Neapolitan pizzas have become commonplace throughout Israel.
The spotlight is indeed on Tel Aviv, as usual, with the flagship hit (quite rightly by the way) being "La Tigra" in Florence.
But our tiny country is full of quite a few quality places that have an oven at their center and make us great Neapolitan pizza.
Yes, Farino in Ashdod, I'm talking about you, also to you, a factory from Rehovot.
In an attempt to find for the residents of Petah Tikva and the surrounding area, this time we arrived at the "Regati" pizza bar, which opened last year and now refreshes dishes, menu and atmosphere.
The place is located near Lichin Center, the "Time Square" of Petah Tikva, the area that the city a few years ago, and there is no doubt that the atmosphere is very happy, without cynicism, at a time when Tel Aviv becomes unbearable at times, and getting there from nearby cities is too long or expensive. , It's good that a lot of alternatives have come up for fun, but no matter, the pizza cools down, we'll go back to it.
The design of "Regatti" is very noticeable, and it definitely gives a young and cool feeling when you enter the place.
You can even see how the pizza is made from scratch, which is really something that food lovers can enjoy.
Reggae Pizza, Assaf Carla
But we are not here to discuss the visibility of pizzerias, but the products they offer customers - and in this case, there is no small selection.
We opened our meal with a caprese salad that was simple, but had something very addictive in it.
The combination of the artichoke, cherry tomatoes and kalamata olives with the garlic focaccia and the various sauces made it a celebration not only for the eye but also for the palate.
It does not introduce anything new, but this salad was just fun.
The beet carpaccio, on the other hand, was less successful.
The sheep feta cheese crumbled over it was very salty, which is fine yes?
But why add coarse salt to it?
Everything has become a salty and very unpleasant bite experience, and you know what happens when salty?
True, coughing.
And do you know what looks someone who coughs or sneezes indoors in the days of Corona gets?
Not pretty.
Even the shredded pistachios and shredded mint, which were supposed to give contrast to salinity, failed to save this case.
Sometimes less is more.
Starters are always great, but the mains are, well, the main course.
Among classic and generic pizzas, you can find in Reggazi some unconventional pizzas at all.
Of the classics, we decided to go for a crunchy pizza, which includes Italian tomato sauce, mozzarella, parmesan, artichoke, garlic confit and basil leaves.
Just like the caprese salad, this pizza also has no special sophistication, and yet all the ingredients combine to form a delicious and successful creation.
Of the special pizzas, we decided to go for something we had only tried once before - a pizza with the addition of potatoes on top.
Of course this vegetable did not come alone, and its cubes were placed respectfully on the pizza alongside parmesan, mozzarella, scallions, cream, olive oil, coarse salt, black pepper and lemon juice.
The potatoes were soft and fluffy, but their taste was not really felt, which is a pretty big problem going through what should be the main ingredient of the dish.
Reggae Pizza, Assaf Carla
Despite this, the texture of the whole pizza made me want to continue eating it, thanks in no small part to the cream, which gave the pizza a softness that was the opposite of the potatoes.
This stiff softness may not have swept us away and made us think of Italy, but neither did we exactly imagine as if we were on vacation in the desert, making a potato in a campfire that took us two hours to light.
In conclusion, the deliberation on the sweets was between a knapsack pizza and a calzone with nutella and white chocolate, and it was soon clear to us that we were going for the calzone.
This is a very simple pastry: lots of soft dough filled with nutella-filled chocolate, dripping on the calzone along with the white chocolate.
It is a very sugary combination, the so-called "not for the faint of heart", but for chocolate lovers this will be a real party.
Every bite is a sweetness bomb, and as a sweetness lover it gave me the vein sugar problems I needed, and it was well worth it.
So the "reggae" is not a groundbreaking place, so what?
We do not really need every place to be groundbreaking.
Ultimately this is a place where one feels the heart of its owner lies in every dish.
The investment and thinking is completely honest, and the flavors, even in the least exciting cases, are nonetheless good.
These are the simple dishes that captivated us, and maybe that's where the place should go: not to go wild and think about how to try to emulate Italy, but how to bring it to Israel and give it the playful Israeli twist that will throw this pizza up, as it deserves.
"Reggazi" Pizza, Hashaham 32, Petah Tikva
Sunday to Saturday - 01: 00-17: 00
For inquiries to the food section of "Israel Today" on Instagram
