Una Pizza Napoletana (CLOSED 7/09)

Today, I braved the thunderstorms to travel over to the brand-new S'mac, home of 10 different varieties of homemade macaroni and cheese. Unfortunately for me, half of NYC had the same idea, and by the time I arrived, S'mac had actually run out of food. It was 6 p.m., and they would not reopen until 7. Crestfallen, I walked out of the shop. A few doors down, Una Pizza Napoletana was half-empty.

I'd always heard wonderful things about this little pizzeria, so I sat my cheese-craving self down. The room evoked simple, Old World charm, and the menu described mouth-watering ingredients such as San Marzano tomatoes, Southern Italian extra-virgin olive oil, and fresh buffalo mozzarella.

UPT offers only four pizzas: cheeseless tomato, tomato mozzarella, white pizza, and tomato cheese with cherry tomatoes. So, if you're looking for a ham pineapple shredded chicken affair (blasphemy!) this is not the place for you. But the ingredients are of such high quality, and the pizzas so lovingly and artfully prepared, that you won't miss a thing.

I ordered the Margherita (tomato mozzarella) and was struck by what an aromatic pizza it was. A tumble of moist fresh basil decorated the olive-oil drizzled center of the pizza. The dough was fresh, a bit tangy and only slightly charred. (Some famous pizzerias in town tend to over-blacken their crusts.) Chunks of tender buffalo mozzarella melted into rich, fluffy pillows over a simple, delicious tomato sauce. All of the components, delicious on their own, came together in a delectable synergy.

Yes, I will attempt to make another effort (or three) to sample S'mac. But if the lines are as long as those of Shake Shack, I'll just dine at my new favorite pizzeria.

Una Pizza Napoletana: 349 East 12th St., (212) 477-9950.

Ice Cream Season!

As the temperature approaches 90 degrees, you might be craving ice cream. Yesterday, I certainly was, and found myself at Whole Foods buying a pint of this and a pint of that. When I got home, I realized that I'd stumbled upon one of the most delicious ice creams in existence: Laloo's Goat's Milk Ice Cream. Whole Foods carries the Black Mission Fig, Deep Chocolate, Molasses Tipsycake and Vanilla Snowflake flavors. (I'm now on the lookout for Strawberry Darling: strawberries swirled in a balsamic vinegar reduction!)

The creamy, custardy Vanilla Snowflake was quite possibly the best vanilla ice cream I've ever eaten. (I enjoyed it with some Nairn's ginger biscuits and some ripe, plump California cherries.) Amazingly, I preferred the vanilla to the Deep Chocolate, which, although excellent, was slightly less rich than I expected.

The Molasses Tipsycake was a cinnamony, oatmeal-cookie-crumbled, raisin-studded affair. (Ben and Jerry's, eat your heart out!)

For those of you who aren't fond of the distinctive taste of goat's milk (I love it), Laloo's ice cream is quite mild.

A Transcendent Sandwich At Tost

Last night, I enjoyed an incredibly tasty sandwich at Tost Panini and Wine Bar. Normally, when I order panini, I opt for a version which includes melted cheese. (There are many such selections at Tost, including speck-Taleggio-pesto, mozzarella-tomato-basil, and chicken-Fontina-basil.) But for some reason, the sardine sandwich called to me - and what an amazing sandwich it turned out to be! Two sturdy, spicy mayo-moistened slices of grilled bread bookended a filling of slightly briny chopped sardines, capers, and tart roasted tomatoes. The bread was crisp and golden-brown, not overtoasted.

Besides panini, Tost offers bruschetta, salads, cured meats, cheeses, and sweets (lavender panna cotta, anyone?).

Tost Panini and Wine Bar: 427 7th Ave., Park Slope, (718) 965-1075.

Top-Of-The-Line Sushi in Port Washington

I just had a good feeling about Yamaguchi when I walked in. Elderly Japanese women were happily chatting at the sushi bar, and a couple waited for a table to empty. Also, the sign font was right. This may sound strange, but I avoid Japanese restaurants which use the "bamboo" font in their logos.

Soon, I realized that I had found a beloved neighborhood gem. (What a wonderful feeling that is.) I sat down at the sushi bar and ordered the sushi sashimi lunch. I also attempted to order a tempura appetizer, but the waitress dissuaded me, saying I'd be too full. She was right. I couldn't even finish all the crimson slivers of tuna sashimi, buttery yellowtail slabs, sesame-sprinkled cucumber rolls, shrimp, fluke, clam, egg and salmon. And this was just the lunch portion!

Yamaguchi is for the purist; you won't find any spicy mayonnaisey maki here, but you'll be totally fulfilled by the excellent quality of the fish.

Restaurant Yamaguchi: 63 Main St., Port Washington, LI (516) 883-3500. Worth the trip from Manhattan, just take the Port Washington line from Penn Station.

Just My Luck!

After reading this article about Amedei Chocolates, I immediately set about finding a way to order them! But alas... I just received this E-mail:

Dear Salli Vates:

Thank you very much for your recent order of Amedei chocolates. We hope you (or the recipient you have named) will deeply enjoy the tasting experience to come.

Extraordinary demand resulting from the recent publication of an article about Amedei from Food & Wine magazine on MSN.com has regrettably caused a temporary back-order situation which may delay your shipment.

We are taking the following steps to assure that everyone who may be affected by this receives his/her products as quickly as possible:

- We are shipping first to those who ordered on an expedited basis. Expedited orders will be processed first come, first served.

- We are shipping next to those who ordered with standard shipping, with preference to those who indicated at order time that the shipment is a gift.

- If your order value (before shipping and handling) is in excess of $50, we will upgrade you to expedited shipping at our expense.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and we deeply appreciate your patience while we work to accelerate the delivery your order.

Sincerely,

The Gourmet Services Team, Amedei US
Gourmet.Services@Amedei-US.com
www.Amedei-US.com

(sigh)