Restaurant Review: Di Fara Pizza

1424 Avenue J
at E. 15th St
Brooklyn, NY 11230
(718) 258 - 1367

Pizza
Price: $2 - $35
Dine In, Take Out

So my buddy called me up yesterday afternoon and asked if I was in the mood for pizza. I was but little did I know that we would be traveling an hour and a half to Midwood, Brooklyn for the pizza. My buddy said that I won't be disappointed.

Di Fara Pizza's is located in Midwood Brooklyn. Its a little pizzeria on the corner of Avenue J and 15th Street. We got there around 6:30pm and they were just opening the door. In less than 5 minutes, the place was packed with patrons as everyone started ordering the hand-made pizzas by Domenico DeMarco who has been making pizzas for more than four decades. We were the second patrons to placed an order and luckily got a table. I went up to see Mr. DeMarco make his pizza and I would say, it was amazing to see him make his masterpiece. He was very delicate but intricate in making each pie and I could see that the patrons didn't mind the wait.

So we ordered one special pie and two slices of the square pie. We also had to wait but it sure was worth it. We first got our square slices and I was so hungry that I decided to take a first bite. Big mistake, it was fresh out of the oven and kinda burn my tongue a bit. Anyway, the slice was really good, the crust ws well cook and the cheese just melts into your mouth. The basil gave it a touch of color and fragrance. It was worth my tongue getting burned.

Then our pie came and you could just see everyone eying the pie, freshly out of the oven. The special pie ($35) is made up of fresh mozzarella cheese, onions, Italian sausage, mushrooms and grated parmesan cheese topped with fresh basil which Domenico adds after pulling the pizza out of the oven. This was even better. The crust was crisps, the tomato sauce was sweet while the rest of the ingredients just made the whole pie look tempting and tasty. I took my time in eating my slices - smelling the aroma as I took each bite and let it sit inside my mouth - tasting all the fresh ingredients in my palate. I can't believe we finished the whole pie between my and my buddy.

So was it worth it to travel all the way to Brooklyn for Di Fara Pizza... you betcha

Fact: Di Fara has been only closed once - when Domenico De Marco had to have foot surgery.

Restaurant Review: Pizza Hut - Wingstreet

214 E Route 59
Nanuet, NY 10954
(845) 624 - 2203

Fast Food
Price: $ 3 - $20
Dine In, Take Out, Order Online

Pizza Hut was closed the last time I past through Nanuet a month ago but a colleague of mine told me that it had reopened and was now re-branded as Pizza Hut - WingStreet. So I went there yesterday to try out the new joint.

The place is typically the Pizza Hut style chain store - red roof with brick walls. What I notice that the place was packed for lunch. And maybe that was a bad thing. I stood on the waiting area for at least 10 minutes without any of the servers coming to assist me. The only time they came was when a family came into the door. Now, I cannot blame the servers either since I notice that there was only three of them for the entire place and I guess they are getting overwhelmed by the number of clientele they had for lunch. I also notice that the manager is also getting overwhelmed by the number of takeout orders they had. Could this mean that the kitchen wasn't well staffed?

I finally got seated and the server asked me what I want to drink. I ordered my drink as she handed me the menu. She brought my soda but instead of asking if I was ready, she decided to walk away and take care of another table. Anyway, she came back and finally took my order. I ordered the $5 lunch special which is composed of a one-topping personal pizza, side-salad or breadsticks and soda, and 8 pcs breaded Buffalo Mild Wings.

Sure took awhile for my order to come since I finished my soda and had it refilled before my 3 breadsticks came. The breadsticks were excellent, it was crisp on the outside with the taste of cheese and soft on the inside. And the serving was quite large and it came with a marinara sauce which was delicious. Halfway through my second breadstick, my server came to asked me what kind of wings I ordered again. Which was odd since the kitchen and servers usually know what each table ordered. Anyway, my wings came after I finished my second breadstick.

The wings were not that great. The breadcrumbs were already falling off the minute I pick up a wing. And most of the wings were undercooked that the bones still had a color to them. I should have return the wings but it was already tough to get the attention of the servers and I might end up staying longer that I want to.

My personal mushroom pizza was the last item to be brought out. The pizza was warm while the crust was crisp but it seems like they were running low on mushrooms. The mushrooms were so tiny and too wilted probably from being in the oven too much.

Finally after I finished my meal, I didn't know if I was supposed to go to the cashier to pay for my meal or I was suppose to wait for my server to come back.

I'm pretty disappointed with this place. I know that they just reopened but that's not an excuse for having lousy food and lousy service. There is definitely a lot of things for them to improved on and they better do it soon or they will just lose more of their clientele and end up permanently closing the place down.

Pizza Hut WingStreet's website
Rockland County's website

Restaurant Review: Di Fara Pizza

1424 Avenue J
at E. 15th St
Brooklyn, NY 11230
(718) 258 - 1367

Pizza
Price: $2 - $35
Dine In, Take Out

So my buddy called me up yesterday afternoon and asked if I was in the mood for pizza. I was but little did I know that we would be traveling an hour and a half to Midwood, Brooklyn for the pizza. My buddy said that I won't be disappointed.

Di Fara Pizza's is located in Midwood Brooklyn. Its a little pizzeria on the corner of Avenue J and 15th Street. We got there around 6:30pm and they were just opening the door. In less than 5 minutes, the place was packed with patrons as everyone started ordering the hand-made pizzas by Domenico DeMarco who has been making pizzas for more than four decades. We were the second patrons to placed an order and luckily got a table. I went up to see Mr. DeMarco make his pizza and I would say, it was amazing to see him make his masterpiece. He was very delicate but intricate in making each pie and I could see that the patrons didn't mind the wait.

So we ordered one special pie and two slices of the square pie. We also had to wait but it sure was worth it. We first got our square slices and I was so hungry that I decided to take a first bite. Big mistake, it was fresh out of the oven and kinda burn my tongue a bit. Anyway, the slice was really good, the crust ws well cook and the cheese just melts into your mouth. The basil gave it a touch of color and fragrance. It was worth my tongue getting burned.

Then our pie came and you could just see everyone eying the pie, freshly out of the oven. The special pie ($35) is made up of fresh mozzarella cheese, onions, Italian sausage, mushrooms and grated parmesan cheese topped with fresh basil which Domenico adds after pulling the pizza out of the oven. This was even better. The crust was crisps, the tomato sauce was sweet while the rest of the ingredients just made the whole pie look tempting and tasty. I took my time in eating my slices - smelling the aroma as I took each bite and let it sit inside my mouth - tasting all the fresh ingredients in my palate. I can't believe we finished the whole pie between my and my buddy.

So was it worth it to travel all the way to Brooklyn for Di Fara Pizza... you betcha

Fact: Di Fara has been only closed once - when Domenico De Marco had to have foot surgery.