Mulberry Street (Pizzeria)
Above: Mulberry Street pizzeria Westbourne Grove, W2
A news story on page seven of the New York Post caught my eye the other day. A report from a scientific conference in Chicago had concluded that pizza crusts contain many more antioxidants if they are baked for a longer time and at a higher temperature. Since I was sitting in Mulberry Street, eating New York pizza, with the brash skyline of Manhattan behind me, the story seemed rather apt, if a little baffling: even the most novice of cooks could have told the scientists that if you cook something for longer at a higher temperature, it is likely to be burnt. My attention wandered to the sordid secrets of Anna Nicole Smith on the opposite page, I took a swig of Chilean Cabernet (packed with antioxidants), and tucked into another giant wedge of pizza.
I was not, however, in New York. I was in a newly-opened pizzeria in Westbourne Grove – named in homage to the main artery of Little Italy – which boasts a glossy, semi-circular, floor-to-ceiling photo-montage of Manhattan on its back wall. That day’s New York Post had been freshly downloaded and was sitting on the table in one of the smart purple booths opposite the bar and kitchen, where a white-clad chef was spinning pizza dough rather in the manner of someone struggling with a king-size duvet cover.
The pizzas at Mulberry Street measure a staggering 20-inch diameter: bigger, even, than the pizzas at Lombardi’s, Little Italy’s oldest and best pizza parlour. They are served on a tall stand with their own trowel, although most of the pizzas are also available by the slice. The water used for the dough is tailored exactly, apparently, to New York tap water: which, having been to a Manhattan pizza joint a few years ago which boasted that its pizzas were made with Naples water, I found quite amusing.
My American Hot – spicy pepperoni, green peppers and jalapeños – was a pretty good effort at New York pizza, although the scattering of jalapenos needed augmenting with red chilli flakes to give it some fire, and it might have benefited from another minute in the oven: not for antioxidants, just to crisp the base a little more. The friendly staff will, I am sure, let you customise your dinner if you ask nicely. A side of panzanella made me realise the folly of ordering tomatoes in late March, but the meatballs were splendid: satisfyingly solid chunks of ground meat bathed in tomato sauce.
Perhaps to acknowledge modern tastes, everything seemed slightly under-seasoned (I have never sprinkled salt on a pizza before): a few handfuls of torn fresh basil might help, too. Puddings include an excellent cheesecake and a chocolate ice-cream sinfully drowned in espresso.
Mulberry Street is not a place to hang out for a whole evening (although the lounge-like room downstairs would be great for parties), but it has a terrific atmosphere – two plasma screens pump out rock videos and the kitchen makes great theatre – and it is the perfect place to sit at the bar with a slice of pizza and a beer, topping up the antioxidants: although perhaps ‘five-a-day’ should not be taken too literally. Bill Knott
Pizza for two with beer or house wine: approx £30
Mulberry Street
84 Westbourne Grove, W2 5RT
020 7313 6789