5 Tips for finding the best pizza in New York

Visiting New York requires extensive planning, especially if your stay is short. The last thing you want to do is waste time eating at the wrong pizzerias. Manhattan alone has over 450 of them and the best ones aren’t conveniently located in Times Square as many tourists seem to believe. All too common is the question “Where is Famous Ray’s?” as families emerge from Broadway theaters looking for a quick bite. I’d be happy to tell you where it is but please don’t let Ray’s be your New York pizza bench mark.

In order to help you find your way through the labyrinth of New York pizza, I have composed a short list of guidelines with which you will be better able to select a worthy slice. There are always exceptions to the rule, but you don’t have enough time in your trip to sift through the city’s 1,400 pizzerias.

Five Steps Toward a Better Pizza

1. Don’t fall for marketing. Regardless of what the sign in the window says, that is almost certainly not the “Best Pizza In NYC.”

2. Avoid slice shops with too many options. That pizza has been sitting out since before you boarded the airplane.

3. Steer clear of pizzerias whose name includes the words “famous” or “original.” Again, clever advertising is no reason to waste valuable stomach room.

4. Popular pizzerias usually require a substantial wait. Factor in an extra hour, especially at night and on the weekend.

5. Carry cash and bring a friend. Historic coal-oven pizzerias don’t sell pizza by the slice and they don’t take credit cards.

Follow these guidelines and you’ll be five steps closer to a real New York pizza experience.

Picture of Patsy’s pizza, East Harlem, NY originally posted by jslander

Topic:  Restaurants & Food | 2 Comments
Tags:  food, New York

About the author

Scott Wiener is a licensed NYC tour guide and owner/operator of Scott's Pizza Tours, which runs guided tours of New York's best pizzerias.