With the upsurge of enthusiasm for pizza certified Napoli, it’s easy to lose sight of pizza styles popular across the rest of Italy. Add that Nicola Piteo slid his restaurant into an existing Italian spot, keeping the original name, and you get some idea of how his outstanding pizza has largely flown under the radar. The bases are crafted using unrefined, stone-ground Petra 1 flour, and a dough maturation process that takes 48-72 hours. The resulting pizzas are crisper, without being dry. Each slice can be held between thumb and forefinger, providing the perfect base to explore high quality toppings, like Norma ($19) featuring fior de latte, deep fried (well-drained) eggplant pieces and shaved salted ricotta accentuated by fresh basil. I’m even more impressed with Ortaggina ($23), which takes cleverly salted vegetables – eggplant, zucchini – teams them with cherry tomatoes, red onion and fire-roasted red capsicum, then dribbles the lot with stracciatella di bufala. That’s the gooey heart of burrata cheese. It’s made freshly in Auburn using imported Italian buffalo milk, and also featured on Nicola’s killer antipasti plate – Montagna ($28), against a great collection of Italian salumi (mortadella and speck being standouts). Drink wine from Nicola’s home city – Il Conte Pecorino DOCG ($35/bottle) – and end your night with exceptional Orange Yoghurt Gelato ($5/cup).

Da Vinci’s
25 Lackey Street, Summer Hill
Ph: (02) 9716 9000 davincispizzeria.com.au
Italian, Pizza $$