I realize just about every food blogger and his/her mother has written about Mozza, so I will try to keep my review short and sweet. In a nutshell, I now know what all the hype is about, and why, at noon on a Monday, there was a line of hungry people waiting for the restaurant to open.
Thoughtful yet rustic appetizers like the chicken liver crostini (above) and the Mozza caprese (burrata with roasted tomatoes and basil olive oil - below) are exactly the kind of dishes I crave when at an Italian eatery. It's basic food made with the freshest ingredients, and there's no fuss with presentation or garnishes or froufrou plates. By the way, the caprese picture was taken after we'd eaten most of it; I kept forgetting to take photos before diving into the food, if that's any indication of how good it was!
We also ordered the Prosciutto di Parma, which was light and started with a mild sweetness before finishing with a salty bite. My boss thought it wasn't salty enough, but I liked it just fine. It was great on its own, or wrapped around the long breadsticks that Mozza provides on every table.
My coworker Joey's favorite appetizer was the cauliflower gratinate. This is like taking a plain ol' cauliflower, dressing it up in a silky robe of cream and adorning it with caramelized bits of goodness. Who knew cauliflower could be so decadent?
Of course Mozza is known for their pizzas, so we did our duty (it was so difficult!) and ordered one each. My boss got the Coach farm goat cheese, leeks, scallions & bacon pizza, which was the group favorite. The leeks work like cheese on the pizza crust; light, soft and full of flavor; and the dabs of fresh goat cheese offset the salty bacon ever so perfectly. It's pretty much everything I've been looking for in a pizza, and now I've finally found it. To quote a Kenny Loggins song, "When true love appears, everything you think you know is wrong." Kenny, you speak the truth, brother.
I stuck with the old standard, the Margherita with mozzarella, tomato & basil. It was very good, with tangy, fresh tomato sauce and a super crispy crust, but I would have liked a tad bit more cheese on it. I didn't mind that some of the crust was quite dark, because it didn't affect the flavor at all and I expect a few black blisters on a pizza made in a 700 degree oven.
Joey chose the fennel sausage, panna & red onion pizza, which he liked. His only complaint was too much fennel in the sausage. Both the boss and I liked his pizza quite a bit, but we all agreed that the goat cheese/leek/bacon was the favorite.
On to dessert. Yes, I know what you're thinking: How could you possibly have room for dessert at this point? It's Mozza, and I cannot leave without trying the butterscotch pudding. It was everything I've ever wanted and more, and that is not an exaggeration. The pudding was incredibly rich, but not too sweet, and the added sea salt just made the dessert. The best dessert I've ever had was a pine nut tart with buttermilk gelato, and that was at Babbo in NYC. I can honestly say that this dessert is now tied with that for my all-time favorite dessert at a restaurant.
We also ordered the strawberry gelato pie, which was good though not great. It is what it is; strawberry gelato in a cookie crust. We also got baked cherries with vanilla ice cream, which had great flavor but poor execution. The cherries came with stems on and seeds in, which is odd considering they were hot. Who wants to pick pits out of hot cherries?
Overall, however, the Mozza experience lived up to all of my expectations. And, for full disclosure, I should note that I do know the executive chef, Matt Molina, and am also acquainted with Mozza's general manager, David Rosoff. That said, I am a true foodie and would never be swayed to write a good review on a restaurant that I didn't think was worthy.
Mozza is undeniably fantastic.
