An authentic wood-burning pizza oven from Italy and a small menu featuring pizzas and a few other items can be found at the newly opened Aquila Pizza Al Frono in Little Falls. It has taken over the space of Bivio, which closed in November after being in business for five years. The restaurant is open Wednesday through Saturday from 5 to 10 PM. The room is small and reservations are only taken for parties of 6 or more. Plan accordingly.
We started with two specials that were recited without their prices. Two hefty beef meatballs were sprinkled with pine nuts and surrounded with a scrumptious San Marzano tomato sauce and a scoop of creamy ricotta, and a salad of kale, red onion, chickpeas and feta dressed with a lemon vinaigrette. Both were big enough for two to share. Five pizzas are on the menu along with one special. We ordered two, both of which were made with the distinctive and flavorful San Marzano sauce. One was topped with mozzarella, sausage and spinach and the other had earthy wood-roasted mushrooms, mozzarella and thyme. Both were winners except that we would have preferred a browner, crispier crust.
We opted for the tiramisu, one of two desserts offered. The other was pignoli cookies and our waiter told us that both were made in house. The tiramisu was cloyingly sweet and was left uneaten. Falls Creamery, an ice cream parlor that sells Bickford ice cream from Maine is a few doors down and we headed there for dessert (but heads up, this ice cream parlor is now closed till the spring).
Aquila Pizza Al Forno
7 A Paterson Avenue
Little Falls
BYO
973-256-0050
Sausage pizza
Photos courtesy of Lowell Saferstein
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