New pizzas hit NYC

WHAT would New York City dining be without pizza? In the coming months, expect the return of old favorites, the expansion of new ones and an haute entrant from one of the city’s foremost restaurateurs.

The latter is from none other than Keith McNally, whose white-hot touch recently gave us the seemingly unstoppable Minetta Tavern. And while McNally has had less success with Italian, he’s bringing in award-winning San Francisco chef Nate Appleman, whose rustic, nose-to-tail style should fit right in with New York foodies.

The result, Pulino’s Bar and Pizzeria, will debut at 282 Bowery by year’s end, forming a gourmet skid-row nexus with fellow trendsetter DBGB Kitchen & Bar.

Rapidly proliferating Grimaldi’s hits Manhattan this winter with a large South Street Seaport outpost with rooftop dining (135 John St.). Die-hard fans take note: Tenants at the adjacent 200 Water St. residential building will enjoy perks like free delivery and preferential seating.

That’s not the only Brooklyn pizzeria with a cult following coming to Manhattan. In a couple of weeks, French pizzaiolo Mathieu Palombino will take over the old Una Pizza Napoletana space with a second location of Motorino (349 E. 12th St.). Open for dinner nightly, it will feature wood-fired pies with toppings like prosciutto di Parma, spicy sopressata and mozzarella di bufala, plus soft-serve ice cream and a no-reservations policy.

Uptown, Accademia di Vino is opening a West Side edition in mid-October serving thin-crust pies plus small plates and lots of vino (2427 Broadway; 212-787-3070).

The blog Eater recently broke the news that a spinoff of Carroll Gardens’ Lucali, home to some of the city’s best pizza and arguably its most delicious calzone, will open in the southern reaches of Park Slope by year’s end (691 Sixth Ave., Brooklyn).

In the meantime, those craving a twist on the classic calzone can check out Piccola Cucina Focacceria. Debuting later this month at 120 MacDougal St., it will serve the calzone-style dish known as focaccia col formaggio di Recco — two layers of thin crust sandwiching a creamy layer of crescenza cheese — popular in the town of Recco in Liguria, Italy.

Roman-style pizza is the specialty of Numero 28 Pizza Romano, a satellite of the Carmine Street pizzeria Numero 28. Opening in SoHo in early October, it will serve pizza al taglio — squarish slices with a thickness somewhere between thin and Sicilian pies. An East Village replica of the original will also fling open its doors in late October (176 Second Ave.).

And in the department of happy endings: Classic Coney Island pizzeria Totonno’s, shuttered by a fire in March, recently told the blog Slice that it will reopen within a month’s time (1524 Neptune Ave., Brooklyn).