★★★☆☆

It is said that all roads lead to Rome.  In Italian, “la strada” translates to “road,” and while it does not quite lead to the Eternal City, Craig Willis’ La Strada certainly guides pizza lovers to some of Shanghai’s best pies.

For those who not only want this iconic Italian dish, but also long for a neighborhood pizzeria – complete with good wine, good antipasti, great desserts, and house made digestivi – welcome Mr. Willis’ La Strada.

An open kitchen, boasting a brick oven, is on display in this modern neighborhood pizzeria, downstairs from Mr. Willis.  On weekdays, the place is packed with local hipsters, Italian expats, and an oddly large number of pregnant women – and for good reason: they offer an incredible lunch deal (considering the prices of their food ala carte…).

Dish out 68元, and you’ll be served your choice between the soup of the day and a seafood or meat antipasto, plus a half portion of your pick from their long list of pizzas with a well seasoned green salad.

I chose the seafood antipasto and the Melanzane Pizza.  (I dug into my antipasto before snapping a pic, so the one you see is of the meat plate ordered by my friends).  The pizza, which boasted Napolese salami, eggplants (a tad dry), and chili, which added a subtle layer of heat, was delicious.  The crust, almost paper-thin, was crispy and held its toppings well.  The mozzarella – although not buffalo – was both creamy and salty.  And while the table was given a small bowl of oregano and crushed red pepper flakes to add to our pizzas – none was necessary.  My only complaint – I saw that they forgot to drizzle a little olive oil on my pizza (perhaps one of the disadvantages of boasting an open kitchen…).

For dessert, we ordered a few lemon meringue tarts.  And while although the dessert was not necessarily Italian, all was forgiven because it was so good (I mean, just look at it).  On our waitress’s recommendation, we also all ordered some house made limoncello – chilled, sweet, and citrusy – a great end to our lunch.

Scanning some “best pizza lists,” La Strada hasn’t been included and their reviews have been pretty mixed – but I hope to become a regular here.  If you’re in the neighborhood, stop by for some antipasti, a drink, or some pretty great pizza.

• ¥¥ – ¥¥¥
• La Strada
• 1/F 195 Anfu Lu near Wulumuqi Lu
• 电话: +86 5404 0100

Ok, so she’s better known as “Arugula Lady,” but she has become my go to person when in need of the Italian herb.  After hearing about the wonders of this woman and her stall from my friends who live in the French Concession, I wandered over to Wulumuqi Lu to see what all the fuss was about.

As I neared her stall, she saw me slowing the clip of my pace and started shouting at me.  At first I couldn’t make out what she was yelling, but the closer I got, the clearer it became: “Arugula! Arugula! Arugula!”  I had definitely found the small market my friends had been keeping secret.

“Arugula Lady,” also known as “Avocado Lady,” and to me, “Basil Lady,” has a great selection of herbs, cheeses, and other products catered to the needs of her local wàiguórén cooks.

For the past month or so, I have been on a furious hunt for basil – not lemon basil, not purple basil, not Thai Basil, but hearty sweet anise hinted Italian basil.  I’ve found the dried variety at a handful of stores, and disappointingly small packages of the fresh stuff at Feidan and City Shop.  And every time I ordered it from Smart Direct, they were out of stock.  But what I saw at “Basil Lady’s” market made me giddy as a child in a candy store – a mountainous heap of leaves.  Next to that bin, an overflowing pile of arugula, and next to that, sprigs of rosemary and thyme.

I dove in, taking handfuls of the herb and stuffing it into a plastic bag.  Then, out of nowhere, she presented me with a jar of pine nuts.  YES.  Then walnuts.  Then she proudly showed me her display of canned goods – tomato paste, tinned cannellini beans, marinated artichoke hearts, dried pastas  Was I even in China?!

While there, I stocked up on eggplants, nuts, arugula, basil (dāngrán), a few blocks of Parmesan, and some tins of anchovies.  And as a parting gift, she threw in a few heads of garlic.  At last, my quest for basil has ended.  And she might not know it yet, but this was the start of a beautiful friendship.

• Basil Lady (Jiang Qin)
• 274 Wulumuqi Lu near Wuyuan Lu
• 电话: +86 6437 7262