If there is one thing Brooklyn can always use, it is a new pizza joint with a wood-burning pizza oven. That one of the pizzaiolos is a former chef at the Spotted Pig who also happens to be a Gothamist hero—chef Matthew Hyland, the man who killed "Midtown South Central"—just makes the whole thing better. Park Slope, say hello to Brooklyn Central, named after the train that used to run down 5th Avenue.
The pizzeria, which boasts an outside garden, itself isn't anything too fancy with lots of exposed brick (and yes, Edison bulbs). Instead, the tiled pizza oven in the open kitchen dominates the room—as you'd expect of a New York pizzeria. There is lots of regular seating, but if you want there is also a 10-seat pizza bar you can plop down at so you can watch Hyland and his partner Roberto Patriarca work (the pair met at Boerum Hill's Sottocasa before they started their own joint).
As for the menu? After the starters (salads, breads, olives, cheeses and some roasted octopus and meatballs for good measure) the menu breaks down into two sections: "Old World" and "New World." In the "old" you've got your traditional Margherita ($11), salsiccia ($14), DOC ($15) and similar pizzas. In the the "new" you get twists like the $18 North Maple (topped with bacon, maple syrup, smoked ricotta and pecans), $17 Ivette (onions, ricotta, bacon and potato) and $18 Amazeballs (meatballs, sauce, ricotta and pickled chilies). And yeah, they've also got desserts.
289 5th Avenue // 347-725-4891
