“abeets” of New Haven on King.
Before Bella Brutta, Cafe Paci, and Mapo, the offerings on the upper reaches of King St were unceremonious. You were really only there for $6 Thai, Rowda Ya-Habibi, and a browse through Gould’s. Fast forward to the present where Gen Z are at uni, the old establishments have departed and a new Euro trio is injecting a buzz into Newtown that keeps competition fierce, and flavours dynamic.
Bella Brutta (trans. 'Beautiful Ugly') is an Inner West nest, with cool tees, tattooed limbs, and chirpy housemate banter at its core. The scarlet pizza oven is the engine of the establishment, standing central and proud in the vast brutalist space. In addition to spitting out pizzas, the oven provides heat and entertainment as flames flicker fervently inside its pursed mouth.
At Bella Brutta, front and back of house are one unit. The matching tops, hats, and socks sported by kitchen and floor staff reinforce their tight cohesion as a team and to their credit, this conviviality spills playfully onto diners’ tables. Orders are taken swiftly, with familial care.
The clam pie is outstanding. What are essentially pasta alle vongole’s ingredients plus pecorino, their execution on a white pizza are eye-wideningly good. With scientific precision, all elements dance democratically upon your palate. The traditional hard-hitters (garlic and clams) are quelled elegantly by the lemon, parsley, and fermented chilli, to deliver a synchronous experience of acid, salt, spice, umami and earth. The surf clams’ estuarine habitat are apparent and key - enabling the clean and brackish flavours to flourish.
With the clams minced finely into sauce form, the chunk-free surface permits an efficient fold and inhale manoeuvre, one most welcome when it’s such a phenomenal slice.
The circumference dough is classically Neapolitan yet significantly on the wide, dense side, channelling the genesis apizza (pronounced ‘abeets’) from Frank Pepe’s in New Haven Connecticut, where the sauce to ear ratio is skewed, resulting in plenty of chewing at the end of each slice with little sauce to break down the bread. The bases get a fantastic back-rub on the sooty oven floor, leaving your fingertips plenty dusted and smelling of firewood.
The other options, whilst tasteful and to a high standard, do not leave an impression nearly as grand as the clam. The pepperoni pizza is graced with a quality LP's number, seasoned with chilli, paprika, fennel and white wine. Extra fennel seed is sprinkled on top, creating delicate tingles that counteract the rich pork fat and fior di latte. The cavolo nero (Tuscan kale) pizza is an engaging mouthful yet the confit garlic goes a touch overboard, overshining the kale and quelling any acidic life.
Whether a considerate touch for a table of four or not, the NY-sized quarter slices of the pizza cause more inconvenience than convenience. Smaller slices would prevent early burn out and enable more sampling for better assessment.
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