The Bites at Inizio Pizza Napoletana – Ballantyne, Charlotte

It was time to start off our Memorial Day weekend and we decided it was Pizza, not BBQ, that was needed.  So, after a visit to a local brewery we headed east to Inizio Pizza Napoletana (Map) just to see what all the hype was about.

Let’s just say Inizio isn’t just hype.  It’s fantastic in every way.  From the minute you walk in the door you are greeted with smiles and exceptionally helpful staff members who offer advice, explain the pies, and even offer samples of ingredients. How cool.

Speaking of ingredients, one that jumped out at me was the Buffalo mozzarella. What what‽  No, it isn’t a wing sauce cheese. It’s actually a cheese made from buffalo milk.  We sampled it and it had a nice texture with a slight sweetness. Score.

We ended up ordering the Capricciosa.  It included Artichoke, Prosciutto Ham, Mushroom, San Marzano Tomato Sauce, Buffalo Mozzarella…Yum. At 16″ it’s a nice size for all the toppings you.

They make the pizza the Neapolitan-style.  Lots of fresh ingredients with less sauce and cheese than you find in the U.S. (I lived in Italy and love pizza there).

They use a wood-fired oven which slightly chars the crust. I like that a lot.  I think they could have charred it slightly more, but that was insignificant when you taste it.

Other items they offer include salads that feed four and cheesecake. I so wanted a slice, but held off.

They also have a nice selection of craft beer, including OMB, Birdsong, Triple C, NODA.  They also have Peroni Beer on tap if you want the full Italian experience.

The atmosphere is very inviting.  Every seat in the house is good.  You can watch your pizza being made even from the farthest corners of the restaurant.

I’ll say it again, the staff was friendly, fun, and efficient. The pizza was great and gave me and my wife enough leftovers to take home.

Awesome all the way around.