Traviata Pizza

Day 81 of the T-90 Project had some good and some bad. First I'll share the good news. Had two scrumptious Italian meals in a row. There was heated debate in the newsroom regarding the best pizza in the hood. Some said Rigoletto, some said Patsy's while others said Traviata. I'd never even seen or heard of Traviata, but I'm glad I made the stop. It's on the north side of 68th and I'd never step foot in the place had it not come highly recommended. It looked like it probably did 95% of its business by delivery or take-out. It was excellent thin-crust pizza, though I think I prefer a slightly more crisp, well-done crust.

I tried a plain cheese piece and a really cheesy white piece topped with ricotta. Both helped me overcome my vicious hangover and got me to Sag Harbor in one piece before dinner with Mom, Dad and Uncle Butzy.

Mom and Dad stick to the Catholic "eat-fish-on-Good-Friday" rule so they wanted to get some Italian in Sag Harbor. For some reason, after years of visiting the Hamptons hamlet, we'd never been to Il Capuccino. Not only was it charming and the service was super-friendly, but I had one of the most delectable pasta dishes ever. The photo doesn't do it justice, but it may have even gotten better with tin foil and a refrigerator. I ordered the specialty pasta -- tortelloni al pastacchio -- or cheese tortelloni with roasted pistachios in a creamy alfredo sauce. Holy moly. Not only was the pasta great, but the bread was a total show-stopper. After we ordered drinks they served about a dozen crispy garlic knots and we were all drooling over them.

Now for the bad news... I went out Thursday night and got so destroyed at El Rio Grande that I not only got sick leaving my apartment for work Friday morning, but I got sick AT work. I started this whole project to experience new things, but I could have lived without that as a new first. Not one of my shinier moments. But again, leading up to the pain, it was a fun, rowdy, margarita-packed night. Next time I'll just make sure to eat a hefty plate of nachos before imbibing five of their lethal concoctions.

*Traviata Pizza, 101 W 68th St, at Columbus Ave., (212) 721-1101
*Il Capuccino, 30 Madison St. Sag Harbor, NY, (631) 725-2747
*El Rio Grande, 160 E. 38th St, between Lexington & 3rd Ave., (212) 867-0922