with English explanations is on its way.

[kohchaiBKK]

I live in the area. I made an attempt to give the place a try, but discovered it does not open until 6:00 PM. Not open for lunch.

[Sarisin]

Thanks for this great tip PvtDick!

 

 

 

I am always getting hammered because I don't eat Thai food every single meal in Thailand. But, really when you live here you look for a variety of cuisines and my second favorite after Thai is Italian.

 

 

 

Paparazzi's in Chateau de Bangkok had been my favorite for pizza, but I will definitely check out this place per your recommendation. Would the Phrom Pong BTS stop be the best place to get off for this one?

[khunmi]

Best Pizza I've ever had in Bangkok was the old

 

California Pizza....used to be in soi 4 where Chequers

 

is now?????? or very close.

 

They moved out to Silom somewhere, may have closed

 

now not sure.

 

 

 

cheers

 

khunmi

[radioman]

Gotta try this. Does anyone have a phone number?, I'd like to make a reservation, any info on the wine list or should we take our own?

 

 

 

Wonder if anybody rates the pizza in Madrid, Patpong. I've always enjoyed their large combination - pizza that is!

 

 

 

M

[Guest]

I don't have a phone number, but I've been there three times in the past week (can you tell I'm a pizza fan?) and have always found a table open.

 

 

 

They have plenty of well-priced Italian wine in bottles, as well as a very decent house red in a big wooden keg -- served by the glass, small carafe or large carafe.

 

 

 

So far, the best variety I've found is the cappricciosa (just be sure to tell them to leave off the anchovies if you don't like them). It had mushrooms, grilled green and red peppers, capers, and maybe some other things as well (it didn't remain on the table long enough to be properly analyzed!).

 

 

 

PS: if you go, take into account that they are not yet taking credit cards. Only cash at the moment.

[Fatbastard]

Thought we would try it for lunch today so went there with a couple of mates to be told by the owner when we walked in were told in a fairly unsubtle manner that ther was a sign outside saying that they were only open from 6pm onwards. While he was right, to the side there is a sign which we didn't see as we walzed in keen anticipation thru the open door.

 

The guy neds to improve his bedside manner a little bit.

[gene1944]

Their tele. number is 02-259-0405 (from today's Bangkok Post dining adv. page)but unless you speak some Italian you will have a communication problem.

 

 

 

 

 

I called at 1pm today to see if they were open and the guy that answered spoke several long strings of Italian. I asked him about "open" in Spanish and he told me "sick" O'clock. I would think that a new restaurant would want to maximiize their hours esp. in Bangkok where the lunch meal is often the big meal.

 

 

 

Oh well, I will try it another day.

 

 

 

 

[gene1944]

Tonight finally arrived and I had been looking forward to eating at Napoli Pizza on Soi 31 all day.

 

There were about 10 people dining when we arrived and when we were leaving it was at capacity (20) with one couple waiting for a table. The menu now contains an English translation of what toppings are on each pizza. There is also a 10% service charge added on top of the menu prices.

 

We ordered cappricciosa pizza made with green peppers, ham, mushroom and anchovies. We asked if we could substitute Parma ham for the regular ham and were told no problem. We also asked that anchovies be put on only ½ the pizza. Also, ordered a second dish of Pasta Napoli which is a simple red sauce with tomatoes and some other seasonings. At the ovens, there was an Italian Pizza chef with Thai staff assisting with the cooking and Thai serving help.

 

It surprised me when our pizza arrived first because I thought the pasta would be quicker to prepare. When you order something special, it usually gets screwed up and our pizza was no exception. Our pizza came with ½ the pizza containing the pepper, anchovies and mushroom and the other ½ containing only Parma ham which was not we intended. This was asked for in Thai so language was not a problem. The table had only white pepper powder and no ground black or red pepper. Parmesan dusting was not offered.

 

Half way through the pizza, the head server/cashier came over and asked if they could substitute clam pasta for the Napoli Pasta we had ordered because the chef had screwed up. Looking around at tables nearby, I saw another Clam pasta order and wondered if they perhaps prepared batches of it ahead of time. Anyway, we told them we wanted to stick with our original order and they said fine. It was another 20-25 minutes before the pasta arrived.

 

One of the waitresses kept asking us if we wanted a refill on our drinks. I don?t mind this 2 or 3 times during a meal but 6-7 times is a bit excessive. I would be willing to bet that the owner gave staff some ?training? which consisted of being sure to ask patrons if they wanted a refill of their drinks. This server followed orders to the nth degree, practically every time she went by our table. Even when we asked to check bill, she asked if we wanted to refill our drinks!!!

 

The staff was not professional. They were dressed in jeans and blouses. Each time we did order drinks I had to ask for ice. When we asked for the bill we were told it would take several minutes to prepare and then when we finally got our change, we were shorted. It was eventually corrected. There was absolutely no reason I could see to charge a 10% service charge, as I did not feel we received good service.

 

Pizza crust at Napoli was excellent and some of the best crust I have eaten in Bangkok. I prefer more cheese on my pizza and for that reason enjoy the pizza at Pasta Bella on Soi 33 and Bourbon Street in Wash. Square more than Napoli. I thought the Napoli pasta was an interesting presentation with a thin pizza bread crust baked over the top of the clay pot which helped to explain why it took so long to prepare. My companion was not impressed with the Napoli Pasta taste.

 

Service was terrible at Napoli, food okay but not great, and I don?t see myself returning to it soon.