“In Napoli, where love is king, when boy meets girl, here’s what they say…” When hearing those famous opening lyrics what does one’s mind think of? Of course, pizza pie and amore. I love of pizza can be a heartbreaking thing, especially if one’s choices are limited to national chains whose “pies” have the same flavor and texture of the cardboard boxes in which they are delivered. But I’m fortunate enough to be living in Seattle where there are a few choices for good pizza. One of which, I’m told, is Via Tribunali and I was willing to give them a test.

Via Tribunali sits in a tiny, non-descript space on Pike Street just East of Broadway, if you’re not paying attention it’s easy to miss. But once inside you are rewarded with an intimate space that is perfect for close conversations with friends or a certain someone special. The service itself can be kind of bumpy during your meal depending on how busy the restaurant itself gets and it does get busy. I arrived for dinner just after 6 PM and was fortunate that there were a few tables left. By the time I had paid my check there was a crowd in the bar and in the “lobby” area waiting for their turn at my table. Go early, make a reservation or be prepared to listen to Dean Martin while you wait on a spot (Not horrible situation to be in if you ask me).

I’ve read and heard mixed reviews of the food at Via Tribunali. And to be honest this was not my first time visiting them either. During a past dinner, a few months back, the food was merely adequate. So during my visit this time I was careful to order from the menu a dish that should be a signature of a restaurant making Neapolitan style pizzas, the Margherita ($15.00). I should clarify that there are two versions of the Margherita pizza at Via Tribunali. One was simply Margherita ($14.00) and the other was D.O.C., which is the one I ordered. It was to be this D.O.C. that would make the difference when it came to my pizza. Made with buffalo mozzarella the pizza came to my table with little orbs of creamy, white cheese floating on a sea of slightly sweet Roma tomato sauce. The crust had the Neapolitan signature of a fire driven pizza oven; deeply browned crust with little, black charred bits here and there. This gave crispiness to the outside of the crust while preserving the chew on the inside. While some may see this crust and think, “It’s overdone”, it actually plays well with the sweetness of the sauce, tempering that sweetness. Unlike some sauces this one was made very simply, no added spices to mask the flavor of the tomatoes. But it was the cheese that made the pizza. Not overly dominating of the area of the pizza the “dollops” of cheese were little creamy islands that slowly melted, spreading across the surface and melding with the tomato sauce. In essence it was creating a tomato cream sauce. Like other Margherita pizzas I’ve eaten in the past, however, the amount of basil was disappointing. I know, the basil isn’t the star but it would have been nice to have had its appearance a little more noticeable.

So out of two visits to Via Tribunali I’ve had a hit and a miss. Is a fifty-fifty chance worth a wait of thirty to forty-five minutes? If you are intending to order the Margherita D.O.C., then I’d say, “Sure is.” Plus, you may get lucky and they’ll be playing a Dean Martin CD. “When you walk in a dream, But, you know you’re not dreaming Signore, ‘Scusa me, but you see, Back in Old Napoli, That’s amore!”