Modern Apizza - New Haven, CT
Overall: B+
Bruschetta
Sausage, Pepperoni, Bacon, Mushroom, Onion, and Garlic Pizza
Foxon Park White Birch Beer
New Haven has what’s known as the Holy Trinity of Pizza - Pepe’s, Sally’s, and Modern (with Bar sort of hanging out in the corner of the same room). Out of that group of four, Modern was the final one that I needed to try. To jump to the chase, I feel like it belongs 3rd in the trinity as it’s usually listed. That being said, it’s kind of like Pepe’s and Sally’s are Ferrari and Lamborghini and Modern is Maserati - worst among world class. In my largely amateur opinion, the key differnentiator seems to be the heat source in the oven - Pepe’s and Sally’s (and Grimaldi’s which I got to try on the same trip) all use coal-fired ovens while Modern uses oil-fueled (BAR uses gas). I know that the coal ovens get ridiculously hot, over 1000 degrees F, which slightly burns the pizza and seems to be key in the flavor. While BAR and Modern also have charring, it doesn’t seem to have quite the same roll in the flavor. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
We decided to start with bruschetta. Almost a deconstructed pizza in a sense, it was a fitting appetizer. Not a lot to talk about though - crostini topped with seasoned, diced tomato. A little watery, but nice tomato flavor and a nice texture. Roughly what I’d expect to get at any Northeast Italian restaurant. We also got Birch beer as the friend I was with hadn’t had it. Birch beer is hard to describe, but it’s a sort of herbal, almost spicy soda which seems to be fairly regional to the Northeast. It was a nice treat.
Onto the reason we were there: the pizza. Modern’s signature pizza is the Italian Bomb - sausage, pepperoni, bacon, mushrooms, onion, pepper, and garlic. As we expected to have leftovers and I have family who treats pepper as though it were poisonous, we left those off. This pizza was not quite what I expected. I expected to mostly love the crust, but what I really thought shined was the toppings. The crust was a little bit dry, not quite as chewy as Pepe’s or Sally’s. I’m tempted to attribute this to the lack of use of coal, but that’s entirely speculation. The sauce was pretty tasty, and the cheese was pretty minimal as is typical in New Haven style, mostly just holding on the toppings (which is did a pretty good job at considering its sparing application). The toppings, unexpectedly though it should have been obvious in retrospect. were exceptional - the best of the New Haven offerings I’ve been graced with trying. The meats worked together seamlessly and each provided a slightly different fatty richness. The mushrooms provided a slight earthiness and the onion and garlic intermingled with the sauce in a way the danced around the savory meats. This pizza was almost less of a pizza than an open-faced sandwich. I think this is where I took biggest issue with it - I went for a pizza, and while what I got was delicious, I think that the focus was in the wrong place (I have the same criticism to a much greater degree for the topping-obsessed pizza culture in Wisconsin). I feel like to pass on Pepe’s or Sally’s in favor of Modern would be to miss out on what makes New Haven pizza truly special, though it would be a nice option for anyone living in the area for whom the choice would not be mutually exclusive.
