This is not a joke. We found the best pizza in Baltimore. Saturday night Nathan and I decided to knock another restaurant off of our bucket list and headed over to Verde Pizza. This is another relatively new spot in town and we had pretty high hopes after seeing some amazing-looking pictures on their facebook page.
Margherita Pizza
Vedura Delizia – smoked bufala mozzarella, roasted butternut squash cream, zucchini, roasted red peppers, basil & evoo
Hard to argue with the looks of those pizzas, right? Right. So we made our way over.
The kitchen was pretty open and there were 2 chefs making the pizzas right up front. I always love watching the food being made!
Open kitchen
I sipped on a glass of Nero D’Avola as we waited for our appetizers. It was a great choice; very easy drinking, light tannins, and a little bit fruity. I loved it!
In case you don’t know what a glass of red wine looks like..
Appetizers
Tre Porcellini – Roasted vegetable trio of red pepper, eggplant, and mushroom,
served with homemade foccacia
The Tre Porcellini consisted of three roasted vegetables—that night they offered mushrooms, red peppers, and eggplant—served with homemade foccacia. They were all great, but the slightly-sweet red pepper was my favorite. The eggplant, however, had a little extra olive oil on it that was perfect for dipping the bread in!
Insalata Mista – Spring mix with grape tomatoes, EVOO, and balsamic glaze
We also split the Insalata Mista. Such a simple salad but all of the ingredients were so fresh. The grape tomatoes were like candy and the balsamic glaze was just sweet enough. We also got a little parmesan on the side to sprinkle on top. I would highly recommend that!
Pizza
The best way to test a pizza place is to get their margherita pizza. That was our original plan, but when my pizza-loving husband set his eyes on the menu, it was quickly decided that we would be ordering 2 pizzas. Another night to take home leftovers! [It’s kind of our thing now.. ;)]
Margherita – Tomato sauce, homemade mozzarella, basil, EVOO
As soon as Nathan took his first bite he said he was immediately transported back to Gusta Pizza, our favorite pizza in Italy. The crust is so light and perfectly crisp. We loved the char on the outer edges from the brick oven, there was the perfect amount of the rich, flavorful tomato sauce, and the homemade mozzarella was so creamy.
Salsiccia e Funghi – Tomato sauce, homemade mozzarella, sausage, wild mushrooms,
fresh ricotta, basil, EVOO
When I asked the waitress how the Salsiccia e Funghi pizza is, she replied “you know, standard awesome.” She was spot on. The sausage was just a little bit smokey which paired well with the meaty mushrooms. The dollop of homemade ricotta cheese in the middle might have been my favorite part. I don’t think I’ve ever had such creamy, melty ricotta before and I could have gone for more on top!
I know I said we made this bucket list so we could get to a bunch of restaurants before we head to California, but we are seriously considering heading back to Verde again. Can’t you see it in Nathan’s face? 😉
So pensive.
Food for Thought
Have you ever tasted a dish that transported you back to another time in your life?
What’s the best pizza you’ve ever had?
Barr & Table 