vip in the city

Adrienne’s Pizza Bar

New Yorkers love their pizza. I am no exception, and I particularly love discovering excellent pizza in unexpected places. The Financial District is fortunate to have Adrienne’s Pizza Bar, a stylish joint venture between Forest Hills pizza purveyor Nick Angelis (of Nick’s Pizza) and the Poulakakos family, the father-and-son team many credit with the Old Stone Street renaissance.  Their mini-empire also includes Financier Pâtisserie and the perenially-packed post-work tavern, Ulysses. (Next up for the Poulakakos men: a 24-hour diner.)

Adrienne’s is a solid notch or two above the typical Wall Street-area pizzeria. Weekdays at lunchtime, the elegant narrow space is packed with suits clamoring for a seat at the long, polished bar, or among the limited tables lining the wall. In front of almost every patron rests a flat tin tray of newly-popular grandma-style pizza ($15) with a dizzying variety of colorful toppings ($3 apiece): from the usual pepperoni, mushroom, roasted peppers and onions, to broccoli to prosciutto to sun-dried tomatoes.

According to Wikipedia, grandma pizza — a thin-crusted variation on a Sicilian pizza, made with fresh garlic and chopped tomatoes — owes its culinary origins to Long Island. Some attribute the “invention” more specifically to King Umberto’s in Elmont, though the pie’s true birthplace continues to be a matter of some debate.

The Village Voice dubbed Adrienne’s the “Perfect Downtown Pizza” — and indeed, our thickly mushroom-topped pie arrived perfectly hot and crisp, with superbly charred crusts and creamy, fresh mozzarella over bright, tart sauce.

Like all the best pizza joints in the city — and in spite of what you may have read elsewhere — Adrienne’s does not sell its popular pizza by the slice. According to the manager (whom I asked that afternoon), it just “got too crazy.” And hey, they don’t have to.

Although pizza is the acknowledged headliner, the restaurant is not just about the pizza.

One last look at the Equitable Building tree on this, the 11th day of Christmas: