Arresting Pizza at New York Pizza Department?

New York Pizza Department

2279 Eagle Glen Parkway #105

Corona, CA 92883

After I posted my last blog about a Cuban restaurant in Corona, I got a comment from Mikehu about a pizza place in Crown Town. Mike had not been there himself, but his boss had raved about it. That was good enough endorsement for me. It just so happened that we were going to be in the area visiting Sabrina and Anthony, so that is where we decided to head.

Actually, I should clarify this. We got the food here to go. So, I have still technically not been to the restaurant, but I was really excited to blog about it. I was in the mood for a really good New York pizza, and if I was going to sit through all of Sabrina's awful stories, then I should at least have a great food experience to show for it, right? Also, if the food was not good I can at least plug my ears with it. Of course I am just kidding PPG, (sorry, inside joke).

New York Pizza Department opened its doors in 2004. Like most restaurants this one has a story to go along with it. A group of friends from NYC moved to Southern California, and missed the great food of the Big Apple. They had been in the bagel business back home, and now wanted to venture out into the world of Italian cooking and pizza. They used their families recipes to help shape the menu, so lets see how it all turned out for them.

We have been on a real Garlic Knots kick lately, and here was no exception. At NYPD these knots were definitely topped with enough garlic to keep any vampire away, but they were not as soft as we would have liked. I would have liked these better, if the garlic had been baked in as well, instead of having the garlic presented on top of the knot.

Our second appetizer choice for the evening was the Fried Mozzarella. This dense, triangle of cheese was very good. The breading was seasoned well, and the cheese inside had a thickness to it, that added to the heaviness of this starter. The marinara sauce that accompanied this was a good companion to this cheese wedge.

When it came time to order the pizza we opted for the N.Y.P.D. Special. This Neapolitan style pizza came with pepperoni, sausage, onions, meatballs, mushrooms, and bell peppers. We omitted the olives that usually come on this pizza. True to New York form, the pizza slices were cut very large. This was the Bigga size which featured eight slices. The toppings here did not wow me. I really expected more flavor from them, but they yielded little. The crust was a little soggy in the middle, but the ends and outer portions were nice and crisp. The cheese was okay here, nothing to get excited about. When it was all said and done, this was a very average tasting pizza.

Unlike the pizza, the Fettuccini Ala NYPD got rave reviews at our table. This pasta dish came with pine nuts, tomatoes, chicken, broccoli, all served with pesto sauce. The flavors in this pasta dish melded well together. The pesto sauce was good, along with the perfectly cooked pasta. The pine nuts added an unexpected earthiness to this dish. The only complaint I could make about this was they kind of skimped on the chicken, or maybe Sabrina hogged it all. Good, solid pasta dish though.

I know that the P in the name of this place stands for pizza, but maybe they should change it to pasta. The pizza here failed to live up to our expectations. The pasta however was really pretty good. We have had pizza in New York this year, and this one does not compare. It was not awful, but just lacked the wow factor. The starters were hit and miss this night. The fried cheese we would get again, but we would skip the garlic knots. If I were in the area again, I would come back and give them another try.

So out of five boroughs, (because that is how many boroughs make up New York City), five being best to zero being worst, New York Pizza Department gets 2.5 boroughs.

For more information regarding New York Pizza Department, click here: http://nypdcorona.com/