Brooklyn's Finest

Now That's Buffalo Chicken

Brooklyn this, Brooklyn that. Want the best sandwich? Go to Brooklyn. Want the best bagel? Go to Brooklyn. Want the best pizza? Go to Brooklyn. What to do when you're not in Brooklyn but want the best? Do not be tempted to go to the places that reference Brooklyn in their store name. It's not just a New York phenomenon because you can go to most any state to find New York style something, and sometimes more specifically, Brooklyn style.

Now that's not necessarily a bad thing. It's actually somewhat flattering and definitely a sound business plan. All that aside, there's a new contender for your pizza buying dollars on Staten Island and the theme is Brooklyn Dodgers based. The restaurant? Brooklyn's Finest. Why Brooklyn's Finest is on Staten Island is curious. Why there's no Richard Gere photos is beyond me too. The restaurant has sandwiches themed for the various neighborhoods of the best borough. BF is relatively new (opened April 2011) and is located really close to the Bridge but being so close to the bridge that separates SI and BK, you better be really good to want to entice me not to cross the bridge.

Grandma's Boy

The pizza offerings were vast, so vast that three needed to be sampled because I was my usual slovenly self and I was also feeling rather indecisive. That all being said, the buffalo chicken pizza really was an eye opener. This was like one of my most favoritest buffalo chicken pizzas ever. EVER! Two things made it great: 1) the buffalo chicken was actually spicy 2) the pizza dough was thick, no sauce (pizza sauce that is), and the perfect amount of cheese.

Hmmm. You look familiar.

The other sampled pieces were a grandma slice (good taste, GREAT sauce, but lacked the crunch at the bottom) and an L&B style square that delivered with the same great sauce, overall good flavor, but very thin in comparison. Thickness was about double that of the grandma square but still too thin to replicate the L&B square. Not that I am saying the goal was to replicate said square but they went through great lengths to make it look like that square.

Rating - 3.25/5 Lots of stuff to try and the specialty pies really seemed to be the way to go. There was cheesesteak, buffalo, marsala, ziti, etc. The buffalo was really good and I think the rest looked to be worthy of a second look.

Brooklyn's Finest is located at 1250 Hylan Blvd in the same shopping plaza as Bocelli's.

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The Square - Hylan Blvd (Staten Island, NY)

The Square

Square Sign on Hylan Blvd

Someone once said imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. What took someone over 60 years to imitate the magic created at L&B Spumoni Gardens is beyond my comprehension. 

I was recently told that I "had to try" this because it's as "good as L&B." That's a VERY lofty statement in my world because L&B serves up the only Sicilian I willingly eat and I think that has to count for something. L&B also is the home of the triple parked car, the outrageously long lines, and can serve all the slices in a square pie (24 in total) in about 2 minutes on a slow day. But this is not about L&B, this is about the Square and how it measures up.

Square with Menu

At left is a pic of the menu and the overhead shot of the Square. My first impression was "Wow! They look like they really nailed it." Then I bit into it and those thoughts vanished. Sure the texture is similar with the cheese having been melted directly into the dough, hidden beneath a layer of thick, sweet sauce. The similarity between the imitator and the originator end there. The dough seemed dry and overdone compared to what L&B serves (I should know, I was there an hour later). The crunch on the bottom was a little extra crunchy compared to L&B and I actually liked the extra crunch. I did not like the dryness of the rest of the dough and the sauce, while sweet, was spread rather thinly and lacked other flavor beyond parmesan cheese.

Square - Side Angle

The Square also serves a slightly smaller piece than that of L&B but the size difference is marginal when you consider the $13 toll on the Verrazano Bridge. In the pic at right, you might be able to note the relative dryness in the dough, especially towards the left side of the piece (the right side has extra e.v.o.o. seeping into the dough. The Square is a decent alternative when taking the Bridge toll into consideration but to compare the two, there's ultimately no comparison. L&B was imitated and not duplicated by this small pizzeria with a very unassuming store front right off of Hylan Boulevard, ironically within 5 minutes of the aforementioned Bridge.

Rating - 2.75/5 - Maybe it was a bad day for the Square? Maybe eating there at lunch time  was not a good idea? Maybe the sauce needs a little work? Maybe I'm just a huge L&B fanboy but I'd welcome any pizzeria to make Squares the L&B way because it just tastes better. This is good but not great and I'd say if you are on SI, this is worth a look.


**Editor's Note - rating is based on the Square experience alone and the resulting score has nothing to do with the Pizza served at L&B. References to L&B are strictly made because of the obvious comparison.


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Suggestions?

Have a spot in the 5 boroughs you think I should hit up? Comment here and I'll be sure to add it to my list. Thanks!

It Means White House - Casabianca (57th Street 10th Ave)

Sometimes, even in the city that never sleeps it's hard to find a good slice of pizza. Not because they're not out there but because they, the pizza hiders like to hide themselves in some random places. In this case, they are the folks at Casabianca. I don't know much about the rent situation in NYC but I am certain it's so ridiculous that you need to be creative with where you place your eateries. It's probably why I don't have an eatery to call my own where I can serve you some of the finest treats my hands and mind can create.

Did you know Casabianca means white house? That's an Italian thing. Did you know "Paint the White House Black" was a song by George Clinton f. Ice Cube? Well it is and I own it on a cassette single. Did you also know that Casablanca was a movie from the 1940s and that means White House in Spanish. Lesson over.

If you have the pleasure of finding Casabianca you will simultaneously have the pleasure of finding a truly delicious slice of pizza. Fresh mozzarella, sauce, fresh basil. WOW! Loads of flavor here and the sauce was able to stand out . The crust was just about right and I think this slice is really worth the walk if you are in the area - especially if you consider that Luigi's place I spoke of last week. Are there other options? Sure but this is a really good bet if you're out eatercising on the UWS or in Hell's Kitchen. Just remember if you are walking down 10th you have to make a turn towards the Hudson to find this place.

Rating - 4/5 - Good flavor, good texture. Didn't blow me away but I would recommend their pizza. 

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I Need You! Queens Pizza!!

Greetings fans. I need you, yes YOU to guide me. I'm really curious about a borough I have spent the LEAST amount of time in and admittedly am afraid of. I'm looking for the BEST pizza that Queens has to offer. Not your average stuff, I want the best from LIC to LI, Glendale to Garden City (I know that's LI but I needed a G, ok?)

Leave a comment with what you think is the BEST Queens has to offer and I am there! And if it's on the LI border, I'll do it and claim it for Queens but don't try to sneak me something on the BK border because I know those boundaries!

Thanks!
DJ

No More Games - Tony's (431A Dekalb Ave - Brooklyn)

Tony's

Word on the street, that street being Dekalb Ave, is that Tony has been rockin' the spot since 1969. He's a one man show, cooking up hot and delicious pizza inside his tiny pizza joint that's big enough to hold a handful of people at most, including Tony on his side of the counter. You want no frills, this is no frills. But do not mistake no frills for no good because that's just silly, you silly goose.

Red Drink

A staple in the BK pizza scene is not the crunchy, thin crust I've raved about. It's not the delicious sauce. For me, it's actually the machine you see at right. This is not a common find outside of Brooklyn and I'm not sure it's truly, fully appreciated by the transplants. There are three things that I want from my pizza spots. Pizza, red drink, and ices. It's a very simple formula that I was spoiled by as a child. Moving away from BK, one thing became strangely obvious, red drink was really hard to come by (same goes for orange and purple but I'm a red fan myself).

That's a damn good slice

Seeing this machine puts me right back to my childhood when, many moons ago, you could get a cup of red and a slice for a buck. At Tony's, that same combo ran my $3.25 and I was not complaining. I visited here right as I finished my slice from Luigi's (the good Luigi's) and I was ready for what I had heard was another good slice. Tony delivered. Hot, fresh, delicious. The sauce really stood out as the flavors really popped when it hit my mouth.

Rating - 5/5 - Red drink and pizza. A big slice that might be good enough to fill you up with a large drink.

Editor's Note - Eatercising at it's finest is taking the train to downtown BK and hitting up Luigi's and Tony's for some great pizza. There's a lot more to do and if I may sneak something non-Pizza your way, it's filled with Nutella and it's from Dough...

The Other Brother - Luigi's (326 Dekalb Ave - Brooklyn)

Sticking with yesterday's theme, I needed to give the plumber in green a shot at redemption. No, I'm not crazy and did NOT return to that Luigi's. Instead, I found my way to the train, found my sister on said train, and hit up BK. Brooklyn, not NYC at large, has a reputation for the BEST pizza your precious pennies can buy. It has that rep because it earned it. It earned it from the most discerning critics you can imagine. It's often emulated but unless you eat some real deal Brooklyn pizza, you know it's rarely duplicated. Please keep in mind that our other Luigi's is NOT related to this Luigi's, things don't work that way thankfully, just ask the folks at Ray's in NYC. In my world, we call this, the build up. Well, we're building up to Luigi's. A tiny, neighborhood spot on Dekalb Ave (near Pratt if that means something to you) that's not much more than a store front. But who needs more? It was a beautiful day in the neighborhood so why not grab one to go and then walk and eat? I call it eatercising.

I was urged to try Luigi's by a longtime friend that calls Luigi's his go-to pizzeria. I gladly obliged and was happy that I did. The slice here is perfect. Thin but not too thin. What does that mean? There's some depth to the dough and it's not razor thin, ready to cave from the weight of the sauce and cheese. Speaking of the sauce, it had flavor and the appropriate consistency. It was thin but not watery. The cheese provided the proper final layer and was melted nicely and not too heavy sitting on top. Unlike the OTHER Luigi's that deserves no more props who had cheese that settled so heavily on top that it laid there like Marv Albert's wig - YES!

This is the Brooklyn I know. Not that I grew up anywhere near there but you can find this perfect pizza by strolling just a couple of blocks from home. I've read some reviews that mentioned "this pizza isn't good cold" and some other nonsense. If you are gauging food that is meant to be eaten hot, (so hot that it will cause the roof of your mouth to blister) on how it tastes when cold, you are an idiot. I say to that fool, get Elio's if you want cold pizza because you surely don't deserve this. This is your basic, not so many frills pizzeria that serves up a perfectly cooked, flavorful slice without a ton of options to overwhelm the user. Want something with pineapples or any exotic toppings, save it for those chains that will satiate your every whim.

Rating - 5/5. It's neighborhood pizza at it's finest and perfect to grab a slice and go for a walk through Pratt's grounds to enjoy the artwork.

Editor's note - Dominic was often "forced" to play as Luigi as a child. We don't feel this had any impact on his psychological development and did not swing his opinion of this pizzeria in any manner.