Tag: long island

#78 La Piazza

April 20th, 2019

Merrick, NY

After we had our nice lunch in Port Washington at Salvatore’s Coal Oven Pizza, we were about to head back when Eric had the idea to drive across Long Island to Merrick, to stop at La Piazza for a second lunch. We were pretty full, but James seemed happy still and we saw that La Piazza sold slices. Eric reminded me that we could drive an extra 30 minutes then, or we’d have to drive all the way back out to Long Island another day. So we got into the car and headed over to Merrick.

La Piazza didn’t get ranked as highly as Salvatore’s, but they seemed to be most famous for their square slices. Specifically, the Grandma slice. So that’s what we went for. We got one Grandma slice and one Sicilian. We noticed that it had been ranked on the top 101 back in 2013 as well, although only at #100.

When we walked in it was clear that this is a family Italian eatery. There’s a takeout spot for slices, with high tables and a few lower tables. Then there’s the sit down area with table service. La Piazza doesn’t just do pizza – it does pastas, salads, panini, although of course we are here to review the pizza so we can’t speak to how good anything else is. While we realize that pizzas are usually the best freshly made, we really didn’t have the time (or room in our stomachs) to order a whole new pie.

Even though James should have been full of meatballs, he was very excited to try this Grandma slice. I was less excited, as I have had many more Grandma slices in the past few years than James has, and this one didn’t seem to me to be anything worth raving about. It was an OK slice, as was the Sicilian. Both were a little greasy, a little chewy. They may have been sitting out a bit too long under the glass counter. We didn’t think that they were bad in any way, but they also weren’t as good as many slices that we’ve had recently in the city.

Also, someone commented on our instagram post that they live in Merrick and had never heard of this pizza. So while we aren’t saying that you shouldn’t go there, if you’re going to drive out to Long Island, you should probably hit Salvatore’s instead.

To visit:

La Piazza
2191 Merrick Rd
Merrick, NY 11566

BarbaraLeave a comment

#51 Salvatores Coal Oven Pizza

April 20th, 2019

Port Washington, NY

We rarely get out to Long Island unless we’re going to see family. It isn’t the easiest drive, and there is always traffic. However, on the 2018 list this year there were two new pizza places out on Long Island, so we knew that we’d have to get out there one day this year. Even though we had plans to be on Long Island for Easter Sunday, we decided to spend the Saturday prior driving to Port Washington to Salvatore’s Coal Oven Pizza.

Salvatore’s was started in 1996, but the roots of the restaurant are with Patsy’s in Harlem. The great nephews of the owners of Patsy’s opened Salvatore’s on Long Island, bringing the coal fired style of pizza outside of the main boroughs. They don’t take credit cards and there are no slices, but you can order pizza to take out. We decided to just eat in, and ordered a regular margherita pizza, with additional ricotta. We also ordered a side of the meatballs to start.

Eric (and James!) both loved the meatball starter, but the pizza here really stole the show. Salvatore’s came in right near the top 50 on the list, so we had really high expectations for the pizza. We really liked the coal-fired crisp to the crust, and the sauce was really fresh, slightly sweet. They were generous with the ricotta but not so much that it was overwhelming.

We’re not sure that we would rank this so close to the top 50, but it was a good addition to the list this year. We love the coal oven pizzas in Manhattan (Patsy’s, John’s of Bleecker, Grimaldi’s), and this one stays true to the style of those pies. We’d come back if we were ever in this area, but I’m not sure that we’d trek out to Long Island again just for this pizza.

To visit:

Salvatore’s Coal Oven Pizza
124 Shore Rd
Port Washington, NY 11050

BarbaraLeave a comment

#69 Little Vincent’s

August 4th, 2018

Huntington, NY

We were heading out to Long Island for a BBQ one weekend last August. It was going to be the first time that James met most of my family! The three of us had just driven to Long Island from Boston,  and we needed a quick break before we went to the BBQ. Anyone who has just driven in traffic for 5 hours with a 2 1/2 month old baby can probably relate. Sometimes a pit stop is necessary.

Little Vincent’s was about 15 minutes from where our BBQ was, so it was the perfect place to stop. We were pretty hungry after sitting in the car in traffic for so long. Even though we were planning on eating at the BBQ, we didn’t think it would hurt to have a couple of slices.

Little Vincent’s is most famous for its “cold cheese” slice, so that’s what we ordered. Basically, it is a slice of cheese, with cold shredded mozzarella generously sprinkled over the top. Or, you can order extra cheese in a cup on the side, like the lady at the table next to us did.

The slice itself was pretty basic. It wasn’t a slice that we’d particularly crave on its own, although it wasn’t bad. The crust, sauce, and cheese were all decent. We weren’t sure how we felt about the cold cheese, in the end.  Cold mozzarella is delicious, of course. And we did like the temperature and texture variety when eating the slice. Eric ended up thinking that it was a good addition, whereas I thought that cheese on pizza is better off melted.

Apparently, the cold cheese slice started when kids came home to Long Island from college in upstate NY, where there was a pizza place called Tino’s that had been serving cold cheese slices since 1985. The (mostly drunk) students upstate loved the cold cheese because they could eat it quickly without burning the roof of their mouth. Apparently, they didn’t want to wait another minute to eat at 2 am.

Little Vincent’s is also open late, and we can see why this pizza slice would appeal to the “late night” crowd.  After a few drinks, I think everyone can agree the more cheese, the better.

James couldn’t get enough of looking at this pizza, either.

To visit:

Little Vincent’s
329 New York Ave (Main St)
Huntington, NY 11743

BarbaraLeave a comment