So, last night - after living in Vienna for nearly 8 months - I got to try what I have so often heard heralded as "Vienna's Best Pizza" - Pizza Mari'. (What's that apostrophe there for, anyway? I don't get it.)
The location was convenient to the U2, but on a street quiet enough to seem quaint and cozy, at least as viewed from the patio. Unfortunately for us, that patio was full, so we had to sit inside on a very warm night. (sad trombone)
Walking through the entrance, you actually get a great view of the pizza oven, which looks pretty cool. Sadly, that about does it for the scenery at Pizza Mari'. The rest of it is a visual snoozefest: boring white walls, boring tile floors, and cheap boring tables. That's it. (There was a statue of the Virgin Mary outside in an alcove above the entrance, so maybe they were going for that "Unitarian church basement" feeling on purpose?)
Since I didn't come here looking for "the coolest _looking_ pizza joint in Vienna", we'll skip to the good part - the pizza is, indeed, quite fantastic. Despite the fact that my "Bufala" pizza (buffalo mozzarella, basil, and tomato) had only 1.5 actual basil leaves on it, and was a bit soggy for the very thin crust, it tasted SO GOOD. I wanted to eat at least two more pizzas of it. Herr Boyfriend's "Salame" pizza (I'm still American enough that I have to remind myself it's not "pepperoni" here) was delicious and just the tiniest bit spicy - which probably means that the locals would call it "sehr scharf". Our dinner companion had the "Salsiccia" - Americans will recognize this as what we call "Italian sausage" (as if there's only one kind) - and it smelled incredible. Available drinks were about what you'd expect at a little Italian joint - though they do have a few "Italienische Limonaden" and a wine list with a bit more to choose from, if you're in the mood.
My only real issue with the experience as a whole is that the prices are a bit high, in my opinion, for a place that is clearly keeping overhead fairly low and offering a pretty limited menu. Each of our one-man pizzas cost just under €9.
The waitstaff was pleasant - maybe a bit friendlier when we left than when we arrived - not very smiley at the table, but they made sure we had everything we needed and that we enjoyed dinner. They were also patient with our American dinner companion's attempt to speak German to them, which I always find endearing.
All in all, I enjoyed it, and if I'm ever motivated enough to actually leave my house for pizza again (pizza in my world is mostly a thing that one gets delivered, so that one can eat it in one's underwear), I'll definitely be back.
Pro-tip: When you leave, don't expect an Auf Wiedersehen - here, it's "Ciao!" read more
