Reviews

The Daily Page - Raphael Kadushin

…Now you don’t have to go to Naples to experience the real thing. Cafe Porta Alba, bases its reputation on its fidelity to the Neapolitan ideal, and takes the tradition very seriously. And maybe most important, the cafe has replicated the domed, brick, wood-fired oven (the wood is oak) that is the only vessel real Neapolitan pizzerias employ. That means you can sit at a counter framing the oven, like a pizzeria version of a sushi bar, and watch your personal pizza placed in the oven, by the pizza maker, with a long wooden pallet and pulled out fresh from the flames, though you don’t have to.…this may well be the ultimate pizza.


Madison.com - Christopher Robin

The right to cook and sell the tightly regulated form of the Neapolitan pizza requires not just a deep knowledge of the processes but a license from the Vera Pizza Napoletana…but Madison residents can now sample an official Neapolitan pie at Cafe Porta Alba.
What goes into a typical Neapolitan pie? The products that provide the base for "Pizza Napoletana" are, roughly: dough made from water, salt, flour, and yeast wheat flour, yeast, natural water, peeled San Marzano tomatoes, sea salt, and extra virgin olive oil. Other added ingredients include mozzarella (buffalo milk and otherwise), fresh basil and fresh garlic and oregano. The pizza is then cooked in a hot wood-burning oven.
If you are a pizza lover and have never tried a Neapolitan pie, you simply can't miss this opportunity. While you are there, be sure to finish with a tiramisu, an espresso, and a few minutes with the Italian movie playing on their flat screen--for us, La Dolce Vita.


Madison Magazine - Nancy Christy

The Real Deal: As with all good pizza with high-quality ingredients, a whole pie isn't much more food than a big sandwich. And simply prepared is simply delicious, so have the Pizza Margherita. It's the real deal--thin, handcrafted crust topped with crushed San Marzano tomatoes and Wisconsin mozzarella, then baked in a brick, wood-fired oven. That's it.


The Badger Herald - Megan McGovern

Specializing in authentic Neapolitan pizza, Café Porta Alba provides a plethora of choices on its gourmet menu. Using San Marzano tomatoes, fresh mushrooms and mozzarella cheese gives this pizza a full flavor that makes its imitators pale in comparison.
Café Porta Alba is obviously not your typical pizza joint…. the first taste of pizza as it was meant to be made will have you crooning Italian love songs.