New York, affectionately known as the city that never sleeps, is known for many things, especially it’s food. One of it’s most treasured culinary items to a New Yorker is the New York Pizza. Well known around the world, it is often replicated but never duplicated. When you are traveling in New York, it is probably best that you never refer to a pizza as a pizza. Instead, you should refer to it as a pie. And while New Yorkers generally disagree on what makes up a “true” NY-style pizza, the most defining feature of the NY pizza is the crust. Hand tossed and rolled out as thin as possible, it is covered with a tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, and toppings, with pepperoni being the classic choice.
But what truly makes a NY pizza stand out? Some say it’s the water, as if New York Municipal Services laces the water with MSG. Others insist it’s the mafia’s monopoly on the mozzarella market, keeping the best mozzarella in New York. Quite frankly, I find that the reason is much more simple: New York just does it better.
So where might you find some truly great slices in New York? You could
go to Rays, but which one? With so many to choose from, there’s no way you’ll be able to try them all.
Here are our suggestions:
1. Lombardi’s – Located on Spring Street in the SoHo district, it is arguably the most famous pizza joint in town, and for good reason: they were the first! New York’s oldest pizza joint, Lombardi’s has been in business since 1905! People travel from all over the world, just to have a slice at the world famous Lombardi’s. Lombardi’s is heavily rated by critics everywhere, including Zagat, Bon Appetite, and the most important critic – the people. The pepperoni pizza here is to die for.
2. Di Fara’s NY – You can find Di Fara’s at 1424 Avenue J. Hailed as one of Brooklyn’s best pizza joints, if not one of NY’s best,Di Fara’s is most known for it’s neopolitan pies. The crust is perfectly thin, with an excellent crust. Topped with fresh basil, mozzarella, and tomato sauce, it’s a wonderful testament to the simplicity of pizza. It’s a little known fact that Di Fara’s actually gets their ingredients flown in from Italy. No wonder customers wait up to 30 minutes for just a few slices!
3. Grimaldi’s Brooklyn – Grimaldi’s has been serving some of NY’s finest pizzas for quite some time now, as evidenced by their legions of devote fans. Grimaldi’s patrons say that the coal brick oven makes all the difference, and it truly does. It’s as if the oven adds the essence of smoke and fire to the pizza, giving it a one of a kind taste that will leave you speechless.
This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to NY Pizza. One can travel to New York hundreds of times, and never eat at the same pizzeria twice. NY pizza, eating New York, one slice at a time.
