Sicilian pizza, Vltava views, and gelato: Amuní is the endless summer we need

Massimo Giuliana is a Sicilian with a knack for opening successful European pizzerias. From Bologna to Bruges, where his Amunì concept was born, and finally in Prague, where he opened the first Berberè-style pizza spot in Břevnov.

Amunì, which later moved to the pizza paradise that is Vinohrady, is now staking a claim in tourist territory. Anyone looking for a place to eat near the Charles Bridge or simply an excuse to extend their summer holidays as autumn sets in will welcome the second location on Smetanovo nábřeží.

Here, Giuliana, together with an authentic pizzaiolo from Sicily, has crafted a menu that features not just classic pies from slow-leavened dough (Margherita, Napoli, Quattro Formaggi), but also upper-crust toppings such as guanciale (dry-cured pork jowl) from the Nebrodi mountains, taleggio cheese, and Sicilian capers from the island of Pantelleria.

At Amunì, however, it’s all about the base: a sourdough crust made from Giuliana's slow-rise dough recipe, using flour ground with a millstone.

Even though the dough originates from the same recipe, different pizzas arrive differently shaped. Gourmet pizzas have a higher, crispy edge than the classic Italian pizza: the pizza with dry-cured San Daniele ham, burrata cheese, and sweet fig mustard tops among them. Other nice slices: pumpkin cream sauce pizza with mushrooms, toasted hazelnuts, and garlic oil; Quattro Formaggi with Fior di latte mozzarella, gorgonzola, smoked cheese, taleggio cheese, honey, and walnuts.

Sourdough is also featured on the starter menu, such as the bruschetta with cherry tomatoes, stracciatella cheese, lemon peel, and Italian bacon. A pasta menu includes pasta carbonara or lasagna classica. Desserts cannoli siciliana, pistachio tiramisu, and authentic gelato are served from the restaurant’s attached tavola calda (a hot table, open late-night selling pizza) and gelateria.

"Italian gastronomy is a combination of simplicity and quality ingredients. We don't do anything special, we just stick to this principle. That's why, in addition to pizza, we also started making real Italian gelato. We regularly go to Italy, where we follow trends and then bring them to Prague," says Giuliana.

If you go for the pizza, the gelato window will make you go back again and again. Fifteen regularly rotating flavors, including traditional Italian favorites such as hazelnut, Malaga, and Zuppa Inglese, a custardy take on an English trifle, are all made directly on the premises on Smetanovo nábřeží.

From the red brick floors and olive trees to the wicker chairs and open kitchen showcasing the Morello Forni pizza oven, the ambiance at Amuní may be quintessentially Prague, but the essence is unmistakably Palermo. Whuch seems about right for a pizza maestro who has dedicated his career to championing the art of slow eating across the continent.