The secret of course is the best pizza in the NYC area is in Northern New Jersey.
Keep going: the pies around central Jersey are a celebration of tomatoes. That said, not a New York slice (north shore included.)
Scott’s pizza tour [1]! (No affiliation.)
Coal-fired slices are rare, now. I tend to like a charred, crisp crust and simple toppings that can be bitten through. This is a city that cares about its pizza. We don’t run impostors out of town. But the pizza is great, and there is no single ideal. Buy it, fold it, and enjoy.
(Grimaldi’s and Joe’s. Di Fara and Lucali rub me like Pizzeria Bianco in Phoenix, Arizona. Pizza isn’t a food for lines.)
I asked about a New York slice, which is a style of pizza that people rave on and on about, and has been cargo-culted across the U.S., but one I've never been particularly impressed with. Especially when compared to Chicago tavern style or deep dish.
They’re more New York than Naples.
> asked about a New York slice, which is a style of pizza that people rave on and on about, and has been cargo-culted across the U.S.
You’re being snotty about people trying to answer your questions.
Coal-fired pizza by the slice is a New York City invention. The crust is firmer than what’s served on the Gulf of Napoli, allowing it to be confidently held with one hand (folded).
> when compared to Chicago tavern style or deep dish
Try a New Jersey tomato pie. (They’re good.)
In my experience, a lot of Chicago pizza is more properly pie. Freshness of ingredients plays second fiddle to texture and presentation. That doesn’t mean it’s bad. But I want a crisp crust, not a bready one, and a slice, not a whole pie, and that’s an innovation of New York City.
(As others have mentioned, there is a definite atmosphere element to the experience. You don’t buy a slice to soberly cut up with a knife and fork for solo Wednesday weeknight dinner.)
One of many bad habits I picked up from the locals in NYC. Working on it.
There is a place near Midway called Palermo’s that I like.
Italian Fiesta is probably my favorite but the service is atrocious.
I don’t know even if the spots I picked are standouts. They just are the ones near where I am when it’s appropriate to eat pizza.
Unlike say Chicago bbq a topic on which I have opinions.