Blackstone is becoming real trendy, isn’t it! In the last six months or so, they’ve opened Red Lion Lounge, Early Bird, Bob’s Donuts, joining community favorites like Nite Owl and Coneflower Creamery. The latest to join this crowd is Dante Pizzeria Napoletana, which opened in late December 2017, a few short weeks ago. We decided to check it out for a pre-last-semester-of-school lunch last week.

Dante Pizzeria is the second branch of Dante, a fine-dining Italian restaurant in West Omaha. It features many of the same menu items as the other location, but in a different setting they call “fast-fine,” allowing customers to order at the counter, sit down, and have their meal brought to them. They are basically taking a cafe/coffee shop ordering system and applying it to an authentic wood-fired pizza offering. Chef Nick Strawhecker is committed to using sustainable, local, and authentic ingredients.

The aesthetic has been carefully planned out, a wood cross-section wall, wood blocks for order numbers, recyclable cardboard cups for water, etc.  Wood seems to be a common theme throughout the store. As you walk in, you grab a menu before you order at the counter. My friends Ed and Caroline, who visited the restaurant last week, mentioned that they loved the vibe, saying it was “casual but modern,” and “dope.” Carol also enjoyed the view of the kitchen, as you can see the chefs making the pizza as you’re sitting with your friends.

“I definitely liked the environment too. It was dope.” – Caroline Cacabelos

The menu features 14 different types of pizza, along with a variety of sides, a couple of pasta dishes, and desserts. The waiter suggested one pizza per person, but that looked pretty pricey to us. More on that later.

We started off with the Wood-Roasted Brussels Sprouts, with guanciale and lemon. Yes I know, I tend to eat vegetarian, no pork, etc etc. I was always a bit scared of eating large amounts of red meat like pork, thinking it’d upset my stomach after a lifetime of avoiding it. But honestly, cured meat is so good! Like this guanciale, I’ve come to love prosciutto too. Leave me be in my inner turmoil about eating pigs, okay??

Personal food crisis aside, this dish was absolutely fantastic. The sprouts were crispy and slightly burnt on the outside, incredibly lemony, which paired well with the salty and fatty bits of guanciale. I would absolutely come back just for this dish, and now vow by brussels sprouts being paired with fatty meat. Um, YUM!

For pizza, we chose the Cortana, which featured sopressata (italian salami), olives, chili peppers, wood-roasted mushrooms, garlic, a farm egg, and mozzarella on red sauce. This combination was fantastic! The egg was served runny on top of the pizza, and the waiter suggested we swirl it around so all slices get a little eggy. I’m just really passionate about runny eggs! The sopressata was spicy and salty, (another point for cured meat!), there wasn’t too much sauce, which I like, and the mozzarella was really fresh. My only suggestions: the mozz slices could have been a bit smaller and better distributed, and a little less mushrooms would have been perfect. On the portion: splitting is definitely enough. Unless you’re ravishingly hungry, one pizza per person is too much and too expensive.

The quality of the ingredients is very clear, as is the authentic wood oven used to make the pizzas, its an unbeatable flavor. Its not a great set up for regular visits on a student budget, however. While the employees are very friendly and helpful, the pizzas are 12-20$, most landing arounr 15-16$ for 6 slices. The appetizers are also 5-12$, so even a split meal could cost you around 15$. This isn’t really a casual spot, but more of a mid-level between expensive date spot and normal restaurant. Perfect for a group birthday dinner!

I really enjoyed the food and atmosphere at Dante. The brussels sprouts really bumped up the experience for me, but the price is an inhibitor for people my age, for sure. Go try it out, and leave your reviews in the comments below! Interactive!

The Bottom Line

Fantastic wood-fired pizza in the heart of trendy Blackstone!

Cone Rating: 4.5 Cones 

Location: Blackstone, Omaha, NE

Price: $$ (10-20 per person)

On the Internet: Dante Pizzeria Napoletana Website, Yelp Page