John's Pizzeria, New York City

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I didn't realise how well known this place was but it was somewhere that we stumbled on when we needed food fast. The pizza was excellent, the pasta dish did not tickle my fancy much. Service was quick yet if you want lots of attention from your waiter don't go here, it was very much "Here's your food, now let me sit down and chat with my mates."

Favorite Dish: Pizza

This is a little hole in the wall restaurant that is very comfortable and homey.

Favorite Dish: The pizze here is cooked to perfection. A thin crispy crust with melted cheese and toppings. Eat it fresh and get the large as you will eat it all.

Considered by many to be the best pizza in New York, I give it a strong second place award, behind Grimaldi's of Brooklyn. However, it's definitely my favorite in Manhattan. There was a short wait here at 8:00 PM on a weeknight, and it's easy to see why. The small, unassuming restaurant is home to super-thin crust coal-fired brick oven pizza. The toppings are offered in pre-set combinations on the menu, so you can just give your server the number of the pizza you'd like.

The atmosphere is very casual, and there's no self-importance evident at all. However, the many ads and write-ups displayed on the front windows hint at its incredible local fanbase. Be forewarned that John's does not take credit cards, so carry cash!

John's is located in the heart of Greenwich Village, on historic Bleeker Street. It's very tempting to stop in at one of the many cozy-looking restaurants along Bleeker Street as you walk to John's, but don't get sidetracked! You can't afford to miss the pizza here. :)

New York is famous for pizza, but not all pizza is "top of the list." John's Pizzeria has three locations: the original, on Bleecker St. in the Village, and outposts in the theater district (on West 44th Street), and near Lincoln Center (on West 64th Street). While there are fans of Lombardi's and Grimaldi's, my favorite is John's, with it's thin crust and light toppings. I like the 44th St. location because it's in a renovated church with wonderful New York murals. However, they do not serve single slices, it's the whole pie or nothing. Lombardi's and Grimaldi's serve terrific pizza, too, but not as light as John's.

If you just need a single slice, go to Bella Napoli, also in the theater district, on West 49th between 6th-7th Avenues. Their "Mama's" pizza, a thin-crusted square pie with imported cheese, is fantastic. And their plain cheese pie is reminiscint of the great pizza served in New York way back in the fifties. Yum!

There are also a zillion pizzerias called "Ray's" in New York -- there's Original Ray's, Famous Original Ray's, Ray Barri, Ray's Famous, and others. Interestingly, they're not related. I find them all to be disappointing -- overly laden with gloppy, poor quality cheese, and thick soggy crusts.
Leave Ray's to the unknowing tourists.

Favorite Dish: What else? Pizza!

This place doesn't look very exciting from the outside. However, the pizza here was fantastic. We wanted sausage, meatball and pepperoni but they'd run out of meatball, so we just had sausage and pepperoni. This turned out to be no bad thing as it just highlighted the tomato sause more, and this was excellent.

The pizza was $17 and was easily big enough for two, making this a very cheap meal.

Favorite Dish: Pizza!

If you must eat pizza, then this is a great location to do it. It is located in an old church and it was refurished for the restaurant.

Ask to sit in a booth or in the middle of the large room inside. Look up and see the stained glass!

Favorite Dish: Pasta or Pizza and Salad.

fantastic food, so good pizza and pasta here