Di Fara, Midwood

Address: 1420 Avenue J at E 15th Street
Purchase: 1 regular pie, 2 cokes in bottles
Cost: $20 for the pie, $2 per coke
Payment: Cash Only
Pizza Rating:


Finally made it out to Midwood to get a taste of some of the most famously delicious pizza in New York—Di Fara's. We got there a little before 6:00 on a Wednesday and just beat the crowd. Watching the pizzaiolo Domenico de Marco (Domenic) in his slow and steady pizza-making routine was half the fun. The man is a New York legend.

Di Fara's regular pie features delicious thin crust, just perfectly charred on the bottom, flavorful tomato sauce, and sliced mozzarella. After the pie came out of the oven, Domenic swirled some olive oil all around, topped it with grated parmesan for some extra tang, and finally scissored off some fresh basil before handing it over. Pizza making is a methodical process, and Di Fara's is perhaps the most methodical of all the pizza places we've reviewed. It really shows in the final product. All of the flavors combined to form one of the most delicious pies we've ever had.


The famous old storefront.




After winning best pizza in NYC as many times as Di Fara's has, you can charge $4 a slice no matter how deep in Brooklyn you are.


Domenic making our pie.


Before the crowd arrived.


Time to enjoy!


40 weeks hungry!

Lucali (Update!)

Address: 575 Henry Street at Carroll Street
Pizza Rating:


We are officially updating our rating of Lucali to the full five pizza rating because we just really like that place. We've been back a few more times, most recently while my parents were visiting for graduation, and those calzones are just to die for—ricotta, mozzarella, our favorite fillings (basil and garlic) and their delicious pizza sauce to dip. The wait can be a pain, even with their complicated call ahead but no reservations policy, and the service is often a little distracted, but the pizza is totally worth it. Don't forget, it's BYOB, and the corking fee is $4. Now if only they had cannoli...

Read our original review of Lucali here.


Most recent visit to Lucali—large calzone for us, basil and pepperoni pie for Mom and Dad.

Mario's, Fort Greene

Address: 224 DeKalb Avenue near Clermont Avenue
Purchase: 1 plain slice, 1 mushroom slice, 1 root beer
Cost: $2.25 per regular slice
Pizza Rating:


Meredith and I had a pizza picnic at Fort Greene Park with Bruno while she was in town a few weeks ago. We stopped at Mario's because of its window service and its proximity to the park. The slices hit the spot, but I think the quality was a little less than that of Luigi's a few blocks back up DeKalb (on the Clinton Hill side). The cheese seemed a little cheap and the sauce was a little sweet. It wouldn't stop me from going back next time I need a slice while I'm down there, I just wouldn't make a point of it. Mario's is a solid neighborhood standby slice.




The baby seemed happy enough with the slice.
Pictures courtesy Auntie Meredith!