Tonight, It's Napoli: Naples' Nennella Takes Over Pizzeria Popolare in Paris for One-Night Dinner
Arriving straight from Italy, Naples’ iconic Nennella took over Paris favorite Pizzeria Popolare for one-night bonanza of extraordinary cooking, music, and wine. Writer Dan Latif takes a bite at the special four-hands dinner.
Naples' Nennella Takes Over Pizzeria Popolare in Paris for One-Night Dinner
When I’m in the mood for a proper Italian restaurant in Paris, I go to Mamma Primi. This is the real thing: the Italian food of Naples with its ingredients, its recipes handed down from generation to generation, its chefs who take cooking very seriously, and its waiters who have no need to pretend to roll their “R”s.
But tonight, I decided to break from tradition and visit Pizzeria Popolare (another establishment belonging to the owners of Mamma Primi) to experience a one-off dinner. Pizzeria Popolare welcomed Nennella, the celebrated trattoria from Naples' Spanish Quarter, for a special collaboration as part of its Cena a 4 Mani (four-hands dinner) series. Known as much for its traditional Neapolitan cooking as its famously “joyful chaos,” Nennella brought its distinctive personality to Paris for an evening of food, music, and celebration. Think of it like the cousins coming into town.
The Pizzeria Popolare x Nennella Menu
The Cena a 4 Mani (four-hands dinner) menu at Pizzeria Popolare. Image: Dan Latif.
Accordingly, the meeting of the two trattorias has given rise to an original menu, with a three-course set meal of starter, main and dessert for €35. We begin with Impepata di cozze or mussels with garlic, parsley, olive oil and black pepper. Then come the Parmigiana di melanzane, fried aubergines layered with tomato sauce, mozzarella and Parmigiano Reggiano— baked until golden— and the unmissable Pizza provola e pepe, a dish with smoked provola and black pepper. The dough is remarkable, soft and light, with an exceptional bake. That’s it, I’ve found my new favorite! There’s barely time to let out a sigh before the next plates are already on the table!
I still remember my first visit to the upper reaches of the Spanish Quarter in Naples, where I discovered a Margherita pizza prepared before my very eyes in just three minutes. For €2.50, this was a mastery of cooking that had seriously called into question every pizza I had previously eaten in (excuse me) France.
Inside Pizzeria Popolare's Open Kitchen
Staff at Pizzeria Popolare. Image: Dan Latif.
During the meal, the chefs are hard at work around a proper wood-fired oven. Everything is prepared in full view, in an open kitchen whose theatricality would put certain opera productions to shame. Every movement is precise, every step perfectly choreographed. Everyone knows their role and, despite the commotion, no one seems to lose track of what they’re doing. After all, in Italy, you risk your life if you run a restaurant and cook badly! It becomes clear why everyone keeps such a careful eye on their pots and pans, with an almost religious seriousness.
To accompany these dishes, an excellent wine from southern Italy, full of sunshine and character, which certainly has nothing to envy in our French wines. Glasses are refilled, conversations grow livelier, the kitchens are working at full capacity, and the first great Italian classics begin to echo around the dining room. The chefs remain unperturbed, at least on the surface, but discreetly keep time with the music as they carry on preparing their dishes.
At the neighboring table, they’ve already reached dessert when a trolley of pasta e patate suddenly appears, that Neapolitan speciality of pasta and potatoes which prepares us wonderfully for winter. We watch the trolley go by with longing, wondering whether we might still have a little room left. In the end, we have no choice: a plate finds its way onto our table!
When Nennella Takes Control of Pizzeria Popolare
Then the volume rises. Nennella Song by Joe Favela sets the tone, followed by Jamma ballà by Mimmo Dany. The waiters sing, the diners join in the choruses, and some are already on their feet. One waiter, clearly delighted by what is about to unfold, smiles and tells us: “That’s it, Nennella has taken control tonight!”
He’s not wrong. One song follows another, and so do the new favourites. With Un nuovo bacio by Gigi D’Alessio and Anna Tatangelo, the restaurant begins to feel like a Neapolitan street party. Conversations mingle with the songs, and hands start clapping along to the beat. And then, the opening synthesiser notes of Freed from Desire by Gala ring out.
The speakers seem on the verge of imploding! Diners climb onto the tables, whistling, singing and dancing. Everyone joins in, including those who, just a few minutes earlier, seemed interested in nothing but their plates. The restaurant has turned into a full-blown nightclub, with pizzas thrown in for good measure!
And what a pleasure it is to see so many people enjoying themselves without holding back! What a refreshing change from the Parisian torpor, that permanent air of gloom, and those establishments where you hardly dare raise your voice for fear of disturbing the neighbouring table.
Dessert at Pizzeria Popolare
Between two songs, we nevertheless find time to get ready for dessert. I stick to the tried-and-tested favorites with the Tiramisù, that great Italian classic made with ladyfingers and mascarpone cream, which the Big Mamma group makes so divinely well and of which one simply never tires. Absolutely delicious! But looking at the menu again, the Babà al caffè e crema al mascarpone, with cocoa, coffee and grated dark chocolate, makes me seriously regret my choice. Not to mention the Delizia, a soft lemon cake with lemon cream inspired by the Amalfi tradition.
Desserts at Pizzeria Popolare. Image: Joann Pai via Pizzeria Popolare.
The evening, however, is far from over. For the grand finale, the voices of Mina and Adriano Celentano fill the room with Brivido felino. The tables continue to shake, the waiters are still singing and, behind the counter, the chefs carry on their ballet in front of the flames of the oven.
As I leave Popolare, I find myself thinking back to Gennaro, a Neapolitan I met a few years earlier, who had corrected me when I proudly announced that I was discovering Italy for the very first time: “We’re not in Italy. This is Napoli!”
Tonight, without ever leaving Paris, I’ve rediscovered a little of that Napoli, the one where cooking is a family affair, where people eat with gusto, where they sing without worrying about the person next to them, and where good humor seems every bit as essential as mozzarella on a pizza. And what a wonderful feeling that is!
The Interior Review Picks: Southern Italian Restaurants and Pizzerias in Paris
Mamma Primi — Italian restaurant in Batignolles, serving fresh pasta and primi piatti on a flower-filled terrace. Located at 18 Rue Boursault, 75017 Paris, France. More information here.
Pizzeria Popolare — A restaurant serving Neapolitan wood-fired pizzas and fresh pasta, situated between Bonne Nouvelle and Bourse. Located at 111 Rue Réaumur, 75002 Paris, France. More information here.
Arriving straight from Italy, Naples’ iconic Nennella took over Paris favorite Pizzeria Popolare for one-night bonanza of extraordinary cooking, music, and wine. Writer Dan Latif takes a bite at the special four-hands dinner.