L'Antica da Michele Verified listing

Long Beach’s pizza scene continues to blossom: L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele, the famed Napoli pizzeria birthed in Italy, has officially taken over the space that was once home to Papalucci’s in Belmont Shore and will open at noon on Jan. 5—and proves to be one of the city’s most beautiful restaurant spaces that is but a fragment of the reflection of what the space once was.

And while many may recognize the name from the Julia Roberts-led “Eat Pray Love” film based on the international bestseller, the L’Antica locations of the U.S. are a beast that, yes, reflects that of the historic Napoli space but is, deservedly, its own thing.

“With the historic Spanish aesthetic, I felt like the space needed a Palm Springs feel,” said owner Francesco Zimone, who has (wildly) opened three new L’Antica spaces across the past few years after opening the first U.S. location in Hollywood in 2019.

And that aesthetic certainly stands out: Long gone is the front fountain and instead perpendicular posts with desert plants flanking each side, along with a horizontal fencing that lines the building’s east-facing facade. That east side will house the restaurants massive, wrap-around patio that extends to the building’s backside, where Zimone says two large tables for a “quieter experience” can be taken over by guests.

The rest of the space, taking over what used to be Babette’s Feast/Ô Gourmet, features their pizza oven: Built in Napoli and shipped over once its baby blue-and-white broken pottery mosaic detailing was finished, it sits in an open air space on the restaurant’s northern corner while the dining room itself is broken into two spaces. When entering from 2nd Street, there’s an elevated space—with a 20-foot skylight leading the way—and then, at direct ground level, the other dining space.

Written and photos by Brian Addison.

For the full feature on L'Antica da Michele, click here.