Get Yourself to Burrata Wood Fired Pizza
/Burrata Wood Fired Pizza has been open since 2012 in Eastchester, NY. We don’t live all that close by, so it took us way too long to get here. But on the advice of a good friend, we finally tried it last month and, well, it was so crazy delicious that we came back again last weekend, but this time with 10 additional family members. Even with such a large, unruly (our party included 4 young kids) group, Burrata Wood Fired Pizza came strong.
The execution of the dishes is what makes Burrata Wood Fired Pizza a great restaurant, but before I even get to what you’re putting in your mouth, I must first give the restaurant credit for its menu. It is simple but elegant. There are Italian basics done extremely well on that menu, along side more interesting, less “safe” offerings done just as well. You can visit this restaurant with picky eaters and adventurous eaters, and everyone will find something to make her happy.
Start with the Veggies, Meats and Burrata
Start your meal with at least a few picks from the Antipasti, Insalate and Verdure sections. When you visit Burrata Wood Fired Pizza, most certainly include a burrata dish in your order.
If you haven’t had it yet, burrata is an insanely delicious Italian cheese made from mozzarella and cream. It has a tougher, elastic exterior like mozzarella and a dreamy, creamy interior somewhat like ricotta cheese. It is available as an appetizer, Crema Di Burrata, which comes as a large blog of simple, delicious burrata covered in sea salt, black pepper and EVOO, and served with toasted bread. There is also a Burrata Salad, served with wood roasted sweet peppers, red onions and parsley. And burrata also finds its way into several of the pizzas offered. More on that later.
Besides the Crema Di Burrata (which qualifies as a “Must Order”), we have enjoyed the Polpettine (veal meatballs served in a rich tomato sauce alongside more of that toasted bread) as an appetizer. Last weekend my family members raved about the Arancini Alla Piemontese (white truffle and mushroom risotto balls) and my father also loved his Escarole and Bean Soup.
There are four salads offered, including the Burrata Salad, as well as a really nice selection of vegetable plates. From the Verdure section, we have so far only tried the Beets, which come wood roasted with pickled red onion, pistachio crumble and ricotta salata. Next visit, I’d like to try the charred baby carrots with whipped ricotta, thyme and honey.
Then Carb-Load
Now it is time to carb-load. As the name suggests, Burrata Wood Fired Grill has a wood fired grill. In said grill, they make some tasty pizzas. The pizzas range from a simple Margarita to the killer J. Sexton No. 2, (tomato, garlic, chilled burrata, raw basil, olive oil, black pepper and parmigiano). If you did not get enough burrata during the appetizer course, consider the Burrata pizza, served with wild mushrooms, garlic, chili flakes, parmigiano, basil and porcini oil. If I can ever tear myself away from the pastas, I would like to try the Cockle pie (baby clams, mozzarella, garlic, chili flakes, parsley, lemon and olive oil) on my next visit. The restaurant also offers a Calzone with wild boar salumi, ricotta, basil, black pepper, mozzarella, tomato and parmigiano.
The pastas at Burrata Wood Fired Pizza are truly outstanding and each made in house. Despite the restaurant’s name, if you only have room left in your belly for one carb, I’d make it a pasta. Let’s put it this way: on our first visit, I ordered the simple Spaghetti with tomato, basil, garlic and parmigiano for my daughters, and after trying a bite, I immediately called it the best pasta in tomato sauce I’d ever tasted. It’s that good.
A favorite of pasta dish of the house is the Agnolotti, a short rib filled pasta with butter, aged balsamic, piave cheese and toasted bread creams. It is so buttery and smooth and makes a great companion dish to a red sauce pizza or pasta. On this past weekend’s visit, my husband went crazy for the Gnocchetti, served with lamb bolognese sauce, ricotta, oregano and pistachios. I foresee that being part of all our future orders at the restaurant.
And a Bit about the Drinks, Desserts and Waits
A good restaurant has a good everything, including a solid drink list. We have become somewhat of a craft beer snob couple and Burrata Wood Fire Grill serves the good stuff. They offer a rotating selection of great beers from spots like Bissell Brothers, Threes Brewing, Sloop Brewing, etc. Their wine and cocktail game is strong, too. I tried the Lolo Ono, a Tiki cocktail with dark rums, assorted citrus, ginger, vanilla and cinnamon on this past visit. The spices actually made it feel wintry and appropriate to eat with heavier foods like pizza and pasta.
Burrata’s dessert list is also nice. There is a chocolate cake offered, but the menu notes it takes 15 minutes to make, so we skipped this (those unruly kids) and ordered zeppole and cannoli. Both were excellent and quickly gobbled up by our group.
Burrata Food Wired Grill is popular because it’s that good and suitable for both adult meals and kid friendly dining. But alas the restaurant only takes reservations for parties of 6 or more. And without a reservation, there are real waits during typical dining hours.
My suggestion is to dine early, particularly if there are young kids in your party. When we arrived for our large reservation at 4:30pm, the room was initially pretty empty, but quickly filled up as the meal went on. On our first visit I think we walked right in at around 3pm. The other nice perk about dining early if you’re parents is that you will see kids at almost every table! The space is also nice enough for a date meal sans the kiddies!
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Burrata Wood Fired Pizza is located at 425 White Plains Road in Eastchester, NY. The restaurant is open Monday through Thursday from 12pm to 3pm for lunch and again from 5pm to 10pm for dinner. On Fridays and Saturdays it is open non-stop from 12pm to 11pm and on Sundays from 12pm to 9pm. Reservations are taken for parties of 6 or more.