On Sunday, we donned our leather boots and headed to Brooklyn.
All the way to Bushwick, to be exact.
We had friends from Long Island who decided to make the trek in for a double date adventure and adventure we DID!
Starting with pizza at Roberta's.
You can't really talk about pizza in New York City without mentioning Roberta's. The "NY's Best" is a fiercely coveted title but I'm fairly certain you'll find at least MENTION of Roberta's on every list out there.
Believe you me, they have reason to brag.
You walk up to this fairly unassuming little red door right next to the Morgan Ave stop on the L train....
and enter pizza heaven.
Communal tables taken over by chattering pizza-lovers. New friends made over shared slices. And all the while, the real deal pros are up at the front slingin' dough, generously piling on every topping you could imagine, and just being cool dudeZ in life or what-have-you.
You're ushered from one room to the next, all the while passing packed groups of happy customers.
Tables are hard to come by and the wait is pretty much always long, but it's really incredible how big the space is! Empty pizza trays litter the full seats around you as you keep moving forward to find an opening.
We finally settled down at the Tiki Bar in the back. Roberta's opens up into a courtyard where they've been known to host some pretty infamous parties. They offer a bar selection of the menu back here and you can order separately from the restaurant.
The sun was shining and the temperatures hadn't dipped too drastically so we figured we could enjoy the meal outside.
We sat down and perused the menu....
but really only came for the pizza!
This was my first time meeting Whitey's girlfriend so it's safe to say that I was quite nervous...
Not nervous that I wouldn't like her, because obviously I would, but nervous that she was going to want to order a pizza for herself or - and I truly don't know what I would have done if she had - something that was NOT pizza.
Obviously I went into this day hoping with every pair of fingers crossed that 4 people meant 4 pizzas that we could all share appropriately and therefore allow me to taste the most things.
I kept my eyes closed while their side of the table discussed the choices. You gotta hand it to them, they stayed calm in the face of extreme pizza pressure.
I got my wish. Four unique but equally delicious enormous pies of pizza were placed in front of my eyes. I also got a giant beer which only egged on my happiness levels.
Here they are...Drumroll please!
The Beastmaster - tomato, gooey mozzarella, spicy gorgonzola, pork sausage, red onion, capers, and jalapeno.
I'm not one to ever go for the spicy but this pizza was outrageous. If you're not a fan of capers smothering your bagels and lox on a Sunday morning (and I don't know why anyone in their right mind WOULDN'T be a fan), you might have a change of heart after tasting this pie. Outrageous but in such a good way. So good.
Margherita - tomato, mozzarella, basil. Not as exciting toppings-wise but I really think you can judge a pizza place by how well their margherita blows you away. Anyone can throw a bunch of toppings on but when you actually strip down the flavor and still leave customers drooling, you're makin' it in the world.
The Roy Rogers - tomato, prairie breeze, prosciutto cotto, egg, onion, green pepper, chili.
Truth be told, we spent the entire meal debating what 'Prairie Breeze' was. Instead of just looking it up on one of our iPhones, we thought it best to convincingly argue over what part of the pizza made up the namesake. I'm a sucker for fried eggs on anything so this pizza was no yolk! (heh) Definitely topped my list and reminded me a lot of a western omelette....but on pizza....so better.
And finally, Roberta's notorious Bee Sting pizza. So notorious, in fact, it wasn't even on the menu! Luckily, I've heard time and time again how incredible the Bee Sting is and, although other pizzerias claim a similar pie, Roberta's does it up the best.
Tomato sauce, basil, mozzarella, spicy soppressata and, what makes it famous, HONEY!
The honey cuts the spiciness of the soppressata and each bite is more delightful than the last.
WHAT A SIGHT TO BEHOLD.
Each pie was phenomenal and we all ended up having different favorites of the bunch! If there's a crown for best pizza in NYC, there's no doubt Roberta's is one of the top contenders for the title. They don't take reservations so you have to expect a wait but the ambiance more than makes up for it. Grab some friends and relax on the patio with a drink or watch the pizza guys up front get down with the dough. Regardless of what you do, eat here. It's worth it.
You know how I know it's worth it? We had the best celeb sighting EVER in the courtyard. The legendary Food Baby was running around the outdoor tiki bar and after recognizing him, we very excitedly approached the parents and blurted out ISTHATTHEFOODBABY?!
Dad, Mike Chau, wanders the streets of NYC eating the most delicious food and snapping A+ pics of it with his baby in the background. It's a great way to learn about some of this city's greatest eats and a great account to look at when you want to see a baby, or just have a laugh. Check him out on Instagram or Twitter.
After pizza we headed out to take in some graffiti.
Bushwick has made a name for itself and its art scene, graffiti included. There are over 50 galleries and countless alternative art spaces in the BK neighborhood. Artists come together to share ideas and collaborate in the industrial and open streets. It's a lot quieter than, say, Williamsburg, and a lot less expensive than Chelsea.
The Bushwick Collective is curated by Joseph Ficalora, a Bushwick native. Street artists travel from all over the world to come and paint the walls surrounding Troutman St. and St. Nicholas Ave. It's an enormous art gallery, outside, at your fingertips, just a few stops away on the L train!
And of course, you'll find the true-to-form Brooklyn quirkiness out in full force on your adventure.
Truly every corner you turn is covered. Even the smallest of spaces will catch your eye.
The enormity of the pieces is just jaw-dropping and the colors are fantastic. It's truly a can't miss if you're heading to Bushwick anytime soon. Especially with a 4-pizza appetizer situation factored into your day.
It's called planning ahead, people. GeT wiiTh thE gAmE.
Can you believe this only took us until about 2 pm?? We had an entire day left of adventuring, but more on that later...
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