Italians, Celebrities, and Pizza - Antico

View Larger Map

Location: Midtown
Hours: Monday - Saturday - 11:30 a.m. - Until out of dough  (yes, their website really says that)
Price: $17-$20 per pizza
Food Type: Italian/Pizza

Antico has become a Midtown phenomenon. I had my first taste of it when a friend brought me a leftover slice. While the slice was not bad, I did not feel it was fair to judge the restaurant based on it. So, as part of an amazing day of going away celebration for this same friend, I decided to check it out. Located right in the middle of Homepark by Georgia Tech, Antico has no trouble keeping a steady flow of customers. In fact, the day I was there, the owner mentioned he had turned down a take-out order from a movie director as the restaurant would not have been able to accommodate its usual patrons and also fill the order.Antico is almost always packed with customers patiently waiting to share a long table with other patrons or choosing to stand in the back and eat standing up so their food does not go cold. That being said, if you feel uncomfortable eating around strangers or consider standing while eating to be improper, Antico does allow you to order their pizzas to-go.

Upon entering the building customers are greeted by the ordering counter which is cleverly lined with an array of Italian pastries and desserts anyone with a sweet tooth will have trouble just passing.

If the counter doesn't distract you, there is also the refrigerator filled with European style bottles of water to purchase with your meal and even more desserts.

Once you make your way past the desserts, you can pick-up a menu and order at the counter. The menu is very straight forward and when ordering, I highly recommend you split a pizza between 2-3 people as the slices are extremely large and each pizza has about 8 slices. 

At the restaurant our group of six people decided to split 2 different types of pizza. The first one we ordered was the Pomodorini, a pizza with fresh cherry tomatoes, bufala, garlic, and basil. The second pizza ordered was the Lasagna containing meatballs, ricotta, and romano. After ordering we went and stood in the large room where the chefs cook the pizza. We watched them hard at work preparing the pizzas to the tune of slightly corny Italian music as we waited for one of the long metal tables.

We were early enough to be able to secure a table before our pizza arrived on a giant metal tray with a pizza cutter.

Pomodorini

Lasagna

Out of the two pizzas, the Lasagna was the overall favorite. It had excellent flavor and we had no trouble demolishing it. The Pomodorini was well made, but not the best choice as the cherry tomatoes made it hard to eat and it did not have a distinct flavor.

Overall, I would highly recommend Antico, but be sure to go early in order to beat the dinner rush - unless you wish to take your order to-go...