Heartwood

Note: Heartwood closed in November 2014. We weren’t impressed, so this doesn’t come as a surprise. The restaurant was tweeting out free pizza deals in October, so it was obviously not doing well. Donatella Arpaia, who still controls the lease, expects to replace it with Prova, yet another pizzeria.

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The remains of Donatella Arpaia’s once-formidable restaurant empire continue to crumble. Her mediocre pizzeria, Donatella, closed in January after a shade over two years in business.

Heartwood opened recently in the same space. The pizza oven imported from Naples still dominates the open kitchen, decked out in a sober terra cotta, rather than Donatella’s blinged-out gold plating.

Ms. Arpaia remains a partner here. There’s an impressive list of other names involved, perhaps too many: Mark Fiorentino, a former bread-maker at Daniel, is in charge of the pizzas. Bradford Thompson (ex. Lever House, Miss Lily’s) writes the rest of the menu. Nick Mautone (ex. Gramercy Tavern, Eighty One) runs the front of house.

Put those folks together, and you get a restaurant designed by committee, with menu categories like: Snacks, Bowls, Salads, Pizzas, Proteins, and “Grains and Veggies”.

It’s priced for a recession we are not currently in, with appetizer-like plates $11–14, entrée-like plates $22–26, pizzas $14–21 (they are easily sharable), and side dishes $8. Unfortunately, many of the dishes read better than they taste.

 

The Bibb and Bacon Lettuce Wraps ($13; above left) aren’t “wrapped” at all. You get three fists of Bibb with chunks of soggy maple-candied bacon perched on top. Slices of tomato and stray droppings of smoked pecan sandwich the bacon, but as soon as you touch it the tower collapses. You eat the piece parts, and I suppose the idea is that they’ll be reunited in your stomach.

On this bacon-happy menu, Warm Spinach and Frisée ($14; above right) is a better bet, as the kitchen has mixed the ingredients together, which is how a salad is supposed to work. There’s a poached egg, maple vinaigrette, and house-cured lamb bacon.

 

In the photo, you can’t make out the Heritage Pork Chop ($26; above left), as it’s hiding beneath peach chutney and honey-glzed turnips. It never should have left the kitchen at all. Three meager medallions, cooked off the bone, had been roasted to the texture of dry cereal. If pigs could sue for wrongful death, this pig should.

Pizza was a far happier choice. I’d heartily recommend “When Peter Luger Goes Out For Pizza” ($21; above right), with braised short rib, creamed spinach and horseradish on a charred, thin crust, smoky enough to remind you of a good porterhouse steak.

Duck Fat Potato Wedges ($8; above right) aren’t nearly as compelling as they sound, but they grew on me. You could do a lot worse.

The mostly domestic wine list is short and recent (nothing older than 2011), but fairly priced in relation to the menu. There’s a summery list of slightly-overpriced house cocktails ($15), many with smoky names like the Firecracker Martini (peppered vodka, cucumber, BBQ rub).

Service was friendly, but a bit discombobulated at times: there was a substantial gap between the arrival of my cocktail and Wendy’s glass of wine; another gap between the delivery of my entrée (the pork) and her pizza.

The space is casual, but a little nicer than I remember at Donatella. Sound ricochets off the brick walls and the low pressed-tin ceiling, so be ready for the assault on your eardrums. But the restaurant was full on a Tuesday evening. For a hot summer in Chelsea, this is probably what the neighborhood wants.

Heartwood (184 Eighth Avenue between 19th & 20th Streets, Chelsea)

Food: An uneven menu of American grill standards, salads, pizzas
Service: Casual and discombobulated
Ambiance: Casual and noisy

Rating: Not Recommended (no stars)

Posto Thin Crust Pizza

 

Yesterday wasn’t much fun, as my girlfriend was at the NYU Hospital for Joint Diseases having shoulder surgery. (She’s doing just fine, but it’s a painful operation.) The day’s lone bright spot was lunch at Posto Thin Crust Pizza.

I can’t compare Posto to other places, as I don’t eat pizza on a regular basis—my waistline just won’t tolerate all those carbs and calories. But if I were a pizza guy, I have to think that Posto would be near the top of my list. A number of other bloggers evidently think so (Mona’s Apple, Lulu Loves Manhattan), and it’s had good write-ups in New York and the Village Voice. The folks at 10best.com rate Posto the city’s 10th-best pizzeria.

The rustic décor festures a tile floor, wooden tables, exposed brick, and a low tin ceiling. There is also outdoor seating in the summertime. Service was just fine, but I was there at an odd hour, so it wasn’t very busy. They deliver anywhere between Fifth Avenue and the East River, from 14th–26th Streets. The same team also own Gruppo on Avenue B between 11th and 12th Streets, and Vezzo at 31st & Lex, both with substantially the same menu.

The main event here is thin-crust pizza, which means crust the thickness and crispness of a Ritz cracker. You can start with a 9-inch ($6) or 16-inch pie ($12) and choose your toppings ($1.00–2.50 each for the smaller size, $2–5 for the larger). Or, you can choose from one of the special house pies ($9–11 in the small size, $18–22 in the large). There are also salads and appetizers ($5–12). Iced tea and lemonade are home-made, and I counted around a dozen wines by the glass.

I chose a pizza called The Big Pineapple ($10 in the personal size), which comes with marinara sauce & cheese, fresh pineapples, fresh tomatoes, smoked bacon, and fresh basil. It had a fresh, lively taste, and thanks to the thin crust, I didn’t feel over-stuffed after I’d finished it. The thin-crust pizza cooks quickly too, so I wasn’t kept waiting for very long.

Posto is pretty far away from my usual stomping grounds, but I’d gladly go back if I’m ever in the neighborhood again.

Posto (310 Second Avenue at 18th Street, Gramercy/Stuyvesant Square)

Food: ★
Service: ★
Ambiance: ★
Overall: ★

Otto

Otto (pronounced “Oh–Toe”) is the most casual of the Mario Batali–Joseph Bastianich series of restaurants. There is a large bar area (the Enoteca) that serves wine and bar food, and a dining area with table seating.

The name of the website (ottopizzeria.com) indicates the restaurant’s theme. The menu is dominated by eighteen kinds of pizza ($7–15), both “classics” and house creations. Antipasti include a wide variety of cheese, crudo, and salads. Only six pastas are offered (all $9). The place is family-friendly, and I saw many tables with children.

As I wasn’t very hungry, I ordered only the Penne con Noci e Zucca, with hazelnuts, butternut squash, and smoked ricotta. It was prepared with a light touch, with the flavors pleasurably balanced.

Service was slow, although at 4:30 p.m. on a Sunday afternoon there was no good reason for it. After I sat down, there was a long pause before anyone came to my table; another long pause before water came; another before bread. The pasta also took its sweet time to arrive. The only thing the staff did quickly was to deposit a bill after I was finished.

The bread service consisted of two slices of baked Italian bread wrapped in wax paper, and bread sticks still in their commercial wrapper. I think a server was supposed to pour some olive oil onto a plate for dipping, but none arrived.

Otto must have the most serious wine program of any pizzeria. The wine list is substantial, and there are regular wine tasting classes on offer. I have some trouble imagining who orders the $375 Barolo to go with their $14 pizza. Indeed, quite a bit of the wine list seemed over-priced in relation to the menu, but who am I to question Mario Batali?

A review based on one dish can only be provisional, but Otto is clearly a cut above most pizzerias, and the food prices are quite reasonable. With the money you save, you can do some serious supping on the wine list.

Otto (1 Fifth Avenue, entrance on E. 8th Street, Greenwich Village)

Food: *
Service: slow
Ambiance: *
Overall: *

Re Sette

Re Sette is an Italian restaurant (the name means “Seven Kings”) on the edge of West Midtown, in a former 47th St Photo location.

The designer pizzas are a great deal. The Pizza Del Re is composed of fig jam, prosciutto, carmelized pearl onions, and gorgonzola cheese. The shows it at $13, although I recall that it was just $10 when I visited there in early November. Anyhow, at either price it is a great bargain. The crust is thin and crunchy. This odd mix of ingredients comes together in a delightful candied flavor.

The rest of the menu is formulaic. The fancy website’s claims (“A Feast Fit for a King….evokes a time when feasting and merrymaking ruled the day”) seem to me overblown.

Re Sette (7 W. 45th Street between Fifth & Sixth Avenues, West Midtown)

Food: *
Service: *
Ambiance: *
Overall: *