COCONUTS HOT SPOT — As you turn right at the end of the notorious Sukhumvit Soi 11, an even more exciting thing than the many bars on the road is just on the corner. At the ground floor of the Holiday Inn is a cozy Italian place by the name of “Pizza And The City,” eagerly awaiting your discovery.
Pizza And The City offers pizzas (duh!), pasta, and other awesome authentic Italian food. What I love about this restaurant is that its humble dishes are made the way they’re supposed to be served in Italian homes. Many times, all you need is the simplest mix of what matters i.e. olive oil and garlic in your Aglio Olio.
There is really no need to glam things up with extravagant plating or completely unnecessary luxurious food ingredients. When dining here, I’m always sure I’m getting value for every baht I spend.
The restaurant also has a lovely “no surprise” policy for their pricing on the menu, which simply means there is no extra service charge or VAT on top whatsoever. The number that you see will be the number that you will pay. Isn’t that just great?
When you live in Bangkok, most Italian restaurants you find include just a few Italian dishes that Thais are already familiar with: Bolognese, Carbonara, Pesto, and a few more at best.
But if you are looking for more variety, Pizza And The City is the place for you. The list is so extensive you will have a hard time picking what you want.
Starting with my favorite, Maltagliati con Salsiccia e Pesto (THB430) is a dish of homemade sheet-shaped egg pasta with Italian sausage, basil pesto, and sundried tomato. Unlike my usual go-to pesto dish at most restaurants that comes with with small-sized pasta like angel hair, I found this a pleasant surprise. The pasta sheet was soft and fresh, and the sauce was flavorful without being runny. There was just the right amount of sausage, the only protein source in the meal, without the dish being too meaty. This dish gets full points from me.
Next up was a dish with a pasta that I think is hard to find in Bangkok: Gnocchi di Patate alla Sorrentina (THB250), the restaurant’s homemade potato dumplings served in tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese. Though this may sound quite carb heavy, the dish’s tangy tomato sauce and tender white soft mozzarella balance quite well.
Third on my list was Spaghetti AOP (THB230), or just the basic spaghetti with the simplest of garlic, oil, and chili in the mix. An Italian chef once told me: “If you want to know whether an Italian kitchen chef is good or not, you try a bite of his AOP. It’s the simplest of dishes, but it’s among the hardest to perfect.” The good news is that Pizza And The City’s AOP did not disappoint. There was just enough olive oil to thinly, yet thoroughly, coat the pasta without leaving the whole portion too oily. I also enjoyed the aromatic scent of toasted garlic slices, and the necessary sharp whiff of the chili. This dish is what “less is more” is all about.
Last but not least of my pasta recommendations is Tagliolini all’Arancia con Ragu d’Anatra (THB330), a dish with plenty of surprise. First, the egg pasta comes in curly strings like the shape of our local instant noodles. Second, these curly strings all have a refreshing yet subtle orange flavor inside. Third, the dish is served with a small pile of shredded orange peel, which is not only edible, but nicely complements the duck ragout. Its highly diverse flavor components make this dish a very lovely treat.
Maiale con le Mele
If you can’t already tell, I have fallen deeply in love with the place’s pasta list. But make no mistake; their other dishes are also extremely to die for. So far I have enjoyed Maiale con le Mele (pan-seared pork with apple, walnuts and wine sauce —THBB390), Risotto ai Fungi Porcini (porcini mushroom risotto — THB350), and of course, the star of Pizza And The City’s dessert list, Tortino Freddo di Mela (cold baked apple cake — THB130)
Risotto ai Fungi Porcini
Tortino Freddo di Mela
Three visits in just two months, and I still haven’t run out of new things to order.
But just in case I ever run out of ideas, Pizza And The City always has a Special Pizza (THB450) option — a wild card that you leave to the chef to decide. Rumor has it that ordering this could result in pizzas in the wildest of shapes and forms—a boat, a heart, a turbine, or a volcano. Try your luck and share with us what you find.
Special Pizza
Pistacchio ice cream
FIND IT:
Hours: 4:30pm – 12am
Sukhumvit soi 11
BTS Nana
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