I met my friend Regan there for dinner. The restaurant was not crowded, but it was 8:30pm on a Monday night. She proclaimed that she was starving and so we ordered garlic knots ($8) with a side of marinara ($1.5), sweet pea hummus ($9) and a Wellfleet cherrystone clam and bacon pizza ($16.5).
The sweet pea hummus was bright and tasted of spring. It came with homemade pita bread. I think we were supposed to get house made pickles, as well, but received a small ramekin of green olives and almonds instead. The pita was warm and tender. I liked the olives, but I would have appreciated the contrast of the pickles.
The garlic knots came next and they were deadly with garlic oozing out from every crevice. I'm glad we got the marinara for dipping. I used to get garlic knots all the time in college; Koronet pizza was just a few blocks down Broadway from Columbia and they sold them, 4 for $1. My friend Alex used to inhale them (8 or 12 at a time). I wonder why more places in Boston don't have them? It seems like a good way to use up dough scraps.
The pizzas are only 12", which is small for the hefty price tag. The crust is still great. They proudly post "12-year-old starter + flour + water + salt. 3 days of fermentation. 1 wood-fire oven" all over their website. I loved the brininess of the clams paired with the smokiness of the bacon, but someone had a heavy hand with the red pepper flakes, and it was a tad too spicy for me.
In retrospect, we ordered incorrectly – everything was a bread product. We left the restaurant feeling like there was a huge (garlic) knot of dough in our stomachs. Despite that, it was a tasty meal with proficient service.
http://areafour.com/
