119 rue américaine, 1050 ixelles
04 70 34 15 68 – site web
from wednesday to saturday, from 12pm to 1:30pm and from 6:30pm to 10:30pm
sunday, from 6:30pm to 10:30pm
pizza: 8€-19€

The first thing we notice at Al Bacio is the music. Hard to do otherwise when Mambo n°5 is playing so loud it can be heard from the other side of the street. Inside, the waiters and the pizzaiola are dancing in the almost empty restaurant – all the tables and chairs have been put outside on the terrace – and we just want to joint them. The colorful little disco lights, a crucial detail to the essence of the place, are waiting for their time to shine – probably later that same night – in a corner

We catch a glimpse of the pizzaiolo working the dough before having a seat outside, with a delicious glass of Nebiolo (8€). Giovanni and Claudio, the two business partners, both come from Puglia, in the South of Italy. Their selection of wine by the glass – Primitivo from Puglia but also Montepulciano and Nebbiolo from Piémont, defy all competition. Next to the twenty pizzas available on the menu, a selection of three suggestions changes weekly – except for the mortadella, burrata and pistachio pizza (16€), which has become a classic. Impossible to miss it. We also order another suggestion, a delicious bresaola pizza with grano and arugula (16€), and a tagliere misto. All the produce have been imported from the region of Puglia, except from the mozzarella used for the pizzas, imported straight from Naples. Only a few streets away, Al Bacetto has now joined the family, welcoming customers who couldn’t get a table at Al Bacio. One of the best pizzerias in town.