Daily Slice: Fellini's Pizza, Atlanta

Daily Slice gives a quick snapshot each weekday of a different slice or pie that the folks at the Serious Eats empire have enjoyed lately.

With all due respect to places like Varasano's and Antico—the frontrunners of Atlanta's nouveau pizza scene—the most famous name in the city's pizza history is unquestionably Fellini's. With seven locations dotting the metro area, Fellini's has been serving up its New York-style pizza to locals for decades. You wouldn't think the pies here would win too many blind taste tests against those fancypants pizzerias, yet they're consistently named "Best Pizza" in town by somebody or other. More important, though, stopping by your neighborhood Fellini's for a late-night slice and a cold adult beverage with a gaggle of friends is a longstanding Atlanta tradition.

But Fellini's is getting by on more than reputation alone. They do NY-style right, with floppy, foldable wedges cut from 22-inch pies. They'll happily load you up with toppings, generously applied until they cover the entire surface; the spinach-mushroom is a popular combo, as is the Fellini's Special, which piles on pepperoni, mushrooms, Italian sausage, onions, meatballs, green peppers, black olives, green olives, and extra cheese. (Whew.) At $3.95 a slice, that may be the best bang for your buck you'll find in the city, but there's no shame whatsoever in going with a plain cheese slice at just $2.05.

The pre-baked dough is cooked a second time upon ordering, so, to me, it can get a little dense and overly chewy toward the crust's edge. If you're interested in something doughier... breadier... carbier... try the Sicilian style. At over an inch thick, a Sicilian slice is cut from a 15-inch square and has an airy texture to it that, to me, lets the sauce shine even more. Obviously packed with herbs and visible pieces of tomato skin, it's a great reminder of why every town needs a local landmark like Fellini's.>

Fellini's Pizza