On what felt like the first spring weekend day of the year, I decided to head out to the wine bar Zavino. It was a logical spot to go to on such a beautiful day, they had the doors open and the outside seating was available, but because it was Master’s Saturday I decided to cozy up to the bar to begin my feast and watch Jordan Spieth dominate.

Zavino’s has a wonderful wine selection. It really has options for anybody and allows a non-discriminatory wine drinker like myself to try out a variety of wines to see what I enjoy the most. My two favorites that I tried were the Dolcetto, ricossa 2013 and the Primitivio, mottura 2011. The Dolcetto was dry and had a nice nutty finish while the Primitivio had more of a fruity taste, but really if you like wine it’s hard to go wrong with any choice on this wine list. 

I started the afternoon with the tasting board, included in this was Hot Coppa and Sopressata, both delicious spicy Italian cured meats that make your mouth yearn for wine and water. The cheese pairing was Drunken Goat cheese and Fourme D’Ambert. The Drunken Goat cheese is bathed in red wine, semi soft and packs a surprisingly sharp punch towards the end that makes it a really enjoyable experience for the palate, while the creamy mild Fourme D’Ambert went perfectly spread upon the brick oven made pita style bread sprinkled with the perfect amount of salt. For $19 this dish is really one of the best tasting board deals you will get in the city.

After a few more glasses of wine I got the veal and ricotta meatballs. These meatballs were a perfect holdover dish. The lightness of the dish did not make me too full to continue the day, while the rustic flavor of the veal combined with the delicate flavor of ricotta and the zestiness of the sauce really makes this dish a great choice to share before dinner with your partner or a friend.

Finally as the day turned to evening it was time to order what I came for, the pizza. I ordered the Diavolo, which comes with Sopressata, mozzarella, crushed tomato, chili flakes, oregano and parmesan and trust me this pie did not disappoint. The crust was cooked perfectly to give it a nice crunch and a beautiful char, while the Sopressata had a perfect crisp to it when you dove in, these flavors along with the tangyiness of the crushed tomatoes, the kick of the chili flakes and the milky buttery flavor of the mozzarella came together wonderfully to make this pizza one of the best pizzas I had in a while. Any Philadelphia pizza list that does not include Zavino in my opinion is missing out on a great pizza pie.

Zavino is located in Midtown at 112 South 13th street it has great service, a great atmosphere and really good food and drinks for an affordable price.

This was a 4.5 Tizzle experience and I will definitely be heading back in the future. 

Eat, Drink and Be Merry!!!