Co., Chelsea

Address: 230 Ninth Avenue at 24th Street
Purchase: Six 10" pizzas, a growler of beer, and two $7 bottles of sparkling water.
Cost: Pizzas range from $13 (Margherita) to $20 (Nightly specials), Growlers of draft beers $25
Pizza Rating:


AJ and I were in the city for a quick trip before Thanksgiving and finally decided on the relatively-new Co. in Chelsea for our pizza night out. Runners up were Kesté in the West Village, and Saraghina in Bed-Stuy, both of which we plan to visit in upcoming trips.

Co. is very trendy, despite it's generic exterior on 9th Avenue, so even though it was 7:00 on a Tuesday, we had to wait about 30-45 minutes. We were seated around the end of a long communal table, which was a tight fit, but I think we were all comfortable.

There were so many appetizing choices on the menu, plus three specials, so it took a while for everyone to settle on one. The waitress "encouraged sharing" as pizzas "may come out at different times." They were, in fact, delivered individually, but it wasn't too long wait for anyone. AJ and I shared a Margherita, which was as good as any I've ever had, with a light fresh sauce and deliciously fresh buffalo mozzarella. We also tried one of the specials of the night: the "Chanty Pie," with chanterelle mushrooms, leeks, and cubes of roasted turnips. It had three cheeses, and no red sauce. Absolutely scrumptious, although the turnips were a bit out of place.

Other hits at the table were the Brussels Sprouts pie, with shaved brussels sprouts and lardons, and the "Popeye," which had a very generous pile of spinach, and another combination of cheeses, pecorino, buffalo mozzarella, and gruyere. Both were without red sauce (as owner Jim Lahey explained to New York Magazine: "Tomatoes aren't even indigenous to Italy, so where do we get off saying it has to be tomatoes on top of the bread?").

My favorite part about the pizza at Co., however, was the crust. It was chewy and had a great flavor. Not too thin or crispy, but almost like Naan (it was also about the size of normal Naan, which is to say, rather small for a pizza.) I'm looking forward to trying a hand at the no-knead dough at home, with the recipe Lahey shared with NY Magazine.

The beer selection was good, and rather than pitchers, they offer $25 growlers served in their own Co. branded growlers, which match the Co. branded bottles of $7 sparkling water, of which Grier was so generous as to order two, despite the waiter's offer of "tap." A mistake he probably won't make again, but we all enjoyed the indulgence.

The Chanty Pie

A bit of the Margherita.

With Erin, Grier, Jake, and Lincoln.

Walking the Highline before dinner.