Mama Palma's Margherita Pizza

Got a tip from a workmate about this place after mentioning I haven't been able to find really good pizza in Philly. She mentioned Mama Palma's, on the corner of 23rd & Spruce.



Although they do carry out, this place seemed much more like the kind of pizza shop you want to sit down and linger in...families enjoying not only pizzas, but other Italian fare...couples & groups of friends enjoying the summer night w/outdoor seating.
The menu had a wide variety of gourmet ingredients and pies to choose from(Clam white pizza looked good!), even Belgian beers to drink...too bad tonight we were in the mood to Grab&Go.



This is a pretty accurate caricature of Mama on the box...in fact, she happened to put in a surprise appearance while I was waiting...with a young mother and slew of babies in tow, the place pretty much erupted into an"Italian baby bouncing" scene...what was already a family joint really went over the top...still, the place had a charm.



OK, enough about the establishment, let's talk about the pizza. Mama's has the classy brick oven cooking approach and you can taste the quality in every bite; we ordered a Margherita w/ Veal Sausage...pricey at $20 for 12 inch, but worth the flavor.

The aromas of this pie had been wafting out of the box for the walk home, promising a fresh, full flavored pizza.

On the first-bite you can taste the herb-dusted mozz...fresh and full of milky flavor...the fresh tomato chunks blend in perfectly and the fresh basil & veal sausage created a peppery-fennel richness in every bite. We drizzled a little bit of olive oil over the pie upon serving to spread those lovely flavors around.



The crust and those signature tiny bubble that signify crispiness...although the pie had sogged up a bit on the walk home, a few minutes in a blazing hot oven firmed up the crust.

The box proudly boasted Best in Philly 2001 and I'm happy to say that Mama's isn't lying to you. It's a little expensive, which makes it a luxury pizza...that's really the only bad thing I could say about it.

Thanks to M____ for the tip about Mama's! We'll see if Mr. Starr's experiment on Headhouse can deliver on the concept that Mama's seems to have gotten right...thin, crispy crust pizza full of fresh flavors.