Challenge Accepted!
48 Balarabe Musa Crescent. Victoria Island, Lagos.
Everything about the pizza was perfect. Just so delicious. This is the best pizza in Lagos, hands down. Argue in your house, I'm not interested in any contrary opinion. In fact, I'll fight you if you come up to me to disagree.
NOSA: Sometime last week, one of our readers emailed us to disagree with my little statement and told us to check out La Taverna. Not one to back down from a challenge, I gladly accepted.
We got the Fritas De Atun for our starter. The menu says it's a tuna samosa, but it was more tuna "meatpie" than samosa. Not like I'm complaining or anything.
FOLLY: Is "Atun" Italian for tuna or is it a meaningless anagram that's an inside joke just to make us sound silly when we order it ??
FOLLY: I usually let Nosa pick the starters cause he seems to have a knack for it. If he left it to me, I'd probably pick the safe equivalent of spring rolls every time.
That said, I think I'm allergic to tuna cause I got the little rash on my left arm just like one I got after a tuna sandwich a few weeks ago. Shame cause I really liked this.
NOSA: I really liked the pizza. It got the wood-fried oven treatment just like Pizze-riah too. If I'm being completely honest, I can't really decide which is better, they're dead even. Right amount of cheesiness and crust had the right crunch. I think I prefer the ham on La Taverna's however.
FOLLY: Personally, I think I'd go with La Taverna. The thin crust was really really good and I'm not one for deep dish pizza or Domino's nasty chewy crusts. The mushrooms most certainly didn't come out of can and I kinda liked how the pizza dough wasn't perfectly round - it looked like a human being made it.
NOSA: Instead of being cliche and getting regular-ass pasta, we got the pesto fettuccine today. Not everyday tomato-based sauce.
The fettuccine was harder than al dente, unfortunately, and two forks in, we had to send it back.
Here's the really cool part, the Chef not only makes a new plate, he comes personally the serve it. Completely washed. In a Lagos where chefs go AWOL in the middle of the day, this singular act totally won me.
FOLLY: I also thought it was so sweet. I liked the pasta, the pesto was really good and fresh - not a pre-made bottled concoction. Might have been because we had eaten the pizza before this arrived the second time, but the pasta got tiring after a while. So my recommendation would be to get it as a sharing plate unless you really like pesto like that, and if that's the case then no doubt this is for you.
FOLLY: Someone must have tipped the chef off that we were coming. Which one of you was it ?
NOSA: Blown cover?
FOLLY: After the stunt he pulled with serving the pasta himself, he also sent us two desserts. It was tiramisu with a wafer base.
NOSA: I don't think I've told you guys how much I love tiramisu. If I haven't, I LOOOOVE tiramisu.
Tiramisu and Moulin Rouge.
Ain't got shit to do with this, but i just thought that I should mention.
POSTSCRIPT
NOSA: I think La Taverna shades the pizza off the strength of their service. The waitresses are the nicest I've encountered in Lagos. One waitress kept pronouncing "Fettuccine" as feh-too-SEE-nee, and I thought it was adorable for some reason.
You win this time, Laura. You win this time.
DAMAGE
Fritas De Atun - N1500
Ham & Mushroom Pizza - N2000*
Fettuccine Al Pesto - N2000
*Wednesday night is pizza night. All pizzas are N2000