A decade ago, when Brooklyn had but a few quality craft brewing start-ups, Grimm Artisanal Ales appeared. Chefs and bartenders noticed because Grimm’s hard-to-get bottles could be found at the city’s most chic bistros and bars. Now, Grimm’s owners will open their first restaurant, Lala’s Brooklyn Apizza, on an East Williamsburg rooftop, in the same building as the brewery and their winery, Physica Wines.
Why pizza, wine, and beer? Besides the obvious reasons, Lauren and Joe Grimm love to experiment with the wild flavors that develop through fermentation. As with their fermented ales and wines, which are made with grapes from Long Island’s North Fork and given the low-intervention approach to winemaking, the couple’s pizza process sounds meticulous.
A release for Lala’s Brooklyn Apizza, which is scheduled to open Friday, notes that the New Haven-style pies will be made with “house-milled flour using brewers’ wheat malt, Lauren’s characterful sourdough culture originating from their sour beer, and an even thinner crust enabled by shaping with a rolling pin.” The pies, the release adds, will be finished in an Italian wood-fired oven.
In other words, this is not just another pizza joint.
Lala’s will feature seasonally-inspired toppings including an opening lineup of summer pizzas that include Hot Pepperoni with tomato sauce, pepperoni, serrano chilis and honey; “Squashed” with summer squash medallions, squash blossoms, egg yolk drizzle, ricotta, and cracked black pepper; and “Cozy” with mashed potatoes, bacon, and fermented tomatoes.
New Haven’s misshapen “Apizza” is best known because of the influential clam pies found in the Connecticut city, where Joe Grimm went to college, and Lala’s will feature a delicious-sounding version with local little neck clams, aged mozzarella, garlic, Physica Riesling butter sauce, and fresh parsley.
Besides the pies, and of course Grimm ales and Physica wines, the restaurant will feature a menu of a few small plates such as lacto-fermented pickled vegetables and desserts including a malted chocolate chip cookie.
The design, too, is noteworthy, with a colorful industrial-chic look by NYC’s inca (it’s not corporate architecture), indoor-outdoor seating and expansive views.
Opening hours starting this Friday (though check Instagram to confirm) will be Friday and Saturday from 3 pm-10 pm, and Sunday from 1-8 pm.
Lala’s Brooklyn Apizza, 990 Metropolitan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11211, grimmales.com/lalas
