Because I work with dorks, we have taken it upon ourselves to visit the most well known pizza places in NYC to see which is the best. Essentially, we go out for beers and pizza on work nights and have a good time. We discuss which place we should try next and agonize over what we'll order. It's almost like I have guy friends. I spend days getting excited. Still, I don't know if anything can beat the pizza from Riverboat Playhouse, the Chuck E Cheese rip off we used to go to as kids in Miami that had the best pizza ever. Here's where we've been so far:
1. Difara's: This was the first place we went to and it was a life changing experience for me, opening my eyes to how good and satisfying pizza can actually be. Anyone who has had it will understand the reverence it is due. It's run by Dom DeMarco, who has been making each pizza by hand with fresh basil cut with scissors since 1964 and has perfected the art. You may have to wait up to two hours to get a pie and it's worth it. Watch this movie to see how people romanticize this shit hole with only a few shoddy chairs and dirty tables that's been shut down by the health department a few times, and understand why. Recommendation: get the plain square pie, there's nothing like it in this world.
2. John's of Bleecker Street: John's is the classic New York pizza, and it's a classic for a reason. We went here second because of its reputation and because no one wanted to make the trek out to Brooklyn again. We saw "celebrities" there, by which I mean Andy Dwyer from Parks & Recreations, who I recognized, and Bethanny Frankel's assistant, who I don't know because I'm not totally queer. Recommendation: John's sausage pie is hard to beat, though no, it's not DiFara's square pie.
3. L&B Spumoni Gardens: this is essentially a neighborhood place deep in the heart of Brooklyn that's known for its Sicilian slice. It's different, in that a light layer of cheese goes directly onto the crust with the sauce on top, sprinkled generously with parmesan. It makes for an interesting bite, as the crust and the cheese blend together, making it both light and chewy. The dark horse is the amazing regular slice, which I might dare to say competes with it's more celebrated square if not for the Donnie Brasco wannabe goomba Brooklyn guys dressed like they came from gym class yet driving away in a BMW Z-series. What line of work are they in? Sanitation. You get to sit outside drinking a can of Corona eating too much pizza, all while keeping your mouth shut about the guys you're looking at. The 80s soundtrack is perfect. I never knew that Cindy Lauper and Pat Benatar went so well with pizza. The spumoni may be the best part, which is a cross between ice cream and gelato but like neither. Recommendation: the Sicilian because of its reputation, finish with spumoni.
1. Difara's: This was the first place we went to and it was a life changing experience for me, opening my eyes to how good and satisfying pizza can actually be. Anyone who has had it will understand the reverence it is due. It's run by Dom DeMarco, who has been making each pizza by hand with fresh basil cut with scissors since 1964 and has perfected the art. You may have to wait up to two hours to get a pie and it's worth it. Watch this movie to see how people romanticize this shit hole with only a few shoddy chairs and dirty tables that's been shut down by the health department a few times, and understand why. Recommendation: get the plain square pie, there's nothing like it in this world.
2. John's of Bleecker Street: John's is the classic New York pizza, and it's a classic for a reason. We went here second because of its reputation and because no one wanted to make the trek out to Brooklyn again. We saw "celebrities" there, by which I mean Andy Dwyer from Parks & Recreations, who I recognized, and Bethanny Frankel's assistant, who I don't know because I'm not totally queer. Recommendation: John's sausage pie is hard to beat, though no, it's not DiFara's square pie.
3. L&B Spumoni Gardens: this is essentially a neighborhood place deep in the heart of Brooklyn that's known for its Sicilian slice. It's different, in that a light layer of cheese goes directly onto the crust with the sauce on top, sprinkled generously with parmesan. It makes for an interesting bite, as the crust and the cheese blend together, making it both light and chewy. The dark horse is the amazing regular slice, which I might dare to say competes with it's more celebrated square if not for the Donnie Brasco wannabe goomba Brooklyn guys dressed like they came from gym class yet driving away in a BMW Z-series. What line of work are they in? Sanitation. You get to sit outside drinking a can of Corona eating too much pizza, all while keeping your mouth shut about the guys you're looking at. The 80s soundtrack is perfect. I never knew that Cindy Lauper and Pat Benatar went so well with pizza. The spumoni may be the best part, which is a cross between ice cream and gelato but like neither. Recommendation: the Sicilian because of its reputation, finish with spumoni.
Next up are a bunch of places I have never heard of. Slice, a pizza blog for nerds, had its take of the Best NYC Pizza for 2011, which is controversial for listing a brussels sprouts and pancetta pizza as #1, beating even Difara's round. Matt and the purists think it's an outrage. I think that sounds pretty good.
