Please Turn Down the Noise Level at Pulino’s

My old roommate Crystal and I hadn’t see each other since March, so last night we decided to catch up at Pulino’s. If you decide to head to Pulino’s, reservations are recommended. We tried to make a reservation the day of for 8pm, and were left with the options of 7 or 9 for 2 people, so you may want to plan in advance. When we got there, we were seated inside, but outdoor seating was also available.

Our server was very attentive, sharing her favorite dishes with us, so we went with her suggestions and ordered a melon appetizer and two pizza pies. We thought this may have been ambitious for us since our eyes are generally bigger than our stomachs, so we figured at the very least, we could take it home.

The melon appetizer came out, and it was bits of cantaloupe with prosciutto bits - almost like bacon bits, complete with some pesto on top. Typically a goat cheese creme is served on top of this, but since goat cheese is the only cheese I don’t enjoy, we put this on the side. I really enjoyed the savory and sweet combination of the melon and prosciutto. This dish is priced at $12 though, and while I thought it was delicious, I think you can skip it if you want to save some money. And trust me, if you order two pies, you’ll realize this wasn’t needed.

In between the melon and our pizzas, I realized that I was screaming at my former roommate across the table. The place was so loud, that you definitely had to raise the volume of your voice to get your point across. At first I thought I was getting cranky at the ripe old age of 25, but then Crystal admitted to that she felt like she was going to lose her voice. The ceilings are high, so everything in the restaurant just echoed - if you’ve ever been to Sea in Brooklyn, it was that type of volume. I thanked God that I wasn’t at the table next to me, as the two people were clearly on their first date. If I was at that table and my date was trying to explain what he did for a living and said he eats small children, I probably would have not been able to understand a word he was saying, and as a result would have giggled and said, “That sounds great.” Therefore, if you actually want to catch up with a friend, I suggest you sit outside at Pulino’s.

On to the pizza. Pizza here is thin and it is about the size of what I guess would be a little bit bigger than a personal pan pizza. We got one of the evening’s pizza specials, which had prosciutto and artichokes on it. I thought it was good, and we both agreed that it had a sweeter taste to it - which could have been the sauce. We also got another pizza, which had mozzarella, tomatoes and onions. We didn’t realize that this was a white pizza with tomatoes on top of it, rather than this being like a traditional plain pizza. While it was a little different than expected, I still enjoyed it. Since I like crushed red pepper on my pizza, I was pleased to see that pepper-infused oil was on our table, so we dipped our pizza into it (yes, my arteries are probably clogged from dipping pizza into oil). This made the pizza amazing, and the prosciutto slice tasted even better when dipped in this oil. At first I didn’t think the oil had much of a kick to it, but after a few bites of one particular slice, I found myself quickly reaching for my water.

We couldn’t make it through both pies and ended up each bringing a few slices home. I loved that instead of tossing it into a to-go box, it was placed in Tupperware and handed it to me. I appreciate the little things, and the fact that I didn’t have to transfer the pizza from a soggy container to my own Tupperware when I got home sadly excited me.

I liked the pizza at Pulino’s a lot, but the atmosphere was a little too loud for me. Right off the bat, I knew I couldn’t bring my parents, especially since my dad has trouble hearing me when I whisper something to him during Christmas mass. If you do have that friend though who never shuts up or an annoying voice, Pulino’s may be the place to take him or her - at least you won’t be able to hear it.