Alright, the hour is quickly approaching, and the numbers seem pretty firm. I know Keste at 5:00 is confirmed and we've thrown around some names for after/before that, but I'd like to toss in my two cents on some other options.
I wasn't going to drive in, but, since there are 8 of us, having 2 cars would give us mobility and flexibility, as we can, rather than taking subways or cabs, all get around as a group. This would give us a comfortable way to spend some time at Keste and then drive out to Brooklyn where we could do Paulie Gees, and then later back into Manhattan for Motorino. This will put us back in the city with plenty of time for John to get home at a reasonable hour and for Norma and Steve to make their bus.
I know this doesn't incorporate all the names mentioned and, for some, Keste, Motorino and Paulie Gees might be a little repetitive, but I think these are the best of what New York has to offer Neapolitan-wise and enough of us haven't been to these places to make them worthwhile destinations. The fact that Joes is right down the street from Keste and Best Pizza is right around the corner from Paulie Gees covers a wide variety of sub-styles, and, since Joes and Best are both slice places, who ever wants a slice can grab one and we don't have to take the time for a sit down meal.
With this all in mind, here's a rough proposal
4:30 Joes
5:00 Keste
7:00 Best
7:30 Paulie Gees
9:30 Motorino
10:30 John departs and takes whoever might want to leave a bit earlier
11:30-12:00 I leave with whoever wants to leave later
I've arranged it like this in hopes of facilitating somewhat easier parking, as 7ish Motorino (Manhattan) parking could be worse than 9:30 and hopefully 7:30 in Greenpoint shouldn't be too bad. Now, whether or not Paulie Gees can sit 8 people at 7:30 on a Thu. night (or how long the wait will be) that's a good question. According to their website, they don't do reservations at that hour. Does anyone here know Paulie well enough to see if he'll bend the rules a bit for us? He was, at one time, a pretty active PM member so I would think we should have some clout. In theory.
The other thing I was considering was that, from videos that I've seen, Keste looks like it might be a bit cramped for a party of 8. Out of Keste, Paulies and Motorino, is any more spacious, and, if so, do we want to schedule our time to spend a bit more time there?
Now, if this schedule is too ambitious or if I'm missing something, please chime in. I'm just tossing this out as an option to do some more places than Keste. Bear in mind, both Joes and Best will be very quick stops to grab slices and completely optional. I think if this is something everyone is open to, we should think about reservations for P-Gees and Motorino, if possible. Btw, even though Roberto is meeting us at 5:00, do we have reservations for Keste, and, if not, do we need them?
