Last year we were fortunate to visit Italy. After stops in stunning Matera and various towns in Puglia, we came back to Napoli. I was starving after a long drive and I went straight out from our hotel to enjoy a pizza fritta (the lesser-known cousin of Neapolitan pizza) at Antica Pizza Fritta da Zia Esterina Sorbillo – followed by a babà next door at Gambrinus . Enjoying this on the bustling streets of Napoli was a great experience.
There are lots of pizza restaurants in Stavanger but until now, I don’t think there have been any places that offers pizza fritta – basically a deep fried pizza! But now there is a place in town that can offer this: the pizza truck Monella Pizza . I stopped by one evening (at Lars Oftedals plass) as I saw that they had babà on the menu. This is a small yeast cake saturated in syrup made with rum and it often comes filled/topped with whipped cream or pastry cream. The Monella babà was lovely as it was saturated in the syrup and came with cream and berries.
A few days later I stopped by again – this time to check out their pizza fritta. They have various options and I choose a classical version with only tomato sauce, mozzarella, ricotta and basil. The pizza was done in 15 minutes and I sat down in a nearby shopping mall to enjoy it. The pizza was piping hot so it is a good idea to leave it for a few minutes to avoid getting third degree burns! It was larger than expected so I would say it was value for the money. When I had it in Napoli it came in a paper bag so that I could enjoy it on the go – this was not that easy with Monella’s pizza fritta. But apart from that, the pizza was delicious. There was a good taste from both the tomato sauce and the ricotta and that blended well with the mild mozzarella fior di latte.
Thanks to chef Simone and wife Lejla for serving a great pizza and a mouthwatering babà. I hope that the food truck will stay in this location for a while so that I can stop by on a summer day and enjoy a pizza fritta in the sun. If you haven’t tried Monella yet, be sure to try them out soon!
Cons: - it is a truck – will it move around or stay at Lars Oftedals plass? - Only a couple of outdoor tables to enjoy the pizza
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