Nine of us (mostly kids) were able to snag a last minute reservation on Sunday, and not only did they accommodate us, not only was service great, but the food was every bit as awesome as its ever been. Between here, Forno Rosso and Coalfire I've got a lot of quadrants covered for great pizza.

With no posts for two years, I figured an update was in order. Spacca Napoli is still a gem, and my pizza was one of the tastiest I've had in a long time.

I was there last weekend and had a Diavola, which was stupid good - tiny char blisters bottom and top, lots of intense summer basil, spicy soppressata. Flavor character is actually very similar to the same offering at Freddy's in Cicero, which is about 1/2 the cost of the same amount of pie, but the crust here elevates the value. I think Forno Rosso and Coalfire may continue to edge SN, but marginally.

While we're piling on here, I had forgotten a recent visit when Spacca Napoli was on our way walking to Wrigley for the Dead & Co. show last month, so on the spur of the moment we stopped in for an artichoke and black olive pie, washed down by a couple of Peroni's. Sat outside, quiet, great service, high enjoyment factor.

I tend to visit once every few months and last night's pizza was as good as usual. Yes, the pizzas have changed over the years and they're not quite as soupy in the middle as I once recalled. But the crusts and toppings are prepared with great care. And if you haven't been there in a while, you may not have noticed that they added an extra pizza oven earlier this year, thus reducing wait times for pizza.

An added plus last night was a parting gift of a small cannoli upon exiting the restaurant.