From the perspective of the outside observer, New York's Little Italy seems like little more than a chunk of Disney World plopped down in the midst of lower Manhattan. On the ground, the reality is not much better, particularly if you're out to find a good meal. Unlike neighboring Chinatown, Little Italy's food reputation is not the best. Since we started working in our new office in Chinatown, a number of forays have been made into Little Italy in order to procure take-out to bring back to the office, particularly pizza-by-the-slice. The results have been disappointing; several slices of blah pizza and a deep-fried risotto ball with prosciutto, mozzarella, and peas (sounds fantastic, right?) that was way not fantastic.
Is there anywhere in this whole small country we can get good Italian food to go or pizza-by-the-slice? As it is, Little Italy is reflecting poorly on the mother country and its excellent cuisine, and it would be nice, if possible, to salvage some of that reputation.
Try Luna's..I'm not quite sure where it is but since I've found it I've gone nowhere else. Great pizza, great pasta, and good service.
http://www.paesanoofmulberrystreet.com/
Sadly, I can't actually help with your request. When I'm down in that part of the island, it's Chinese food I'm looking for.
Have you tried checking the reviews on Slice?
http://www.sliceny.com/archives/2004/10/una_pizza_napol.php
Anthony's no joke.
True, it's on Broadway between 101st and 102nd, but just in case you're uptown and pining for an old-school fold or two....
It's on Grand between Mulberry and Mott
http://www.florios.com/
I loved getting the bread and salad and really good pizza, gnocchi, manacotti, pretty much anything is going to be wonderful.
For delicious and reasonably priced meatball subs and italian sandwiches (big firemen and cops) is Parisi's on Mott at Spring St.
http://newyork.citysearch.com/profile/32897564/
Oh how I miss working on Mulberry. Park Ave is deli-hell by comparison.
I don't know much about Little Italy, but it seems more touristy these days than authentic. I don't know NYC well enough to tell you where to go, but I could point you to a house two hours northeast of there where my mother (who immigrated from Siciliy) could make you a feast to remember.
parisi is the greatest...
what happened to buffa's last week? (yes, technically nolita)
And when I was there, I didn't just eat at Paesano and call it good. That week I sampled 4 places on Mulberry, it was definitely my favorite.
Does frank deliver that far down?
Also, as a funny sidenote, when you type prosciutto in TextEdit it suggests spelling it 'prostitute.'
Besides that, the best restaurant in Little Italy in my opinion is Nyonya on Grand near Mott which is not Italian but Malaysian. It's the real deal... try the Hainanese chicken.
I find it sad as well... for the resident, little italy offers nothing...
212 966-1960
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray's_Pizza
My suggestion is to try the Pesto slice...
We just visited Novella which was one step below Olive Garden and about triple the price. Looks nice from the outside.
Lombardi's is your best bet for pizza in the area although I'm not sure it's considered Little Italy.
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/222359
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/327481
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/218883
Anyway, good luck.
on a side note, i'm still looking for some good pizza here in Houston .... tx.
Yes Tabitha, you're right!
But the spelling is slightly different (at least in Italian):
Supplì ;-)
Arancini are still risotto balls, usually "white" inside (no pomodoro).
just stick to chinatown. so cheap. usually tasty.
For incredible Italian to go, it would be hard to beat Zio Johno's... but of course, that requires a trip to most unlikely of places, Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
And while not "by the slice," a trip next door to the Sip-n-Stir will yield some of the best pizza (right up there with any of the NY pie I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing) you could ever want.
...slinga da ink, back to Coe again
Oooops!
:-)
Subway: B, D, No. 4 to Fordham Rd., then Bx12 east; No. 2 or 5 to Pelham Pkwy., then Bx12 west; Metro-North to Fordham Rd., then shuttle bus to Belmont.
Regards,
Keith Knutsson
Greetings from Italy!
This thread is closed to new comments. Thanks to everyone who responded.

