Mercurio's

Mercurio’s: Artisan Gelato and Neopolitan Pizza located on Walnut and Filbert Street in Shadyside. I first stumbled upon this gem as a second-semester freshman with two friends. I was immediately impressed with the ambiance of the restaurant and the food I was served. More recently I went to Mercurio’s with my mom when she came to visit last weekend, and I am still as amazed I was when I first went. My mom and I split a caprese panino and a prosciutto pizza.

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The caprese panino is house-made mozzarella, sliced tomatoes, basil, balsamic reduction, and extra virgin olive oil. You also get a side salad which is their insalata della casa consisting of a spring mix with house-made mozzarella, grape tomatoes, parmigano, balsamic vinegar, and extra virgin olive oil, all for $7.84. The bread is also house-made from the dough the pizza is made with. It had the perfect amount of crunch and salt crust to it. It was a perfect pair to the melted house-made mozzarella it makes my mouth water thinking about it. You could also taste the fresh basil with every bite, paired with the thick balsamic reduction. All in all the panino satisfied my hunger and was spectacularly delicious. On the side was a simple, six-ingredient salad that gave the vinegar loving girl in me life. It sounds like the vinegar would be overwhelmed, but because it was paired with the mozzarella and extra virgin olive oil it was mellowed out.

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Onto the perfectly cooked neapolitan pizza we shared. The prosciutto pizza has tomato sauce, house-made mozzarella, grape tomatoes, prosciutto, basil, and extra virgin olive oil, for $14.41. I wonder how much extra virgin olive oil this restaurant alone goes through since it is basically on every single item on the menu. Anyways, the pizza’s are personal sized and are served to you cut into 4 pieces. The pizza was incredible. Simple, evenly cooked, and fresh. The crust is super thin, like a classic neopolitan pizza, and there is not an overwhelming amount of cheese either. The saltiness of the prosciutto mixed well with the acidity of the tomato sauce. The fresh grape tomatoes also added a nice texture to the pizza as well.

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There menu is very clean and simple. It can is broken down to drinks, appetizers, salads, paninis, white pizzas, and red pizzas. “Quality over quantity” is a household quote that this restaurant takes to a new dimension. As there website says as soon as you press the link, “Authentic and Fresh”, and that it is.