Risottoria

While in NYC, Liz and I wanted to enjoy some of the vast culinary experience that the city had to offer.  One of the great things about large cities is that niche markets, such as gluten-free cuisine, are embraced.  And so, Liz and I researched some gluten-free options, and settled upon the Risottoria, a pizza and sandwich shop with advertised GF options.

When we got to the Risottoria, we were seated right away in close seating by the window and door.  The ambiance felt a little like a diner, with a large case along one side of the café selling wares such as t-shirts and GF pizza dough mix.  We were started off with gluten-free breadsticks, which I must say, were quite tasty.  While crispy and flaky on the outside, the inside wile delightfully chewy, and we finished our sticks so quickly that the waitress brought us a second helping.

We decided to go with pizzas for lunch, as homemade GF pizza crusts are unheard of in Boston.  We ordered one with sausage, onion, mozzarella, and Calamata olives.  The other had garlic-roasted shrimp and Gruyere cheese.  Both had tomato sauce as a base. 

The shrimp pizza was quite tasty.  The cheese made the crust buttery and delicious, and the shrimp had a pleasant snap and spice, though you could still taste the nice flavor of the crust. 

The sausage pizza was also good, as the spice from the thin-sliced crispy sausage and the intense flavors from the olives made for an exciting slice of pie.  The crusts were very thin, New York-style crusts.  They were crispy on the edges and floppy in the middle, so the slices required folding, but were very tasty.

The menu at the restaurant also offered sandwiches and risottos, and catered to vegan and gluten-free needs.  There were gluten-free beers on the beer menu, and the iced tea that was ordered came with a bottle of simple syrup, a nice touch.

All told, the Risottoria was a very nice find.  The food tasted like actual food, which is difficult sometimes when dealing with gluten-free cooking.  Not only that, but it tasted like good food that I would search out again.  I want to go back and try the rest of the menu, but the best I will be able to do is task anyone who can to taste more items from this East Village gem.  Search this one out, and you will be pleasantly surprised.