Tenute Rubino > Wine of Apulia > Pizzoteca Ovest, New York

Pizzoteca Ovest

Pizza is one of the best-known Italian foods in the world. Wherever you go you can now find a pizzeria where you can experience the allure of eating Italian food. Eating in an Italian restaurant is unequivocally classy and elegant and this is reflected in the success of the Italian catering industry in the most exclusive quarters in the world.

Ovest is a brand new eating place, a popular destination for a multitude of "beautiful people" who work in fashion, design and art. It’s the latest of a string of restaurants opened by Michele Iuliano, who is originally from Naples and who has been successful in New York thanks to the quality of his pizza and from the word of mouth of his customers. It’s a triumph of good taste that brought him to the East Village first and now to the West Village. Ovest is located in a converted old garage. The interior, designed by Italian architect Matias Sagar, is a mix of modern and old-style architecture and it highlights the typical New York bricks.

What makes Ovest special is the excellent quality of the ingredients used in the pizza: tomatoes, flour, mozzarella cheese and fresh vegetables are delivered to Ovest’s kitchen on a weekly basis directly from Italy, which ensures freshness and first-class quality.

The pizzas are baked in a wood-fired oven, according to proper Neapolitan tradition, which drastically reduces cooking time and gives pizza a crispier crust while leaving the rest of the base softer. Also, the short cooking time does not allow the crust to get too dry, preserving the elasticity of the dough and the full flavor of the ingredients.

The mix of the high-quality ingredients that are used as toppings reflects the Neapolitan tradition, but you will also find some interesting new combinations. In addition to the traditional Italian pizzas such as Margherita, Quattro Stagioni, Marinara, Quattro Formaggi, Ortolana and Diavola, the menu also boasts some of Iuliano’s own creations - his delicious Panini, baguettes, focaccia and ciabatta breads. These are true delicacies based on the variety of the traditional Italian produce, from cheeses to meats, from preserves to vegetables. Italian specialties like pasta and salads are also on offer.

The Wine list

Drinking wine with pizza is very popular in the US. They know this at Ovest and therefore it is not surprising that pizza is frequently served with excellent wine there. This would be an unusual combination for an Italian, but it is very common in North America. Even though it is a small pizzeria, Ovest boasts a wine list composed of over forty Italian wines: you will find bubbly, white, red and rosé wines that come from the regions of Italian that historically have made wine such as Veneto, Piedmont and Tuscany, but also from emerging territories like Puglia and Sicily.

Two special evenings of wine tasting are scheduled for June 20th and 21st. Organized once again at Ovest on the initiative of Tenute Rubino, one of the most prestigious wineries of Salento in the Puglia region, they will be a tribute to the wines made in Salento: the Susumaniello, the Primitivo and the Malvasia Bianca.

The outstanding quality and the wine making tradition of Puglia will be championed by excellent red and white wines: from the legendary Torre Testa, a pure Susumaniello, a gem of this Salento wine maker, a true top-of-the-range wine, to the cool, brilliant Giancola white, an unrivaled fragrant, flavor-rich white Malvasia. Afterwards, you will be able to taste another soft and elegant red wine, the Punta Aquila, a sublime, spicy and mineral pure Primitivo. In closing, a hint of sweet with the Aleatico from Tenute Rubino, a balanced dessert wine with good acidity, an ideal companion to end a true Italian meal. Here are the details of the Aperitivo menu of the evening.

menu

Appetizers
Mussels au gratin, or Tuna Carpaccio
match with: Giancòla – IGT Salento – Malvasia bianca in purezza;

Pasta
Orecchiette with sausage and turnip greens, or Gnocchi with Lamb Ragù
match with: Torre Testa – IGT Salento – Susumaniello in purezza;

Main courses
Tuna fillet with mashed fava beans and mint,
or Meat rolls wrapped in bacon with reduction in Primitivo
match with: Punta Aquila – IGT Salento - Primitivo in purezza;

Desserts
Fruit cocktail, or soft fruits tart
match with: Aleatico – IGT puglia – Aleatico in purezza.

Ovest Pizzoteca by Luzzo
513 W. 27th Street, btw 10th & 11th avenue
New York, NY 10001
p. 212 967 4392 | f. 212 967 4099
www.ovestnyc.com - info@ovestnyc.com