This is good pizza. No, this is very good pizza. Dare I commit to say that this is the best pizza in town? I’ll need more research, but it’s certainly among the best.
It’s Muzzarella Pizza and Italian Kitchen on Lake Underhill Road just past Goldenrod Road on the east side of town.
It’s a small storefront operation with an open kitchen at the front where pies are displayed in clear cases, just as you might find in a New York pie shop, and a small dining area down one side of the narrow space.
I had called in an order to pick up, a pizza called Assisis, which had sausage, bacon, meatballs and pepperoni. I suppose it got its name from the saint, who also loved animals, though I don’t know if he had them on pizza (though he was Italian, after all). I also ordered a Meatball Sub and a cup of Pasta Fagioli.
When I arrived I was greeted warmly by a pleasant young woman. My order was ready to go, I paid and was on my way.
The pizza was impressive on a number of fronts. The crust had a perfect thickness and the dough a proper elasticity without being doughy. The sauce was not slathered too thickly and had a good balance of herbs and spicing. The meaty topping were plentiful and graced with only a soupçon of cheese, just enough to make a showing. And it was $9.99.
The sub was delicious, too. This time the sauce and cheese were appropriately more prevalent, but they didn’t overwhelm the dense balls of meat. As with all subs, the roll is key to its success, and this one was fresh and toasted and delicious.
The soup was the only disappointment. Pasta y Fagioli is a soup open to many interpretations. This one was a tad too thin for my preference, but it also lacked much flavor. It needed salt, it needed a sprinkling of cheese, it needed a drizzle of olive oil.
But, as they say, two out of three ain’t bad. And when the other two are so good, you forget the third.
Muzzarella Pizza and Italian Kitchen is at 7780 Lake Underhill Road, Orlando. It is open for lunch and dinner daily. The phone is 407-930-1102.