This new Bushwick pizza joint has the oldest coal oven in America, and it's opening tomorrow
Created by award-winning chef Nino Coniglio (of Williamsburg Pizza and Coniglio's fame), the restaurant takes inspiration from slice shops past, specifically the coal-oven pizzerias of the 1920s and Nino's own Sicilian heritage. But the true gem surrounding its debut sits in the corner of the kitchen: a coal oven built in 1890—the oldest in America!—which formerly provided fresh bread for the neighborhood's Italian immigrants. The building's landlord, Charlie Verde, discovered this iconic historical artifact in 2002, and thus, lucky Charlie became the restaurant's namesake.
Scrawled on chalkboards, the menu highlights Italian imports (Sicilian olive oils, San Marzano tomatoes), seasonal rotations of meat (beef ragu, aged ribeye) and seafood (tuna crudo, clams casino), plus oven-baked pasta dishes. Ten-percent sourdough creates thin but fluffy crust for daily pizzas that include a classic pie with red sauce and Italian sheep's milk pecorino; a white pie laden in stracciatella, ricotta, and salty pecorino sardo; and a saucy red pie souped up with basil and breadcrumbs. You can always ask for additional toppings like locally sourced sausage, cup-and-char pepperoni, Sicilian olives, artichoke hearts, and even house-made meatballs.
Alongside Sicilian wines, expect curated classic cocktails like martinis doused in Calabrian chili brine and a gin and tonic playfully called 'Tony & Geno' with house-made rosemary syrup.
Most notably, chef Nino is the only pizza aficionado to ever apprentice with legendary chef Dom DeMarco (Di Fara Pizza) and has received numerous accolades abroad, in addition to championing Food Network's Chopped. Lucky Charlie is Nino's first project with a coal oven, where he applies techniques and ingredients pulled from pages of the O.G. NYC coal-oven joints of the 1900s.
Across the tiled threshold guests are greeted with 'Va Eccati,' meaning 'Let's get outta here,' as the 42-seat space recalls throwback New York City: exposed original brick, stained glass sconces, red-leather bar stools, vintage posters and personal photographs galore depicting chef's family and ancestral roots.
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