Pizza by the sea in Auckland

On a crisp cool day, I strolled along the Viaduct part of town in Auckland looking for a place to eat lunch. The trendy area has several restaurants and bistros near the water, so finding a half decent place was not be hard. Prime lunch dining was over and only a few business people lingered on, finishing up their glasses of wine, thinking about dragging their sorry asses back to the office. So I could go any place I want, not have to wait, and have my pick of prime seating on the patio, overlooking the boardwalk and watching other tourists walk by. Perfect.

I settled on Portofino, aptly named after on the Italian port town on the Mediterranean. I was going to eat there anyway because I was in the mood for some Italian food, but of course the deal was sealed when I saw at least a dozen pizzas on the menu. Perfect again.

It didn't take me long - I settled for the Proschiutto. The menu listed it as being: cured ham (hence the name Proschiutto), bocconcini, rocket and shaved parmesan. In my mind I was picturing a paper thin crusted pizza with paper thin shaved ham on it. I wasn't quite sure about the rocket (lettuce for those not familiar with it), but I'm sure it would taste fine. As is the case while traveling abroad, even in English speaking countries, the resulting dish was a little bit different than expected. Yes, it was a thin crust pizza. Yes, it had all the ingredients listed on the menu, as well as some bonus tomatoes. But the rocket and shaved parmesan were prepared like a salad and plopped down on the center. Also drizzled across the pizza was a balsamic dressing. So really, it was a pizza covered by a light salad. Not something you can easily eat with your hands. Utensils are not only recommended, but required.

The pizza was tasty. The balsamic ended up putting a nice touch on what otherwise be a pretty classic pizza. The bocconcini made the pizza a little more chewy than I thought it was going to be. And if it was up to me, I made have made the crust a smidge thinner. The edges were nicely browned and crispy, so it was baked for the right amount of time, but with the chewy cheese and crust, I could have used maybe another minute of bake time. The size was generous as well, covering an entire dinner plate, so this can easily be shared by two people. But I was hungary and still recovering from the wine from the night before, so I devoured it all. I had originally thought I would bring half of it back to the hotel room, but once I got my teeth into the prosciutto, there was no way that was going to happen. I also had a glass of the house red wine because I couldn't make up my mind between the other choices, and it was a good choice. A nice sipping wine that I could have drank all afternoon long, sitting in the sun and watching life go by.

Summary: A good thin-crust prosciutto pizza with a surprizing small salad on top. A little bit chewy, but tasty nonetheless. A little bit pricey at $23 New Zealand dollars, but the outside decor and location are well worth. An easy 8 out of 10.