New York Pizza Palace launches in Makati City

“Thirty pounds lighter” ago, I made my first trip to New York City. I cherish this picture when the World Trade Center was still proudly standing.

Just walking in the city’s busy streets gives one an indescribable high. Until my feet got firmly rooted in this melting pot called Asia, I always thought that you made it if you conquered New York, New York! It’s so geographically distant from where I am now but the good memories remain. Riding a limo from the airport, staying in Greenwich Village, hanging out, walking by Brooklyn Bridge….. here’s another favorite picture with the Radio City Music Hall in the background.

Imagine my feeling of deja vu when I attended the opening of New York Pizza Palace at the A. Venue Mall in Makati City the other night. Finally, here’s one place which brings the authentic New York experience to the Philippines! Starting with the food, and of course the ambiance. There’s a webcam flashing through the resto’s LCD screen showing live action in the streets of New York. I saw the quiet streets of my fave city as it was just starting to wake up…..

So many things to love about the New York Pizza Palace! The open kitchen concept which lets you see the pizza makers in action. Italian treats like stromboli, panzerotti and cannoli which I can’t find in the usual fastfood joints. The price points are very consumer friendly (read: affordable). Big Slices of their gourmet pizzas start at P85.

Benjo introduced me to the NYPP CEO Eric Orland who hopes to open 65 branches of his pizza brand in the Philippines within the next five years. We do hope he succeeds . After all, Filipinos love pizza, especially if it’s a good one. I also admire the company’s profit-sharing scheme where it plans to give 20 percent of its revenues to the employees.

What is New York-style pizza you may ask? It is hand-tossed, made of thin crust and you usually eat it folded in half. Here, the waiter shows us to eat pizza the NYPP way 😀

The running LED lights on the ceiling of the NYPP branch in Makati Avenue makes for an awesome attraction. It makes me feel like am in the stock market, or right there on Times Square…. I haven’t seen this in any other restaurant in the city.

Stromboli – which is a type of folded bread or turnover with fillings – is one of the featured dishes in New York Pizza Palace. I’d probably go for the sausage & pepper as the chicken & broccoli stromboli was rather mild.

Their mashed potato is very tasty and creamy!

Their house salad (P165) with sliced grapes, ripe mangoes and greens is already a meal in itself.

We ate so much during launching night, and I look forward to trying the dishes again. In the meantime, congratulations to NYPP!:)

Check out the New York Pizza Palace menu in my Flickr page or look for it in the NYPP website

NYPP Makati
Ground Floor, A. Venue Mall
Makati Avenue, Makati City
THIS PLACE HAS CLOSED