They had me at coal oven

A couple of weeks ago I got an email from a local, local newspaper. The headlines mentioned a new pizza place opening in the Worthington area, which would ordinarily not be major news to me, but this headline mentioned a coal oven.

Being born and raised on the East Coast, my version of a good pizza is different than the rest of the world. I try not to be a snob, there is good pizza to be had in Columbus. Really. Buffalo on the other hand...

Pizza cooked in a coal fired oven is a time honored tradition. I've been to the big three of Manhattan pizzerias that use a coal oven: Grimaldi's, John's and Lombardi's.

These might not even be the best pizza places in the city, but they make a great, if not slightly pricey pie. To me, these places are a standard for how a pizza should be made.

So it was with excitement and trepidation that I went to eat at the recently opened Natalie's Coal Fired Pizza.

It's a refurbished chain sandwich place with a decent amount of parking, although it was filled when we left. There's a bar right when you walk in, a small patio, and a decent sized dining area. There's also a stage, the place is investing in live music with a lot of local and indie bands being booked. In fact, I saw the former owner of a now defunct Columbus club that was an institution working behind the bar.

The decor is pleasant, with some of the owner's personal rock memorabilia on the walls, and on the tables.  Here's what was on our table.

There's also a decent draft beer selection, a fair amount of bottled beer and a full bar. I understand they are waiting for their application for a wine license to be accepted.

We ordered the Arancini, a risotto with goat cheese, then deep fried appetizer to go with our pizza. Remember, I'm with a Scot. It was good, my wife wanted more goat cheese, she always does.

The pizza came, we got the  Margherita, and it certainly was big enough for two to share. Somewhere between 12-14 inches. I do not do food porn, so I did not take a picture. It looked good.

The crust was excellent, the coal makes it crisp and chewy to go with the thinness. The sauce had a good tomato base with other spices. They skimped on the mozzarella though, but I always want more on my pie. As fine a pizza I've had in Columbus.

We were feeling so good we ordered a cannoli-tini for dessert. Riccotta cheese with the light sweetness in a martini glass with slices of the canolli dough. Quite good, the dough could have used some more crunch, but that's me.

Overall an excellent first experience at a place that had not even been open for a week. The prices are quite fair. Service was friendly, I got into a pleasant conversation with the chef about coal oven pizzas when I was looking at the pizza oven. We will return, will recommend and wish this place much success.