Sapori Di Napoli :)

Last weekend my aunt and I were joined by a few of her friends to try a restaurant called Sapori di Naploli in Decatur. To start off, let me give some background about the place. The owners are from a small town outside of Naples. Two brothers, fluent in Italian, work behind the counter making pizzas right in front of a 5000 pound wood fired oven. A waitress, who I assume is the sister of the two brothers, also works there and they are truly enjoyable people.

Before we got any food my aunt and her friends, who also could speak a little Italian, chatted with the staff. As a non-Italian speaker, I mainly looked at the menu and smiled whenever I heard, “Alessandro”. There was a lot of laughing and hand motions I could not join in on, but it was so Italian and I loved it. This made the restaurant a truly great experience even before I got to order any food. My aunt later told me they talked about how the pizza oven is one of only three in Atlanta that uses wood as a fuel. The other two are in Antico and another restaurant in Atlanta. The two brothers explained how American pizza ovens are too big and as a result the heat does not spread well causing the pizza to not cook evenly. I don’t really understand much about the distribution of heat or any of that mumbo jumbo, but let me tell you; it works. The Margherita pie we ordered was amazing.

We ordered few appetizers before the main course. I could not believe my eyes when I saw arancini’s on the menu, or as I like to call them, oranginis! My favorite food from home was replicated well and it tasted almost as good. Five were ordered for the table and I ate three of them. My companions at the table weren’t too happy, but I couldn’t help it.

The best part about the pizza was definitely the crust, although the sauce and cheese were not too shabby either. It was the perfect representation of Neapolitan pizza. The crust was light and airy, lightly blackened in spots and held up the pizza well. Sapori di Napoli benefits from the the bufala (mozzarella cheese) packs a lot of flavor into each slice.

Sapori di Napoli is one of those places that just wants you to go back. It has a great atmosphere that exhumes casualness. The way the tables are set up and situated in the restaurant reminds of an old style pizzeria from my home town. The staff is lovely and they cater to your needs. Saporo di Napoli stays high on my list for best pizza in Atlanta and I will be going back soon and I encourage you to go as well.