Pocket Pizza

THE LITTLE CORNER shopfront on Pittwater Road that used to house an oyster bar has been transformed into a quaint-and-cosy pizza parlour that looks like it was ripped from the West Side Story set. Eat like you’re in The Sopranos, lining up a serve of the weekly bruschetta (cherry tomatoes, ricotta, pickled onion, olives and parsley on our visit) to be chased swiftly by a plate of calamari rings, prawns and white bait in an almost translucent batter. Carby kicks continue apace with thick al dente spaghetti that’s part cacio e pepe and part carbonara, keeping the yolk but forgoing the porky bits to create an ultra-rich, cheesy plate of pasta. But the pizzas are why you should put this place high on your Manly hit list: they’re more fond of a pun than your average Christmas cracker (top honours for the Anchovio Banderas, Cheesus Christ and Gordon Hamsey). The Baracolli Obama riffs on a classic rapini-and-sausage pizza, again without the meat. They’ve swapped out the bitter greens for broccolini and added silverbeet for its vital, salty depth. Ricotta and fior di latte seal in the cream base, but this is no cheesy greens comfort order thanks to the tri-flavour snapback of garlic, brilliant splatters of red chilli paste (warm, not hot) and some judiciously applied lemon juice. Wines by the glass are kept at budget-friendly prices; bottles are easy to access for under a 50; and there’s a selfservice fridge for crafty brews. You can also get a cocktail mixed directly into a can of San Pellegrino soft drink. Pocket Pizza is a place where you can go and weave a carb blanket out of New York-style pizza, pasta, and tiramisù that could withstand a Northern Hemisphere blizzard. Emily Lloyd-Tait