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If your ideal night out involves a little melted cheese, neon and maybe a drink that tastes suspiciously like something from a mall food court, Hell’s Kitchen will soon have you covered. Opening March 31, Sama ’Za is a new pizza-and-cocktail spot that leans hard into late-’80s and ’90s nostalgia, without turning into a full-blown theme park.
While the concept is playful and fun on the surface, there’s a lot more going on behind the checkered tablecloths. The team behind Monkey Thief had a simple idea: recreate the feeling of a neighborhood pizza joint you grew up with, but with a level of technique and detail that beats your typical slice shop.
That starts with the pies. The menu will revolve around a 72-hour fermented dough that’s designed for structure, chew and char. Meanwhile, toppings walk a fine line between familiar and slightly unhinged. There’s the “Saved by the Shell,” a clam pie riff with pecorino, garlic and pepperoncini; a vodka-sauce-heavy V.C.R.; and “Corn To Be Wild,” inspired by Mexican street corn with sweet corn, American cheese and pickled onion.
Beyond pizza, the kitchen rounds things out with shareable plates like meatballs, lasagna and Caesar salad. Desserts are simple, with rotating soft-serve flavors and after-school faves like blondies.
But it’s the drink menu that is perhaps the most unexpected part of the whole operation. A clever menu dubbed “From the Fountain” turns soda-shop stalwarts into cocktails as you’d find at downtown’s chicest mixology bars. Techniques like forced carbonation and precise basting come together for a Baja Blast-inspired highball, a root beer riff, and a savory Negroni, washed with parmesan, called the TMNT. (All are served in plastic cups, natch.)
The space ties the whole theme together with stained glass lighting, wood paneling, red-and-white tables and a CRT TV behind the bar, playing your favorite ‘90s flicks on repeat.
In a neighborhood packed with places to grab a slice, Sama ’Za isn’t trying to compete on tradition. But it’s definitely aiming for the feel of it—and if they get it right, you just might find yourself ordering dessert… and another round.