7 New York City Slices In 5 Hours
Checking in on F&F Pizzeria, Scarr’s, Upside, and a few other names you see in the papers.
I’ve been writing about food in New York City for just about 20 years now and have reported “food crawl” stories for nearly that long. Back before social media videos, AI notes apps, and iPhones, the process was definitively analog: talk to friends, read message boards, write down findings in a notepad. I hate my handwriting (I actually hate writing anything by hand), so the note taking was by far the worst part. Writing about a city’s food scene today while focusing on a single dish or category is much more pleasurable. The dam previously holding back information has been smashed open, and it’s really easy to pull together a list of great Taiwanese beef noodle soup shops or Egyptian seafood restaurants. But getting out to try the three, eight, or twenty-seven places is another story.
Last Friday I was inspired to visit seven NYC slice shops. First, the recent New York Times list got me thinking a lot about my relationship with the pizza slice. What did I value the most? Were L&B Spumoni Gardens, F&F, and Scarr’s still on my podium? And what about the new spots—for example, what is up with Lucia? I was also inspired by my friend Maurizio Leo, who is working on a pizza cookbook to follow up his well-researched sourdough master class, The Perfect Loaf. Here are some brief thoughts on each of the places we visited, with a ranking at the end. We made an episode of This Is TASTE that will be available in a few weeks.
Joe’s Pizza
11:15 a.m.
To me, this is the obvious place to crystallize an NYC slice baseline. Since 1975, cash-only slices have been sold on this West Village corner, and to my eye, not much has changed. This is the essential city slice. Bread oven, bleached flour, more cheese than sauce. The sauce was really right on this visit: not too sweet. Also, the slice is thin; it’s not one of those bloated bread bombs you’ll find at the anonymous joint near Port Authority. I asked some nice guys working at Joe’s about their daily pie count, and they estimated 500 to 600. 7 Carmine St, New York, NY 10014
L’industrie Pizzeria West Village
12:03 p.m.
Being honest, the carrot cake caught my eye first. We had lined up 25 minutes before opening, and there were 11 people in front of us. By the time the doors swung open, there were more than 75 behind us. This is one of the city’s most hyped pizzerias, and it was my first time visiting the newer West Village location. We ordered the cheese slice, the fig jam and bacon slice, and the infamous burrata slice. The dough’s flavor development (hate that term, but you know) was super nice. These boys are baking bread here, and the “fermentation time equals flavor” ethic is being followed. I loved the energy in the room, and the counter staff could not have been cooler. Dealing with these crowds, you never know.
Briefly, on the burrata slice: I hate it. I hate everything about it. It feels unnecessary. How do you actually eat a burrata slice, with lumps of creamy (and flavorless) cheese dropped on the slice in two large globs? There’s no balance or finesse here. Hard pass. The fig and bacon slice was way too sweet, but you know what you’re getting into with that order. We should have done the spicy salami. That’s the legend, along with the burrata (why?). Anyway, the carrot cake was really good. It’s not made with olive oil, contrary to some writings—I checked with the guy. But the cream cheese frosting was a great choice. 104 Christopher St, New York, NY 10014
Mama’s TOO! Pizzeria West Village
12:55 p.m.
WHY ARE YOU MARRIED TO CAPS LOCK? Also, why is this pizza consistently ranked so high? Mama’s TOO! has two locations now and is famous for these maximalist square slices topped with cacio e pepe and pear with gorgonzola cheese. Basic stuff. We tried CeP, pepperoni, and the classic slice. It was very greasy, the dough flavor was completely absent, and the classic slice was so dry the drizzle of olive oil couldn’t save it. As with Di Fara (I’m also not a fan), this place leans into that olive oil shower. I don’t get it, especially when the oil doesn’t add spice or acidity. I’ve never tried the chicken parm, but the TikTok guy recording outside told me that it was one of the restaurant’s “hidden gems.” 325 Bleecker St, New York, NY 10014
Lucia Pizza of Soho
1:34 p.m.
What a packed little shop on the chaotic corner of Canal and West Broadway, near the double chaos of the Holland Tunnel merge. This was the only pizza I had not tried previously, and I was going in super blind. I really like it. We tried a plain slice, pepperoni with pickled jalapeño slice, and a grandma corner. The grandma slice had a really interesting texture; the dough cooked around the cheese, leaving little pockets that looked like dry lava. Flipping the slice, the undercarriage was pocked with air pockets. This all leads to the realization that this is a really flavorful dough—quite sour and appealing. 375 Canal St, New York, NY 10013
Upside Pizza
2:04 p.m.
I’ve been following the Upside story for a minute, and I had cofounder Noam Grossman on the podcast. With six locations now, it’s my go-to NYC slice, and I was looking forward to introducing Maurizio to the pepperoni square. It’s honestly a magic trick. At first glance at the pizza case, the slice looks daunting. Your mouth puckers for tart tomato, pepperoni nitrates, and oil. You ready yourself for a meal. Then, surprise. It’s a slice that is lightly topped with mozzarella and aged cheeses, a balanced pepperoni distribution, frico caramelization at the edges, and then booooom…the big reveal. The dough is airy and sour. I could eat three of them.
But the highlight was the corn pie—a new addition from the genius of Anthony Falco. Sweet corn, poblano peppers, and sweet onions topping a white cream sauce. They finished with togarashi, which is a cool twist. I’ve always loved adding seaweed and chile to melted cheese—think ramyeon topped with American cheese slices. Nice work: New York summer has its official slice. 51 Spring St, New York, NY 10012
Scarr’s
2:49 p.m.
I honestly had kind of a rough time on a previous dine-in visit to Scarr’s. The staff was kind of absent, the pizza was super overdone, and I left feeling a little betrayed by what had been my favorite slice in NYC. Here was some redemption. We ordered the classic slice and the Hotboi (raw jalapeño slices, pepperoni, hot honey), a slice that remains my number-one classic.
I had Scarr Pimentel on the podcast last month, and it was an incredible conversation. We talked about all the places he’s worked, including Lombardi’s, L’asso, Artichoke Basille’s, and Joe’s. We talked about his approach to milling his own flour and using exceptional ingredients. The classic Scarr’s slice is a beautiful thing—even when it’s cut cartoonishly long and thin like a Modigliani muse, which we found on this day. During this research trip, Maurizio was focused on the pizza’s breadness, the complex flavors presented in the baked crust. Scarr’s won his heart, and I felt like the ship was steadied. To note, the staff was really kind on this visit. 35 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002
F&F Pizzeria
3:25 p.m.
Anybody who listens to our podcast knows about my love for F&F. I feel like I talk about it a few times a month. Apologies, but not really. I lived up the street in Carroll Gardens for 17 years and visited the first week it opened in 2019. I love this photo from New York magazine so much, and for a couple of reasons. First, talk about bread and pizza legends—Chris Bianco and Chad Robertson—helping Frank Castronovo and Frank Falcinelli open their pizza shop (the Franks admitted they had little experience or skills in the pizza trade). Power move. Second, boy has the pizza evolved. The photo shows pizza that might be Neapolitan-inspired (it’s hard to say) and pretty charred up. There are no Sicilian slices in sight. It’s funny because I only order the Sicilian these days. Sure, the sausage and broccoli rabe slice is a pizza-adjacent version of the brown butter and sage cavatelli next door at Frankies 457 Spuntino. I’ve had many of those too.
Our final stop included a short catch-up with Castronovo, who was setting up for a private event and gave us a little update on their summer pizza sessions with Blackbird. We ordered well: classic slice, sausage and rabe, and the winner of the whole pizza tour, a dairy-free red Sicilian with Bianco DiNapoli tomatoes, green Castelvetrano olives, oregano, and the Frankies 457 house olive oil. The crust for this Sicilian expresses a real point of view—sour is good. Paired with the oregano, light tomato interference, and those incredible olives, it just really hit the spot—and it was the last stop. I was wearing a Bonci Pizza T-shirt because, shirt to the show, and one of the employees gave me a nod. These guys, like Bonci in Chicago and Rome, strive for excellence without compromising creativity and point of view. It’s a remarkable thing and something I never take for granted. 459 Court St, Brooklyn, NY 11231
Conclusion
The walking slice tour is the ultimate New York City experience. It’s an affordable activity, and it allows you to see multiple neighborhoods on foot. Were we full? Honestly, not really. We talked, we drank lots of sparkling water, and, joined by This Is TASTE’s world-class lead producer, Clayton Gumbert, we averaged less than a slice per stop. Very doable.
About those rankings, here’s my take from a single day in the greatest pizza city in the world:
1. (tie) F&F Pizzeria
1. (tie) Upside Pizza
3. Scarr’s Pizza
4. Lucia Pizza of Soho
5. Joe’s Pizza
6. L’industrie Pizzeria West Village
7. Mama’s TOO! Pizzeria West Village
Remembering The Grocery
On This Is TASTE, I had a great talk with restaurant critic Besha Rodell. She wrote a terrific memoir, Hunger Like a Thirst, and we talked about her time reviewing in Atlanta and Los Angles, as well working at The Grocery on Smith Street in Carroll Gardens in the early 2000s. The Grocery was a unique little restaurant that, out of the blue in 2003, received a perfect score from Zagat. The best restaurants in Zagat that year? Le Bernardin, Daniel, Peter Luger, Nobu, Bouley, Jean Georges and the Grocery. Crazy. And double crazy for a cozy restaurant in Brooklyn to receive those marks. The food was solid, if not simple. I have no memory of my meals there outside of a bee attack. Service was really good. Maybe Besha was my server? I wish I had a strong memory. In the end, the Zagats got a great media moment that continued selling those guidebooks. Just saying it, a Tim and Tina Zagat doc would be interesting.
north brooklyn crawl for pt 2, please!!!
Curious your take on Chrissy’s and Ceres (new-er comers to the scene) maybe for a pt2 episode