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Went not that long ago to Grimaldi's in Brooklyn, which I thought makes an excellent pie. Assuming they're a reasonable model for "New York pizza," you simply won't find a parallel here in Boston.
The Grimaldi's standard cheese pie has a thin crust, puts what appears to be real-deal whole milk mozzarella directly down on the crust first, then adds a really nice tangy tomato sauce and fresh basil on top. No one in Boston makes pizza this way -- the sauce is always on the bottom around here, for starters.
But that's not to say you won't find good pizza here in Boston, of course. A site search will bring up several worthy options. It just won't be the same as a Grimaldi's one.
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re: treb
Infomaniac
Dec 30, 2007 09:24 AM
Santarpio's in East Boston puts the cheese down first with sauce on top.
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re: bachslunch
hiddenboston
Dec 31, 2007 05:43 AM
Grimaldi's is probably my favorite pizza in the Northeast (though Pepe's is right up there). The fresh cheese, delicious sauce, perfect crust, plus the fact that it's literally under the Brooklyn Bridge and has some real attitude from the staff all make for an amazing experience.
I still think the Paddock in Somerville might come closest to good NY-style pizza for me, though Bianchi's in Revere isn't bad either.
I'm outta here (off to Newport for the next couple of days). Happy New Year, everyone! Here's hoping for a great 2008 for all.
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re: tamerlanenj
hiddenboston
Jan 1, 2008 04:45 PM
I can see making a case for either Grimaldi's or Di Fara; if it weren't for the excess olive oil from the "watering can" on Di Fara's pizza, I might give it the nod over Grimaldi's. But Di Fara is still in my top 3 for NYC.
Yeah, Bostone Pizza is right up there for me, too. Excellent NY-style slices there. BTW, have they finished with renovations?
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The game...my husband is screaming in the other room.
The crust it not like cardboard but crispier and thinner than greek pizza (yuck!) or Uno's. It almost has a buttery taste. My new favorites from home are vodka sauce and grandma pizza and i dont think Mass will ever get those right. I'll just have to fuel up when I go home. Oh, i didnt know they opened an upper crust in salem??? For some strange reason my husband breaks out in a rash when he eats pizza from there and pizzeria regina. Maybe they have some secrets they shared, hmmmm??
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The best thin crust (true thin crust) pizzas in the Boston area are:
Sweet Tomatoes -- Pesto Splash is too die for
Upper Crust
Penguin Pizza on Huntington - Butternut squash/goat cheese pizza is soooo good
Ilmundo on Huntington
Regina - although depends on location -- North End seems to be have the thinnest crust›1 Reply -
almansa
Oct 27, 2007 07:03 AM
Having searched for passable pizza in the area for 13 years now, I have come to the conclusion that only the Upper Crust is any good at all. Sorry. I've tried to like the pizza here, I really have (which isn't to say that I don't eat it often just the same.)
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re: tamerlanenj
hiddenboston
Oct 16, 2007 08:32 AM
I was going to mention Bostone Pizza, but it's not north of Boston, which is what the OP was asking. Tremendous slices, though--one of the best pizzas I've had in the Boston area this year. And I agree about the Sicilian there--not all that great, IMO.
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resipsaloquitor
Oct 16, 2007 06:45 AM
I grew up in New York and I can assure you, you will not find NY-style pizza here. How I miss the ocean of grease and the ability to fold a slice over, and that chewy, nasty mozzarella made by Goodyear. There is a place in the Theater District called -- you guessed it -- New York Pizza -- that comes close. My pizza of choice is either Riverview in Ipswich and LaRosa's in Gloucester, but neither is NY style.
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re: resipsaloquitor
hiddenboston
Oct 16, 2007 06:50 AM
I used to love grabbing a slice at New York Pizza at 2:00 in the morning, but never went any other time, as I figured that all pizza tastes good at 2:00 in the morning.
Have you tried Bianchi's on Revere Beach? Their pizza is pretty close to New York-style.
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re: hiddenboston
threedogs
Oct 16, 2007 04:34 PM
Just heard Bianchi's opened up another in Lynn - haven't tried it yet. Oh - I also just got a flier from a local pizza joint - "New York Pizza" ... with bleu cheese! Wondering where the h@#$ they connected the dots to connected New York and bleu cheese!
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re: threedogs
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re: hiddenboston
There has been a sign on Boston Street at the Lynn/Saugus border for months tantalizingly advertising the coming of a Bianchi's. Once opened, it wasn't a Bianchi's, but something called Effi's Pizza. Haven't had a chance to try it. Having grown up in Brooklyn in the days when every pizza place had great pizza, the search for anything comparable around these parts is long and usually unsatisfying. Bianchi's, Regina and a few others come close. It's not NY pizza, but Upper Crust is pretty good. If you want to try something delicious and different, it's worth the schlep down to Al Forno in Providence for their free form wood fired pizza.
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OK here is my 2cts.
All of you have a nice problem. I grew up in Sommerville and the North Shore my Dad had a pizza palor in Union Square 45 yrs. ago. I know great pizza made only with mozzarella cheese and with just the right amount of sauce. Dough made in the store and tossed by hand. My opion you don't put pineapple on pizza!
I now live in Orange County California you couldn't get a good slice of pizza if your life depended on it. I wish I could sit at any pizza shop in Boston, East Boston, the North End even Papa Ginos eating pizza and complaining. I explain to people here that great pizza comes from the water and the years that pizza has been made in the shop. If you could open one Boston style pizza shop here you would make $1m just selling pizza only.
Here is my choice; in no particular order,
Santarpio's
Caruso's
Polcari's
Pisa Pizza
(and Francine's Pizza in Stoneham Square which closed some years ago.)Thanx for letting me vent.
RedSox Fan in O.C.
When I fly into Boston I first go to Santarpio's and then during my stay I'll eat at Pocarries
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re: 67RedSox
This question is only useful for those of us in SoCal, but to 67RedSox, my dad (who now lives in SoCal) has complained for years about not finding good Boston type pizza here. I've since been to Boston many times to now know what he's looking for. I did really like a place in Eagle Rock called Casa Bianca, but the owners may be from NY, but it was excellent East Coast pizza and they make a lot of their own ingredients fresh. I live close to Orange County and thought by now you may have some recomendations for So Cal for pizza and subs. There used to be a place in Burbank that made east coast style subs, but I'm not sure if they are still there. I will try to find out and post it if I can find out. I'd love to know about any places that have great Boston style pizza anywhere from LA down to San Diego.
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re: 67RedSox
mgl
Jan 6, 2008 06:38 PM
Good for you!!! I love it. Santarpio's is awesome. Guess what you shouldn't do? Compare NY anything to anything else. Another thing about Santarpio's and people who order pizza. I'll tell you the best pie they have and it's garlic & anchovy. Get a glass of wine, and get the lamb and peppers and eat. Papa Gino's? Are you people for real?
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re: mgl
no one here is saying papa ginos is great
what they are saying is it is better than the HOUSE of (you name the town) , and it is the best of the large chain type
it is not up there with the uppercrust (pun intended) pizza places but at the LOW end it can and does hold it's own nothing more nothing less
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NYA Joe
Oct 4, 2007 11:41 AM
Definitely throw out any hope of getting real NY pizza here...even many places in NY don't have it. I was embarrassed that my Los Angeles-born wife even pointed out that the pizza I said was NY-style in Boston was not NY-style at all. She reminded me that the dough needs to be more dough-y and chewy and not bready or biscuity. There is no hope of finding Ray's or Original Ray's or Famous Original Ray's in Boston. Once you get over the depression, you'll find that Boston pizza is not bad on its own terms! Lots of the recommendations below are fine. Unfortunately, I have to agree that Santarpios is decent but overrated, and that the Papa Gino's in Davis Square single-handedly ruined my view of Boston pizza for several years when I first arrived.
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re: NYA Joe
The Upper Crust chain of pizza restaurants puts out a good pie. Recently we had a calzone at the one in Lexington that was fabulous. A word about Santarpio's. I have eaten only veggie pies there. The best is peppers and garlic. Plain cheese is a good choice. Mushroom is not to be ordered. The shrooms are from a can and taste terrible. Highland Cafe in Malden is excellent. I like Bill Ashe's in Revere Beach. Others like Bianchi's. It is a never ending controversy. Try Haymarket Pizza in Haymarket Square for a cheap but delicious slice (cheese is the best choice).
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re: professor shorthair
mgl
Jan 6, 2008 06:46 PM
The Upper Crust is very, very good and friendly people, all around good choice. NY is NY, i judge pie differently depending on what the deal is; sometimes it's about sauce and cheese (if it's a little around the corner type place) other times when it's like upper crust or even santarpio's it's more about the heritage of pizza-- and the ingredients, and the crust-- and sauce yes, but not about the comparison to a ny slice. oranges and apples.
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If you're still in the area, Crusty's Pizza in the Salem Willows has great Italian Style pizza. It's a little hole in the wall on the boardwalk, but the locals love it there and most people comment on the fact that they haven't had NY-style, Italian style pizza in the area for a long long time!
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As a former NYer,my definition of NY style pizza is the kind that's sold by the slice, actually has sauce in addition to cheese (not oozing pounds of cheese), with oil on the top and can be folded in half vertically. I'm not sure if that's what you're thinking of
If that's your definition, Bianchi's on Revere Beach and Polcari's in Saugus are the only two that come close (my conclusion after almost 30 years of trying). Lou's in Revere, as mentioned in another post, is pretty good, too - tried it as a result of a post here.
I am in a very small minority (perhaps of only 2 - my husband and myself) who not only thinks Santarpio's pizza bears not the remotest resemblance to NY pizza, but that the place, the service and the pizza sucks.It is, however, a thin crust pizza. Monte's in Lynn is tasty, but not NY style and the crust is more like a good frozen pizza.
Romano's in Marblehead makes a good pie - close in flavor and texture to my definition of NY style.
There was a place in Winthrop when I lived there years ago (Pizza Center) that also made a reasonable facsimile, but don't know if they still exist.›2 Replies-
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re: lotsapasta
threedogs
Oct 8, 2007 08:30 AM
I also feel the same about Santarpio's - I think it sucks.
I think, like many places, they have a reputation from the past that continues today. The story I heard - years ago, their cook was "Fat's," who (sounded like a legend from the person who told me this) used to make hundreds of pizzas each day. He was an old time perfectionist - never tried the place when he was alive, so I can't compare.
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I can think of three places that come pretty close to New York-style pizza north of Boston:
Santarpio's in East Boston (Chelsea Street)
Highland Cafe in Malden (Highland Street)
The Paddock in Somerville (Pearl Street)
Out of the three, I tend to think The Paddock comes closest to your typical New York pizza. One other place you might want to check out is Cafe Italia in Central Sqare in East Boston. I have heard their pizzas rival Santarpio's, but they don't serve them on Saturday night, which is when I typically go there. I'm going to try to get there on a Sunday to try their pizzas soon. Let me know if you get there... -
I'm never sure how "NY style" thin crust pizza differs from thin crust pizza available here, but I recommend Bianchi's on Revere Beach, strictly take out or sit on the sea wall on a nice day.
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re: chuck s
Actually, I would say that the more authentic Boston style pizzas (excluding emphatically all Greek-style pan pizzas) are somewhat *thinner* than NY-style. Boston pizza slices done that way can sometimes crack rather than curve when folded in the formerly ubiquitous NY manner.
Btw, do not laugh, but Papa Gino's has a much more credible pizza than many corner shops. And it's from an East Boston family going back in the business to the 1920s. It's the cream of the simple pizza chains available around here. Quality can vary franchise to franchise, but I have found it to be a dependable bet (pizza only, though) when faced with too many "houses of pizza".-
re: Karl S.
ohh my God I am going to be sick. Papa Gino's is THE single most disgusting pizza. Maybe before it was a chain it was good - but now, give me my mamma celeste before I eat that mush.
Monte's in Lynn is delicious but not NY style. John's pizza on Chelsea Street in East Boston was the closest I have ever had to NY style. However, they were located almost directly across the street from Santarpios and from what I gather, have closed.-
re: mb
I expect more replies like that, but I have reconsidered PG's in recent years. It may be the franchises and times I get there from time to time, but usually what I like is that the pizzas are thin, balanced between a not-sweet sauce and not too much cheese. They are cooked through. I would concede that their dough lacks sufficient flavor presence, but the texture is actually better than many others, shock of shocks. It's not that flabby (or, worse, fried, for Greek pizza) thing you often encounter elswhere.
The toppings are *not* stellar, but the only topping I get there if I am not getting plain is pepperoni, and PG's also uses a fairly dry pepperoni with more character than many corner shops employ these days. If I were to compare the busy topping combos, then I might agree with you, but when comparing pizzas, plain is the assumed basis for comparison.-
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re: Chris VR
The pepperoni's relative saltiness is a sign of its more intense cure that makes it drier (and therefor better) than crappier stuff. I sometimes wonder if they pay the $ for the good Margherita pepperoni (the kind I get, that is not packaged by air-dried), which, when you cook it, is rather salty.
You get about twice as much pepperoni per slice when you buy by the slice than buying a pie, so it's the slice purchases where you really get hit with that saltiness (which I like in the summer when I am sweatin' too much). Btw, PG's uses 15" pies for slices, and 14" pies for sale entire (you learn this when you see their very helpful nutritional info at their website, which is a little screwed up but I won't go into that). I started using PG's when I needed a reasonably reliable guide to calories for pizza as a treat, and that opened my eyes to considering it afresh.
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I'm from Long Island and here are the places North of Boston that have come close to the style I want (in order of excellence):
1) Santarpios (East Boston)
2) Uncle Lou's House of Ribs (Revere)
3) Pisa Pizza (Malden)
4) Bacci's (Saugus and Wakefield)
5) Caruso's (Melrose)
6) Polcari's (Woburn, Saugus)
I've also heard that Bianchi's in Revere and Monte's in Lynn are NY Style but haven't tried them.
Stay faaaar away from any "House of PIzza". I believe it's Greek style pizza, which may be fine to those used to it but it's not going to keep a NYer happy.›13 Replies-
re: Chris VR
Ditto in all respects.
Bacci's also offers NY-style calzones (the small half-circles in particular; the large is more like a stromboli, but with a lighter filling), which are a rara avis in these parts (for some reason I cannot fathom, in Boston people use a stromboli filling -- heavy on the mozzarella, so that it "erupts" through the cuts in the crust, like the eponymous volcano -- in calzones, which are supposed to be more ricotta-oriented). You can even see through the crust somtimes, it's that thin/delicate. Bacci's also properly slices its meatballs (as does DiPietro's in Malden, fairly near Pisa Pizza); beware the more common practice, popularized in Greek "houses of pizza", of confusing hamburger with meatball, both crumbled crap. -
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re: svanderbilt
ipsofatso
Oct 2, 2007 05:15 PM
I went back to my favorite LI pizza place in N Bellmore..it changed hands but its better than I remember......nothing like it on the N Shore however in Beverly there is Prinzis and Bertuccis. Try Luigis on Rantoul by the bridge, try The Firehouse in Salem. I like Delaney's in Gloucester and The Riverview in Ipswich. Not really NY style but I have lived in MA 30 years and I have forgotten how much I am suffering for lack of good pizza
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re: taxi
ScubaSteve
Oct 16, 2007 05:59 AM
yes, saw that article too and you are right. very close to NYC style.
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re: Chris VR
threedogs
Oct 8, 2007 08:24 AM
Bianchi's is good - but their sauce leaves a lot (IMO) to be desired. Too much tomato paste. Never had Monte's pizza, but I was in there once & saw a small one that looked - well, like something I wouldn't order. But since I haven't tried it yet, I shouldn't comment.
I like Vinny's Pizza in Malden on Salem St. And my own, of course - I make really good pizza in my old faithful cast iron pan - which makes me extremely fussy about pizza I get out.
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re: threedogs
ScubaSteve
Oct 15, 2007 11:48 AM
Monte's is not even close to 'New York Style' pizza. the dough is machined rolled and most of the toppings are straight outta cans. but it is super yummy with am ice cold draught beer. it's also only available in one size. Monte's is it's own pizza and when I crave it, only the genuine article will do.
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re: ScubaSteve
I haven't tried the Firehouse in Salem but have tried Engine house. It's pretty good. Monte's seems pretty scarey on thr outside which sometimes the best places are like that. I have tried those others in Beverly and its not like NY pizza. Very "doughy" and sauce stinks. I havent tried Delany's or the one in Malden. Will try. Just returned from LI and had yummy pizza. My favorites are Emilios and Branchianelli's. Love the thin crust!!!
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