Ignazio's
4 Water Street, under the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn; 718.522.2100
A supremely confident upstart will throw the gauntlet right in their competitor's face -- Red Mango opened mere feet away from Pinkberry, while Google took on Yahoo! in the very same internet. Baking pies in the face of a Dumbo legend, Ignazio's, planning to open next week.
Perched under the Brooklyn Bridge like a troll who just wants to feed you, Ig's comes from a Texan-by-way-of-Brooklyn pizzologist who sold his crazy successful Hartford operation to bravely open a joint right on Grimaldi's doorstep. Made with regional/seasonal ingredients, the dizzying array of homemade thick crusters range from the traditional (Sicilian w/ garden-grown tomatoes, bianca w/ pecorino romano & cracked peppercorn) to not, e.g., scallops w/ garlic & oregano, white clam w/ black pepper, and an organic corn- and kale-slathered pie w/ lobster claw meat so succulent, you'll give new meaning to "shove it in your piehole". Washing it down's all-Italian reds/whites, plus suds sourced entirely from Brooklyn, including Brooklyn Brewery, Sixpoint, and Kelso, who claim mistaken association with Ashton Kutcher has been "markedly positive" (dude, where's your evidence?).
For entertainment, Ignazio's boasts a baby grand on a small stage, and every night'll host all manner of acts, from reggae, to blues, to world music -- confidently pitting the goodness of his pies against the badness of the pan flute.
