Nolita

Feranica Hidayat

3.0

To get it out of the way first, the thing that ticks me off the most in Nolita is Italian sausage is not all spicy!! When I order a slice or pie in NYC, LA or the Bay Area with sausage, I NEVER am served a spicy sausage! Spicy sausage is an OPTION that you have to ask for. Thanks for letting me get that out of my system!I'm from NYC born, raised and lived for a long time before migrating here. The misnomer in the Philippines is that there is a single kind of "NY" pizza. NY has every kind of pizza you ever dreamed of. There is Vietnamese pizza, some weird Russian pizza thing you get out in Brighton, it runs the entire breadth of pizza in NY. Except for West Coast gourmet, pineapple or other fruit, get that crap out of here!There used to be a place in Makati called "New York Pizza Place" that had my favorite kind of NY pizza. Its the kind of pizza that has a crust between Nolita and Sbarros. Then they used the highest quality ingredients imported and a perfect pizza sauce. That place was the best pizza in the Philippines bar none, but it closed down and is now a Dominos. I think the price was too high for even Makati Filipinos but I gladly payed it and would pay it again.If anyone reading this knows where that place went or if that owner opened another place elsewhere, please message me or reply here? Also, any fellow New Yorkers here who have found a better pizza place, please let me know?Anyway, since that place closed, there has been nothing even close. Nolita is a very far second. Despite its marketing, Nolita is more West Coast pizza than NY. Yes, there is gourmet style west coast pizza in NY now. It used to not work in NY when I was growing up. I can recall several pizza places that tried to do chicken parm and other gourmet pizza toppings in my neighborhood and they all failed. Now though, NYC became "safe" and all these people from Oklahoma and stuff started moving in and the pizza scene changed (Neapolitan pizza just ticks me off). So technically the marketing is not wrong, but it will never be NY or even East Coast pizza to real New Yorkers.Besides that, this thin crust is not my cup of tea, but I could live with it if they had a decent sauce and good quality toppings. Instead of importing, I believe they make many of the toppings themselves. The sauce needs work. Its far from terrible but its also not great. I sometimes wonder if they sweetened it to accommodate the local customer base. I am not sure if I am complaining or complimenting the service in Nolita here. Its actually very NY. You walk in, the pizza boy ignores you till you get his attention. Usually no one greets you upon entry unless that bubbly cashier is working and you catch her eye. It is so different from every other Filipino restaurant in service where everyone is so polite and constantly greets you. However, the rudeness coupled with the pizza smell in Nolita actually makes me feel homesick every time. So, while I do think service is not up to par for the Philippines, man I do really like it.

Clarissa Henry

4.0

I'm not a big fan of pizza and I eat like a bird. So, imagine my surprise when I got my order and it was  H U G E! The pizza had lots going on but the taste blended well together. It was flavorful but wasn't too overwhelming that a sip of water is necessary after every bite. It's quite pricey for a slice of pizza but I'm telling you, it is worth it! The size of the pizza ensures that you'll be satisfied and it would last you for more than 4 hours without getting hungry again, at least for me that's what happened.And the place was very quiet, great for conversing! The slight drawback to this place is that most of it is self-service. If you want to get another slice, you have to get in line again. Overall, I enjoyed my time here and this place is great for a pizza date!