Adrienne's Pizza Bar

You don't really need much of a culinary payoff to enjoy a trip to the odd and charming Stone Street in Lower Manhattan. As my intrepid daughters and I discovered one recent Friday evening, even in the pouring rain this semi-hidden spot seems so non-New York (but not in a bad, Manhattan Mall kind of way) that it feels like you're on an adventure.

That said, it definitely doesn't hurt if a few good slices of pizza are waiting for you once you get there, in this case courtesy of the lively and delightfully satisfying Adrienne's Pizza Bar.


Stone Street is very much an al fresco scene, and, as the rain had scared away all but the most dedicated drinkers, the three of us landed one of the roomy, if dimly lit, chandeliered booths by the window. And one more note before the food: the staff couldn't have been more friendly and professional, in general and throughout our meal, but also specifically when Co soaked our settings with a major spill. Much appreciated.


Anyway. We started with the Cinque Fegile, a bushy pile of mixed greens with generous slathers of creamy blue cheese (there was even enough to spread on our bread), nicely dressed with a simple balsamic vinaigrette. Nothing fancy, to be sure, but well executed nonetheless.

Then came the pizza course, for which we chose the "old-fashioned" rectangle pie for which Adrienne's is most known. Now, ten large pieces is a little ridiculous for the three of us to expect to finish, but we figured we had to go with the restaurant's strongest hand. And, yes, this is good, even great, pizza: crispy crust, cheese beautifully burnt, nice balance between the core ingredients. And even though we definitely overindulged on the toppings—half kalamata olives and sausage; half broccoli and mushroom... though each item was fresh and tasty, the pie in no way needed such an onslaught of flavor—we still managed to eat, and thoroughly enjoy, about two-thirds of the thing.

For dessert—a requirement after such a salty meal—we ordered a slice of Nutella Chocolate Cake, which was sweet and wonderfully gooey and took us about seven seconds to finish.

Adrienne's Pizza Bar is located on Stone Street, between William Street and Coenties Alley. It gets crowded with Financial Distict types on sunny weekday lunch hours and warm evenings, but was very pleasant in the rain and, I imagine, would also be less manic on the weekends.

Smörgas on Stone Street

Call Smörgas on Stone Street, not a destination restaurant, because you would never go out of your way to eat here, but rather a location restaurant, because you may want to go out of your way to eat somewhere on Stone Street, and if Adrienne's Pizza, which I've heard is good, has a huge line or if, like us, you're only one man and his 12-year-old daughter and so don't feel like eating a ten-piece pie which is all they sell, then you could do a lot worse than enjoy the sun, the scenery and the festive air of this surprisingly pretty financial district alleyway with a plate of serviceable Scandavian fare from... Smörgas. A Good Location Restaurant.

Wait a minute... Stone Street, you say? Yeah, I didn't know about this little pocket of al fresco dining until recently. Here's the story: in the late 1990s a consortium of sorts decided to spruce up what is said to be the city's first paved street by cleaning the historic, mostly low-rise buildings, re-cobblestone-ing the entire area, opening up six or seven restaurants and shockingly restraining themselves from throwing up all kinds of that faux historic decor that makes the nearby South Street Seaport feel so sterile. Well, those old-timey lampposts are lame, but other than that....

Anyway, our lunch at Smörgas. Bo ordered the Fjord Smoked Salmon Sandwich and received a totally fine toast-scrambled eggs-nova combo, with a side of creamy mashed potatoes. I ordered the Chicken Snofrisk salad, received the Chicken Caramel Sandwich (same thing, different format), and was reasonably happy with the way the sweet meat (it really tasted like caramel!) worked with the crunchy asparagus and side of potato salad.

Just for fun, we also got the Swedish Meatballs, which came with more mashed potatoes and topped with what I'm assuming from my IKEA visits to be lindonberry jam. And, as you can see from the pictures, everything here gets sprinkled with chives. All of this was not bad at all—competently-made comfort food, with enough interesting twists to make it seem a little special.

Smörgas is on Stone Street, which is a pedestrian-only, two-block stretch between William and Pearl Streets. Because the restaurants are a little distant from the entrance on William, and sort of around a corner, you definitely get a bit of that satisfying feeling as you approach the maze of outdoor tables that you've somehow stumbled upon a city secret.