Dante's is a Pizza Napoletana restaurant on Ponsonby Road, in Ponsonby Central, and the pizzas are cooked in wood-fired ovens. The house sourdough base is made on the premises and is the reason most people come back. Diners describe it as airy and soft in the middle, with a chewy, crisp and charred edge. The website says the Ponsonby pizzeria is the only New Zealand pizzeria on the 50 Top Pizza list, and it names the San Marzano tomatoes and fior di latte mozzarella used on the pizzas.
Among the pizzas on the menu are a white base with fior di latte, baby spinach and pancetta, a salami and fennel sausage pizza, a prosciutto and wild rocket pizza, and a burrata pizza finished with basil and olive oil. A portobello mushroom pizza is also listed. Fried sourdough garlic bread with marinara is praised, and so are the arancini, which come as fried cheesy rice balls in tomato sauce. Starters, salads, fresh pasta and desserts are also on the menu.
Customers say the staff are friendly and attentive, and the room is relaxed. Service and food arrive without long waits. Dante's is open for lunch from 12pm to 3pm and for dinner from 4pm to 9pm, with dine-in or takeaway. Our pick in Ponsonby for a sourdough pizza in a relaxed room.