2:00 PM – Galleria Umberto

. . . and goes to grab Brett and I some water, antacid, and much needed Fisherman’s Friend throat lozenges. Let me just add an aside here: if you need throat lozenges, and you really need to soothe an aching throat, Fisherman’s Friend Lozenges are the ONLY (I Repeat, ONLY) way to go. It’s like Chloraseptic, Halls, and Ambesol had a three-way and this was their dirty little love child. Back on track . . .

Named one of the top 25 pizza places in the United States by Alan Richman, Umberto’s does not slack on flavor. We have the Arancini and the pizza. A Sicilian, Paul told me that his father (who opened the place) was wondering why no one made the rice balls in the US and started serving them himself. Bless his heart – these things are gorgeous. It’s a tennis-ball sized puff pastry the consistency as if the outside was made of french bread, filled with potatoes encasing a meat marinara center and tasted like a ritz cracker crumbled onto a beef-stew-based shepherd’s pie (from Wisconsin). The pizza is no slouch, crispy on the bottom with a tangy, sweet sauce and immaculately chewy cheese. It’s a neck and neck pizza race and let’s see what the 3:00 PM stop on 24 in 24: Boston has to say about that . . .

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