Yalies are a lucky bunch. Not only do they go to one of the best colleges in the country, but when the mood strikes, they can go out for some of the best friggin’ pizza in the country too. Forget the Freshman 15 — for Yalies it must be more like the Freshman 50.
My friend Veronica, a New Haven resident and serious foodie, ranks New Haven’s top four pizza joints in the following order:
1. BAR
2. Modern Pizza
3. Frank Pepe
4. Sally’s Apizza
Last night she took me to BAR for my first taste of this wondrous New Haven pizza I’ve been hearing so much about.
BAR’s a brewpub/nightclub/restaurant packed with an eclectic crowd — I figured it’d be a bunch of preppy Yalies, but in fact there were people of all ages, from all walks of life. The wait for dinner was 45 minutes, so we decided to order our pizza and eat it at the bar.
We ordered two small pies so that we could try one red (with sauce) and one white (without sauce). I can’t verify if this a New Haven invention, but BAR offers a white pizza with mashed potatoes as a topping. Oh, my.
Veronica disappeared to get the pizzas and came back with an absolutely humongous tray:
How exceptional does that look? The red pie had sizzling pieces of sausage and peppers baked in. The white had garlic, oregano, mashed potatoes and… hold on, is that bacon?
(I can’t remember now if we actually talked about getting bacon, or if Veronica sneakily slipped it into the order. Regardless, best… decision… ever.)
Bacon and creamy mashed potatoes go together like Tina Fey and Sarah Palin. If there’s a better combination, it escapes me. It’s killer. But the crust defines the New Haven pizza — blackened on the edges from the brick oven, it’s thin and crispy and chewy all at the same time.
“Ohhh, that is sooo good,” I gushed between mouthfuls.
Veronica agreed. ”I know, isn’t it?”
Since I have no frame of reference, I can’t say if BAR’s pizza is indeed New Haven’s best. After I sample from Modern, Frank Pepe and Sally’s Apizza, I’ll give you a verdict. But the bar has been set high, no pun intended.
(Final note: Veronica and her husband [a Yale dean] are having dinner in a few weeks at Per Se with nine Yale undergrads as part of a cultural field trip. Per Se!! Did I mention Yalies are a lucky bunch?)
BAR
254 Crown St.
New Haven, CT 06511
203-495-8924