Oct. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Is pizza worth the trip to Brooklyn?

Manhattan pizza eaters used to say yes, at least if they had once sunk their teeth into the pies at Grimaldi’s, Lucali or Di Fara in the New York City outer borough.

Now we can stay home in Manhattan and leave that trio to the locals. At Motorino in the East Village, the pies are smaller, cheaper and better. They start at $9 and max out at $17.

Compare that with $12 for the cheapest pie at Grimaldi’s, $24 for a plain pie at Lucali and $25 for the regular pie at Di Fara. (And Motorino accepts plastic.)

That’s not to knock Brooklyn; the original Motorino opened in Williamsburg last year. If you live there, you should eat there. And if you live in Carroll Gardens, you should splurge on sexy, candlelit Lucali. Pizza isn’t about crossing town. It’s about crossing the street.

Still, I wish more pizzerias were like the new Motorino, which occupies the space of the old Una Pizza Napoletana. Motorino is the consumer-friendly opposite of stodgy Brooklyn joints.

Motorino feels less like a pizzeria, more like a restaurant, with pressed tin ceilings and tiled floors. A small rectangle of a room with a single aisle -- and a really good oven (it belonged to Una Pizza, which still managed to turn out soggy-crusted pies).

Mozzarella Disks

Brooklyn pizzerias typically restrict their starters to antipasti and calzones. Motorino serves actual appetizers. Try the octopus salad -- huge chunks of tender, lemon-spiked tentacles. Heirloom tomato salad, infused with garlic, boasts crisp, fresh fruit. Roasted mortadella, thickly cut, is the thinking man’s fried baloney.

Order a bottle of wine. Master sommelier (can anyone else name a pizzeria with a master sommelier?) Fred Dexheimer put together the list. When we ordered a $60 La Spinetta, a medium- bodied Super Piedmont blend, the waitress asked if she should decant it. At Grimaldi’s, they should have decanted my sour Chianti into a bottle of salad dressing.

Above all, Motorino’s pizza is outstanding. Chef Mathieu Palombino, a Belgian-born veteran of Bouley, fires the Neapolitan pies like no one else. Pick up a slice; it barely droops. Rub the tip on the metal pan; that’s to soak up the olive oil that’s left behind. No orange-glowing muck here. Round, almost cool disks of buffalo mozzarella are surrounded by a thin layer of tomato with just enough acid to cut through the fatty cheese.

Brussels Sprouts

That’s just the margherita ($14). Even better are the pies with cherry tomatoes (a pop-in-the-mouth homage to Una Pizza), Brussels sprouts and pancetta, and spicy sopressata (with stinging chilis). Manhattan Neapolitan competitors like Co. and Keste come close, but aren’t quite as good.

I’ve always believed pizza should be consumed while standing up, hence, the beloved foldable New York slice. Motorino’s accommodation is “a libretto,” which means they fold up the entire pie. Clever.

Soon, I hope, the new Motorino will follow the Brooklyn leader in serving cocktails and brunch (a purposely soggy egg pizza that soaks up yolk better than any toast).

In Brooklyn

Here’s the report from Brooklyn:

Lucali: Two pizzas and a calzone cost us $86 -- our shallot, pepper and artichoke pie cost $33. The product was good, not great. The cracker-like crust was closer to a Roman- style pie, but not as thin. The fresh basil was powerful, the cheese and tomato, a pleasant mixture that was more about gooiness than quality. My suggested (if slightly inferior) Manhattan substitute: Emporio in Nolita.

Grimaldi’s: It’s right under the Brooklyn Bridge. No names are taken. You wait outside in line. Expect a coal-fired crust that lacks Motorino’s bubbly fluffiness. Tomatoes tasted like they’re seasoned with old garlic salt. Mozzarella was dried from the heat. But for $12, it was good enough. Comparable Manhattan substitute: Pizza 33, with various locations.

Di Fara: The cashier quoted me a two-hour wait for a $5 slice. A bunch of guys outside were smoking cigarettes and complaining about the place. They recommended Lucali.

The Bloomberg Questions

Cost? Under $40 per person at each.

Sound level? 80 decibels, about as bustling as a typical French bistro, at its loudest at Motorino Manhattan. Quieter at the others.

Date place? At Lucali, Motorino.

Inside tip? Try the “a libretto” at Motorino.

Special feature? Both Motorinos take credit cards.

Will I be back? To both Motorinos.

Motorino in the East Village is at 349 E. 12th St. Information: +1-212-777-2644, Motorino in Williamsburg is at 319 Graham Ave. Information: +1-718-599-8899; http://www.motorinopizza.com.

Lucali is at 575 Henry St., Carroll Gardens. Information: +1-718-858-4086. Grimaldi’s is at 19 Old Fulton St. under the Brooklyn Bridge. Information: +1-718-858-4300; http://www.grimaldis.com. Di Fara is at 1424 Ave. J in Midwood. Information: +1-718-258-1367; http://www.difara.com.

(Ryan Sutton writes about New York City restaurants for Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)

To contact the writer of this column: Ryan Sutton in New York at rsutton1@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: October 21, 2009 00:01 EDT