The Best Weeknight Hang Is at a Bushwick Star Pizza Joint

At Ops, the frills are low and the pizza is plentiful. The restaurant splits its physically tiny menu into five sections: cocktails, plates, pizza, more pizza, and desserts. Each pie has a delicious sourdough crust and fresh toppings that are sourced from mostly local farms, which you can find on their website. Inside Ops original Bushwick location (there’s the newer one in the East Village that’s often very crowded) you’ll find sexy low lighting, tiled floors, and warm brick walls, making for a restaurant perfect for a weeknight dinner hang.

What to order

You cannot go wrong with a simple margherita pizza, topped with their house mozzarella and fresh basil leaves. It’s the platonic ideal of a pizza, and if it’s your first time trying Ops, this simply must be on your table.

If you are an onion freak like me, go for the “pops” pizza, which has guanciale, pecorino, and lots of onions. The bites are a little sweet from the onions and a little salty from the guanciale. It’s a beautiful combination.

You should ask your server if they have a calzone that day, and if they say “yes,” you also should. What’s inside the calzones changes, so mine had mozzarella, peppers, and sausage. Each calzone comes with a bowl of marinara on the side.

For dessert, opt for the chocolate and amaro cake. It’s a flourless and gluten-free concoction, topped with whipped ricotta, that doesn’t sacrifice flavor or texture. The amaro seasoning means it’s perfectly not too sweet, while still providing all the chocolate goodness you would want from a dessert.