5 Best Thin Crust Pizzas In NYC
In recent years New York City has become a pizza mecca, home to outstanding examples of not only New York style slices but thick crust, Neapolitan and coal-oven, among many others. Below are our five favorite spots for thin crust pizza in the five boroughs. Read 'em and eat. By Jessica Allen.
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Staten Island boasts many fine pizzerias which, over the years, have transformed into institutions, and Joe & Pat's is no exception. The crust here is thin, sure, but also resilient, able to withstand a barrage of toppings. The first crunch gives way to a blast of fresh tomato sauce, followed by almost caramelized cheese. Many swear by the "plain pie" (just tomatoes and cheese), while others can't get enough of the famous "vodka pie" (where the sauce is infused with vodka and cream).
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As quaint as it feels to say, Margot's began with a blog. Way back in 2003, Adam Kuban began writing about the city's pizzas; he quickly became a beloved expert and Slice a beloved online destination. Today he runs a pop-up pizza place named for his young daughter at Emily, a pizza-centric restaurant in Clinton Hill. Margot's specializes in "bar pizza," crisp, classic, thin-crusted pies that are "large enough to share but small enough you could house one yourself." The popular pop-up requires tickets, so check the schedule and book way ahead.
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Founded in 1933, Patsy's is one of the city's oldest pizza places, and still one of its best, banging out great pizzas from East Harlem. Each thin-crust pie gets cooked in a super-hot coal oven, rendering the crust just a teensy bit charred. We always design our own pie here, with lots of garlic, sausage, and broccoli. Hey, no judging! You might prefer the traditional margherita with basil, tomato, and mozzarella, or the macellaio, with sausage, mozzarella, tomato sauce, pepperoni, and beef meatballs.
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You come to Rubirosa for the pizza, which is excellent, and stay for the family tradition, which is touching and awesome. Owner AJ Pappalardo relies on a 60-something-year-old family recipe to make his thin crust pies. Said recipe comes courtesy of Joe and Pat's, which is owned and operated by AJ's father, Giuseppe. But back to the pies: we like the Rubirosa supreme, with roasted garlic, pepperoni, tomato, mozzarella, and mini meatballs, as well as the sausage and broccoli rabe. But you should feel free to create your own with various cheese, meat, and/or veggie toppings.
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Vezzo specializes in thin crust pizza, a fact's immediately clear from the restaurant's full name: Vezzo Thin Crust Pizza. The Kips Bay restaurant gets big points not only for its pizza, which is great, particularly the formaggio bianco (with ricotta, parmesan, mozzarella, pecorino, béchamel, and arugula) and the "big pineapple" (with pineapple, smoked bacon, tomatoes, basil, and marina sauce), but also for its ambiance. It's low-lit, warm, and uber-inviting, the kind of place you could take a date or catch up with a friend or hang out with the whole family.
