Category Archives: New York City

Una Pizza Napoletana New York City NYC

Sometimes I like to venture out around New York City and find pizza places I have never heard of that others rave about. This is how I found Totonnos which I love. So Rak and I were downtown and I checked with PizzaExpert to see what the public says is good down here. We ended up going to Una Pizza Napoletana on 349 East 12th Street (212) 477 9950. And considering all the positive reviews this place gets, it seemed natural we would enjoy it….all I can say is in my opinion it sucked.

They had only four kinds of pizza that were basically all the same. The choices are Mariana, Margherita, Blanca, and Filetti pizzas. No toppings are even available, and they would not allow us to order them without basil. They put about 15 basil leaves on the pizza and even when I took them off you could taste an overpowering basil taste. Rak mentioned to the waitress I was from worstpizza, which I didn’t really want him to do, and she told the chef, but he didn’t do anything to accommodate. I asked her not to mention anything but since she was pointing at us as I was walking out, I could tell she obviously wasn’t a waitress of her word.

The house wine was good, but the 3 different pizzas we ordered all basically tasted the same….like basil. So I say don’t believe the hype that you read around the web about Una Pizza Napoletana and go to Totonnos a few blocks away where you can truly get great pizza and decide how you want it.

The place only takes cash, no credit cards, and that sucks too. People were standing in line outside in the cold and the staff was extremely unfriendly when you arrived inside. Trust me people, there are much better places to justify standing outside for. I will give Una Pizza Napoletana 4 out of 8 slices.

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Lazzaras Pizza Thin Crust In New York City

Lazzaras Pizza on 221 West 38th Street, NYC (212) 944-7792 is located on the 2nd floor of a building. A building with a very dangerous entrance Thankfully I didn’t go when there was ice, but I am pretty certain I could have eaten the street as well as the pizza if I took one misstep.

Lazzaras Pizza is known for their thin crust pizza. As we were walking throughout the city Big G mentioned that he once knew a place around the garment district that had some pretty good pies. Herb and I once again learned never to doubt Big G’s memory. He led us right to the doorstep of this place. We headed up to the second floor and sat down in this small, yet quaint restaurant. Seeing the pizza as we were seated, made me start to crave it. The pizza reminded me of Pizza Supreme, which I really enjoy, so I was anxious to get a pie in the oven.

We ordered 2 pies, one with meatball and one plain. They didn’t take too long to cook and when they came out, I couldn’t thank Big G enough. These pizzas were delicious. The cheese was ultra fresh, and the sauce had a nice sweet taste. It was the crust that stood out most. The crust was perfectly crisp and tasted pretty damn good. Should I be around this area again, I will be sure to go and try the pizza again. Just be warned about the steps…they are quite steep and not properly spaced.

I will give Lazzaras Pizza in New York City 7 out of 8 slices.

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Gotham Pizza New York City NYC

This post comes to us from Jessica at FoodMayhem.  So last night, we were at Marc’s going away party (we will miss you Marc), and we met his friend, Eric,who has eaten at 326 by-the-slice pizza places. Wow! So, we agreed that the New York City Slice has gone down in the last ten years and it’s hard to find a really good one these days. I usually end up eating the fancy (and more expensive) thin crusts like Numero 28 or Fornino, but sometimes you want a New York City style slice. For me, it’s a nostalgic reminder of my high school years.

Eric recommended we try Gotham Pizza 1443 York Ave, New York 10021 Btwn 76th & 77th St Phone: 212-288-8085. It’s kind of in between the New York City slice and a thin crust, the cheese and sauce being more traditional New Yorker, while the crust is a bit thinner. To be picky (as always), it’s heavy on the oregano for me, but otherwise tastes good, and the oregano doesn’t bother me too much. Our favorite part is the crust, made crunchy by the panko-like crumbs on the bottom side. Another upside it that it’s not greasy, but it’s also not as filling. The large pie, half sausage (Lon’s way of eating it), half plain (my way of eating it), is 8 slices, but they are small and thin, so it could easily be eaten by two people. The price of $17.50 was reasonable and since Kasi (Lon’s sister) lives a few blocks away, we’ll probably eat there again.  I give Gotham Pizza in New York City 5 out of 8 slices.


Rosa’s Pizza Penn Station New York City

Back when I used to work in Jersey City, I used to take the Long Island Railroad everyday into New York City.  Then walk up an avenue, and take the PATH across the river to New Jersey.  After working a hard day, my only salvation was arriving back at Penn Station to catch my train home, and grab a slice of some heavenly Upside Down Sicilian (or as they call it Red) Pizza.

I am sure most of you think I am crazy by this point, actually eating at a place in Penn Station, but I was able to forgive all the filthiness of the surroundings and eat this pizza.  It was only natural that during my trip to New York, I would take the train into the city and grab a slice.  Upon arriving at Rosa’s Pizza after all these years in Penn Station, I realized some things had changed.  Instead of hearing the workers speak Spanish to each other, now I was hearing Arabic being used.  Not sure if Rosa’s sold this location, but I will have to investigate further and report my findings to you at a later date.  Rosas dining room had the same amount of filth, but what can you expect from a pizza place down in a tube station.

I ordered an Upside Down Sicilian and waited at the cash register for about 5 minutes while the girl was having an argument with the customer in front of me.  This is kind of shocking considering most folks are trying to catch a train on time, and 5 minutes could mean the difference between going home or having to wait for the next train.  This counter girl didn’t seem to care.  After FINALLY getting rung up, I proceeded to sit down and bite into this gorgeous slice.  The smell of the pizza brought back so many memories of a younger time for me.

Rosa, after tasting your slice after so many years, it is safe to say that it is wonderful.  Even though the accents have changed, the recipe remains the same.  The sauce was perfectly sweet and hot.  The cheese was freshly melted into the soft dough.  The crust was crispy and tasted marvelous.  Deciding whether or not to give this pizza a perfect score was hard, but ultimately I have chosen to give Rosa’s Pizza in Penn Station New York 7 out of 8 slices.  I was unable to give a perfect score due to the burnt edge of the crust.  Normally I can enjoy a well done crust, but this pie seemed a bit rushed and made without love.

Lombardi’s Pizza New York Not Worth The Wait

One of my next stops during the pizza journey in New York was at Lombardi’s Pizza in Manhattan New York, located on Spring Street.  Lombardi’s considers itself one of New York City’s oldest pizza places.  It appears that they have almost doubled in size from my first time eating there, and appears much more cosmopolitan then a pizza place should be.  Since I hadn’t had this pizza for about 17 years, I was curious if it could live up to its reputation.

After waiting about 45 minutes in the heat to get in, we were finally seated in the basement, as if they wanted to keep me out of public viewing.  Would hate to be a server at this establishment since you have to walk up and down a steep stairwell to access the downstairs crowd.  Since this would be like my umpteeth slice of pizza this day, we got a small plain pie.

While waiting for the pizza I came to realize that every person eating there had an accent, from some foreign land.  I hope they do not think this is part of the sites to see in New York City!  Our food came and it was nice and hot, and although it tasted ok, it was nothing in comparison to Spumoni Gardens, or Di Faras Pizza.  The sauce was decent, and had a nice taste to it, and the cheese was quality, but I just didn’t think it should be considered one of the best in New York.

Maybe it isn’t fair to rate Lombardi’s Pizza in New York after having such amazing pizza elsewhere around the boroughs.  But I know the best pizza when I taste it, and Lombardi’s should not be classified as the best.  Maybe for a tourist visiting Manhattan for the first time, it would appear it is the best the city has to offer, but just a short distance away from Spring Streeet, there are many other delicious places. Places like Arturo’s on Houston.   I will give Lombardi’s 6 out of 8 slices.