What is the best way to win a college student’s heart? Perhaps it’s being a wallet-friendly pizzeria named Pizza Brutta. Located on Monroe Street, Pizza Brutta is serving Neapolitan-style pizza with locally sourced ingredients.
Derek Lee and his wife Darcy Lee founded Pizza Brutta in 2008, according to an article from The Cap Times. Wood-fired ovens straight from Italy, locally sourced salads and a fast-casual dining setting make Pizza Brutta the quintessential weeknight dinner spot.
Walking into the pizzeria, customers are immediately greeted with a warm and comforting ambiance. Grab a menu and make the tough decision of ordering the focaccia or cheesy garlic bread — or both — as a starter. Then, move on to picking your entree from over 20 pizza combinations, or build your own!
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Beginning off with the caesar salad — imitated by all and perfected by some — it was light with crisp lettuce and the perfect amount of dressing. Topped with additional parmesan cheese and focaccia as the “croutons,” the salad was an appreciable start to my girl dinner.
Next, the pizzas arrived. We chose to try the Greco, a greek-inspired pizza, the Bufalina and of course, the classic Margherita. The Greco begins with a base of San Marzano crushed tomatoes and house-made fresh mozzarella. The Greco’s toppings consisted of grape tomatoes, Italian saracena olives, feta, onions and oregano seasoning. One bite in and I knew this rating was immediately going to be above a 6.8/10 — sorry Dave Portnoy! The saracena olives added a salty perfection to this pizza. Its top was baked to perfection with slight bits of burntness and a perfectly foldable crust. If you don’t fold your pizza, what are you doing?
The Bufalina pizza began with olive oil and sea salt and was topped with mozzarella di buffalo, cherry tomatoes, parmesan cheese, garlic and basil. I was taken aback by a pizza’s lack of sauce, but to my surprise, I did not miss it. The buffalo mozzarella added a slightly tang flavor while the grape tomatoes’ acidity balanced everything out.
Finally, the crowd favorite and classic, the Margherita pizza. Starting out with the same base as the Greco — San Marzano crushed tomatoes and house-made fresh mozzarella — this was the best Margherita pizza I have had in Madison. It was light, warm and with a rich sauce made me almost believe I was in Italy.
