Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

Next time I'm in Neptune, I will check it out. And next time I'm in Trastavere, I'll try Dar Poeta again, but Il Forno will be the place I head to first, as soon as I get off the plane.

I was interested to read a review of this place by someone other than a person writing a guidebook. When I was in Rome last spring, all of the guidebooks I brought with me spoke really highly of this place so I showed up an hour before they were supposed to open to make sure I got a table. It was a rainy March night and I was the only person there. Luckily, the place filled up not too long after the doors opened. Maybe it was because mine was the first pie out of the oven that night, or maybe the hype was too much for the product, but the pie I had there was the weakest I had that week in Rome. I felt like I had been suckered into a tourist trap, which is why I was so interested to read this review. It wasn't a pad pie--but to be honest, I don't remember what kind it was. I only remember that I was disappointed. I've had better pizza at some of NY's lamest spots.

I would recommend going around the corner to Taverna La Scala and skip the lines at Dar Poeta. I had a sublime pie at La Scala with a sampling of toppings on each slice that included, but was not limited to fresh arugula, black olives, prosciutto, a fried egg, among others. The crust and the sauce were perfection and because it was a total surprise, that was one of the most perfect pies I had in London. The best, tho, was from Al Forno. Hands down, the best pie in the world. The. Best.