Sunday lunch at NAP

Basics
Location

Per Person
About 13 euros a head. 40 euros for 3 pizzas, 2 waters, 1 wine, 1 dessert, 3 chupitos.


In not so many words
Hopes?
An authentic, inexpensive Italian-style pizza.
First Impressions?
Very Lavapies artwork around the oven. Open kitchen - a good sign.
A USP?
The super hot oven (they mention it on the menu). One of the pizza chefs looks like he might actually be from Naples, definitely from Italy.
The food in three words?
Speedy, cheesy, satisfying.
Can they get the staff?
Yes, once you're sat down. Front of house could be more organised. Pizzas arrive quickly.
Service with a smile?
The waitresses are prompt. That's all I ask for.
Would you take your friends?
Absolutely; insisted on taking visiting friends there for lunch on this occasion.
Rating for a dating?
You'll be too busy devouring pizza to give a date a look in.
Tip?
Why not.
If you could change one thing, what would it be?
A free post-tiramisu limoncello.
Going back?
Within weeks, if not sooner.

In not so few words

Took a friend (Londoner, previously Amsterdammer) and his girlfriend (Londoner/Galician) along to a local pizzeria for an early, recovery Sunday lunch before they easyjetted off.

What we ordered; one margherita (as I'm reliably informed this is the true test of a pizzeria), one calzone con ricotta and salami, and one quattro formaggi. Bang goes my Jan resolution to eat less cheese; it just so happens that the NAP quattro formaggi has several of my favourite cheeses on it. Ricotta, mozzarella, gorgonzola (not actual gorgonzola, but Asturian blue cheese which works well, though I'd have liked a bit more), and trusty parmesan.

We're a happily chatty bunch but once the pizzas arrived, it was down to business. No one spoke until we were about halfway through, then it was time for swapsies.

Max: liked the mozzarella, and commented on the pizza base as being not too heavy
Sofia: liked the sweetness of the tomatoes
Me: liked the ricotta, demolished the whole pizza and helped finish the margherita.

We started eating the pizzas with the provided knives and forks and progressed to eating them with our hands - we felt the vibe and location allowed it. The late 90s pop soundtrack added to the Sunday afternoon-recovery atmosphere and we had plenty of room as we were there quite early. The place is high ceilinged, bare-bricked, and has a wiggly fluro lighting feature, possibly obtained from a past Tate Modern exhibition, or IKEA.  Happily, this doesn't distract, or indeed, detract from the pizzas.

The margherita is everything you want - simple, fresh, good quality key ingredients. The dough is key; too much yeast or poor quality flour, you'll feel your stretch jeans stretch uncomfortably, especially if combined with beer. Too much salt, you'll be gasping for water all afternoon/night. I've been a victim of the pizza baby (3 months or 4?) for many years, post-pizzadepress overdose (it turns out eating pizza almost every day for 6 months isn't good for you, even if you are a tireless 18 y.o waitress, but that's another story.) The calzone is excellent, stuffed with ricotta and topped with tomato. The four cheeses is sufficiently cheesy.

So, plenty of cheese-based choices for vegetarians. The cheeseless marinara could work for vegans and it'd be easy enough to order the vegetariana without cheese. Gluten free - why are you in a pizzeria?!

Dessert? Oh, go on then, if you insist. Which I did, and the limoncellos that followed.
The dessert menu is authentically limited - after all, the pizza is the main attraction. It had to be tiramisu; well-proportioned, and the creamy mascarpone is dreamy, so that's the main thing. If I'm being really fussy, the sponge could be boozier, and I'd rather it was topped with cocoa powder, not sugary chocolate powder.

The pizzas were excellent, or in Max's words 'sfg'.

HK