For a true slice of East Coast flavor, look no further than Nicky D’s Wood Fired Pizza on De la Vina Street, where longtime pizzaiolo Nick DeMarinis and his wife, Bunny DeMarinis, have been serving up whole pies of brick-oven-baked goodness for five years. As much an attraction as the pizza itself, the exuberant pair abounds with stories and laughter, the perfect topping to a truly tasty take on everyone’s favorite Italian import, New York style.
Slices are sold as well as whole pies, and favorites include the Margherita — its crust a delicious balance of soft and crisp — or, for a richer experience, the Pesto Bravo, a pesto pie bejeweled with generous bulbs of garlic, slivers of red pepper, sausage, and daubs of goat cheese. There’s also the White Garlic Clam, which can be elevated further with the addition of bacon.
Nicky is carrying on the DeMarinis family legacy — his grandfather was an Italian pizza chef and his father a restaurant owner — and feels that his oven sets his pizza apart from the pack. “I wanted to be different, and I knew that wood was the way to do it,” said DeMarinis, who imported bricks from Rome, Italy. “The chariots drove over the top of the bricks,” he said. “The fire’s never really completely out,” explained Bunny, adding that her husband cooks “all by instinct and feel … He does a ballet with his hands almost when he’s making pizza. It’s beautiful to watch.”