Positioned right at the end of a weirdly shaped arcade, and saddled with a quirky spelling of Spaccanapoli (the main road that bisects historic Naples), this restaurant certainly makes you work for your reward. Those handy with map apps and Google searches are remunerated with lightly charred, puffy-crusted Neapolitan pizzas, emerging from a central wood-fire oven. Danny Sibillo and Luigi Peluso met whilst working in a Naples pizzeria, so all is forgiven when Danny – whom I last met at his Watsons Bay Sicilian: Gusto – tells me: “the name reminds us of home”. He’s quick to offer us the Monday/Tuesday special – three “tapas” dishes and a cocktail for thirty bucks. The Amalfi ($14.50) makes me rethink my ambivalence toward limoncello by teaming it with vanilla vodka and orange juice; while their namesake Spakka Napoli ($13.50) is robust sangria. It’s guaranteed to complement their generous terracotta pots of Meatballs ($9.50), Eggplant Parmigiana ($10.90) and my favourite – Pollo Alla Cacciatore ($9.90). Each dish comes with a unique red sauce, and with a side order of bread, they leave us just enough space to share the Eggplant Sausage Pizza ($22.90) special. It’s further improved by chilli sauce, which probably should come with a warning label, or at least an imported red-label Peroni ($7) to ease the pain.
Spakka-Napoli
Shop 13, 166-174 Military Road, Neutral Bay
Ph: (02) 9908 7045 spakkanapoli.com.au
Pizza, Italian $$
