Pizza Party
A Slice of New York
Who makes the best pizza in New York? Ask a few New Yorkers and you will most likely get different answers. But certain names consistently rise to the top. Several even claim to serve the “Best Pizza on the Planet.”
BY NANCY DAVIDSON
OLD SCHOOL
The rivalries go back a long way, but no one disputes that Lombardi’s (www.lombardispizza.com) on Spring Street in Manhattan became the first official pizzeria in the US in 1905. Lombardi’s is the grandfather of New York pizza, justly famous for its coal-oven baked pies, cozy booths and red gingham tablecloths. Th e coal oven gives a wonderful delicate char to the medium-thick crust topped with sweet tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella; meatballs are one of the best toppings. The clam pie, with no mozzarella or red sauce, is also a delight: extra crispy crust, puddles of olive oil, plenty of garlic and luscious clams.
Three other current favorite pizza joints trace back to the original Lombardi’s. In 1924, Anthony (Totonno) Pero, an employee of Lombardi’s, opened Totonno’s (www.totonnos.com) in Coney Island. The original Totonno’s is old school in both method (coal oven) and atmosphere. The walls are lined with press clips and photos of famous patrons. Beware before you make the trip: Totonno’s is also famous for closing when they run out of dough.
John’s of Bleecker Street (www.johnsofbleeckerstreet.com) was opened in 1929 by John Sasso, also a former Lombardi’s employee. The pizza is nicely charred with a crust that’s more crispy than chewy. It’s a popular date place for young New Yorkers, and the old wooden booths are carved with names and initials of besotted patrons. Unlike Lombardi’s, the meatballs here are gigantic.
Grimaldi’s (www.grimaldis.com) also traces its pedigree to Lombardi’s. Patsy Lancieri took what he learned there and opened his own pizza place in 1933 in Harlem. His nephew, Patsy Grimaldi, trained at Lancieri’s eatery, then took the coal-fired brick oven technology to Brooklyn. The long lines move quickly, and you have pleasant views across the water of the Seaport and downtown Manhattan while you wait. You can also order ahead and pick up your pie, which comes wrapped in white paper, the same way Lombardi’s did it eons ago. The crust is tender and chewy on the inside, but crispy around the edges, and pizzas are topped with moderate amounts of fresh cheese and sweet and tangy tomato sauce.
Arturo’s Coal Oven Pizza (212-677-3820), located on the cusp of SoHo and the West Village, is one of the few pizza joints in Manhattan that uses a coal-burning oven. Th e pizza has plenty of characteristic char (too much for some critics). The crust is salty, not too thick or too thin, the sauce flavorful and the mozzarella plentiful. Arturo’s gets bonus points for atmosphere; enjoy red leatherette booths, nightly jazz sessions and makeshift seating on the sidewalk of Houston Street.
NEW WORLD
One thing that used to distinguish most old school pizzerias from local by-the-slice joints was the insistence on selling only whole pies, made to order with fresh mozzarella. In the past few years, a slew of new pizza places have opened, maintaining similar devotion to the value of the custom-made pie, but adding to it a zeal for local and artisanal toppings.
One zealot is chef Michael Ayoub, who opened Fornino (718-384-6004) in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, followed by Cronkite Pizzeria & Wine Bar (www.cronkitepizza.com) on the Lower East Side a few years later. He grows herbs in a greenhouse garden, sources local meats for his toppings and makes mozzarella fresh everyday.
Cronkite’s menu reflects the history of pizza and is divided into three sections: Naples, the first generation, pays homage to the rules of the Neapolitan pizza.
A true “pizza Napoletana”—one protected by the Denominazione d’Origine Protetta (DOP) label—is a relatively simple pie, made with San Marzano tomatoes and fresh mozzarella or buff alo mozzarella imported from Italy. Th e second generation celebrates Italian regions with toppings that are typical of each area. For example, the Pugliese pie is topped with fennel sausage and broccoli rabe. The third generation features combinations invented by Ayoub specifically for Cronkite.
Franny’s (www.frannysbrooklyn.com), in Williamsburg, also has a serious interest in artisanal toppings, with meats, pickles and olives cured on site. (Other toppings are pretty basic.) Franny’s serves individual pies cooked in a wood-burning oven, and like the East Village’s Una Pizza Napoletana (212-477-9950), the pies are served uncut.
Open since 2004, Una Pizza Napoletana is hard core when it comes to making authentic Neapolitan pizza. Owner Anthony Mangieri insists on the DOP standards (San Marzano tomatoes, imported buffalo mozzarella), and the pies are drizzled with sea salt and wonderful extra virgin olive oil. You won’t find any pepperoni, meatballs or sausages here—traditional Neapolitan pizza is meat-free. Th e eatery is only open at the whim of the owner (call ahead for the schedule) and, like Totonno’s, it closes when the dough runs out.
Around the corner at Luzzo’s (www.luzzorestaurant.com), you’ll find an anomaly: a relatively new pizza place with a coal-burning oven. Although the Clean Air Act of 1970 mandated that new coal-burning ovens could not be built, Luzzo’s inherited it from a previous tenant. While the very thin crust is occasionally soggy in the middle (perhaps from the generous amounts of fresh mozzarella), the overall flavors more than compensate for any weakness in texture. Luzzo’s signature pie is topped with mozzarella, arugula, baby shrimp and lemon—and no tomato sauce.
At nearby Lil’ Frankie’s (www.lilfrankies.com), owner Frank Prisinzano had a wood-burning brick oven custom built by an oven maker from Italy. The pizza here is the real thing. The menu off ers pizza bianca, topped with extra virgin olive oil, sea salt and truffle oil; pizzas with classic fennel sausage and baby meatballs; untraditional pies topped with fontina cheese; and specials that change daily.
Where to find the best New York pizza is a subject that will always garner much debate, especially among locals. No matter what kind you choose—old school, by the slice, true Napoletana— don’t leave the city without a taste.
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OUR OPINIONATED PICKS FOR NEW YORK’S TOP PIZZA JOINTS
GRIMALDI’S
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