So little time was left in New Orleans and yet so many delicious restaurants to try. It was hard to narrow down the choices to all we could possibly consume in our one week feast prior to our departure. Ancora Pizzeria was an obvious choice since it is the only place in New Orleans that offers true brick oven pizza straight from Naples. And really, who doesn’t love a good Neopolitan pizza.
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What is so special about a brick oven pizza imported from Italy? You may want to refer to my post on Nicli Antica Pizzeria in Vancouver.
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The Neapolitan brick oven pizza is a new phenomenon in New Orleans although I was up to date on the trend having recently returned from Vancouver where they are popping up all over the place (Barbarella and Nicli to name only a few).
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We ended up at Ancora Pizzeria on a Monday night feeling confident that the wait would not be long. And we were right. There was no wait to be seated since half the restaurant was empty- rightfully so on a Monday night. However, we were starved. And I mean S-T-A-R-V-E-D. I had not had a real meal all day looking forward to my pizza and being too busy running around with last minute errands prior to the move. Our server took our order in a timely fashion but failed to warn us that there was only one chef on staff that night given the night of the week and that there were three tables ahead of us. This resulted in us waiting over an hour for our pizza. Had I known that the wait would have been so long I would have ordered a starter to settle my stomach. Anyhow, this was only a slight hiccup as once the pizza arrived it made the wait well worth it and all else was forgotten.
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Ancora’s pizzas are made from flour, water and sea salt. No commercial yeast is used as they make clear on their website. In fact the dough takes three days to prepare from start to finish. Now that is dedication. The selection is limited but all the better since every single dish uses high quality products resulting in one delicious pizza. Staying true to their name they only serve pizza and a selection of house cured meats (see menu).
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The pizza crust was thin, crispy and chewy. It was perfect. There were minimal toppings but all of high quality. We ordered the Margherita and another one which is not on their online menu. Both pizzas consisted of fior di latte mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce and basil. The second pizza had fresh tomatoes and garlic added to the mix for a wonderful burst of flavors.
As the photos reveal there were several burnt bubbles which I have been taught is a big no-no when presenting a Neapolitan pizza- but it didn’t take away from the flavors. All in all, Ancora Pizzeria serves one mean Pizza and the best I have had in New Orleans.
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I love Freret street and how its being revitalized by local businesses. The Cure, Company Burger, High Hat, Dat Dog and Ancora Pizzeria have really made this street the place to be if you are looking for good food followed by great drinks at the Cure.
