The Most Dangerous Combination: Artichoke Pizza

Artichoke signature slice: Spinach and artichoke sauce with mozzarella cheese

First, I would like to apologize for the lack of posting! It's been a busy couple weeks, but the upside to this is that I have a lot to post! My parents came to visit last weekend, which turned into an adventure that should have been called "Lets go find every awesome food place we can find and eat everything". Basically. Anywho, today I am talking about one of the most decadent creations I have ever heard of-- the signature slice at Artichoke. For those of you not familiar with Artichoke, it started as a little hole in the wall in the East Village, serving up humongous slices of glory late into the night. They just opened their second location with a full dining room on the west side at 17th and 10th (and guess who works a block away?! THIS GIRL). After a brief description of their pizza by my friend/fellow intern/ foodie-in-crime Andrea, we planned our first Friday lunch outing (now deemed "Foodie Fridays" and the one thing I can always look forward to each week :) and that first outing was to Artichoke.

Here's the thing: when you have things that are incredibly delectable on their own, and you merge them into one, it can either go horribly wrong or create an indescribable right. The latter happened when Artichoke created their signature slice: Pizza + Spinach and Artichoke Dip= God's gift to New Yorkers.

After getting down from the proverbial cloud I end up on from just thinking about this pizza, I need to be frank for a second-- this is NOT your stereotypical New York pizza. the crust is thicker and more fluffy with a good crust on the bottom (It reminds me of a pizza place back in Cleveland that I actually don't like, but it works with the artichoke pizza) and there is no tomato sauce. But if you love cheese, spinach and artichoke dip, and bread all rolled into one, you'll be good to go. I have also heard great things about their crab slice (All I know really is that there is crab involved) but have yet to try it. Until I get to try that, here's what I thought about Artichoke!

What I liked: The idea. Obviously, whoever made up this pizza was either pregnant and having conflicting cravings or just had the munchies, but I definitely thank them. The pizza is delicious. Super delicious. And its filling-- I don't know how anyone could eat more than one slice (Although if I was drunk enough I would probably try-- I admit that I'm a drunk eater. It's a problem) The artichoke sauce is creamy and rich, and the crust is perfectly crispy and crunchy. A definite must try for NYC.

What I didn't like: As tantalizing of a slice of pizza an Artichoke slice is, it's something you know is horrible for you while your eating it and you want to stop yourself but you can't. Why is this a bad thing? Because of how you feel later. Its wonderful as you eat it, but for me the richness of the entire slice made me feel queasy later in the day. Like I said earlier, it is very rich. Take that as you may, it is something I know I can only have once in a blue moon. Eh. Also, my slice was a bit under-seasoned, but that was easily fixed with a couple shakes of some parmesan and red pepper flakes. To each his own!

My Rating: 7 out of 10! Its a pretty fair substitute for a tino's #4. It's actually quite similar to it.

Like I said, I have a lot to post this week, so keep your eyes peeled! Until then, have a great week :)