New York City Thread: Part III (Info in OP)

[Fugazy]

Have you been to DiFara's?

Not yet. It's definitely high up on my list though. What would you recommend getting there?

 

[FultonReed]

Not yet. It's definitely high up on my list though. What would you recommend getting there?

a regular pie or a grandma pie. make sure you call and order it in advance so you're not standing there for over an hour waiting for your food

 

[IamNotADancer]

Friend of a friend coming into NYC for a week and was asking if I knew of any place for under $100 a night that was decent. Anyone have ideas?

They were hoping for Manhattan. I've lived in Manhattan or commuted now, so other than the random hotel treat - never really researched budget lodging.

It's very hard (I want to say impossible) to get a decent Hotel for under $100 in Manhattan.

The closest I got was $120 a night + tax and other fees which brought it up to about 150.

You can however find Hostel type of settings if you don't mind a shared bathroom.
I personally hate shared bathroom type of settings but depending what sort of standards your friend of a friend has you can find places between 60-100 even on Manhattan.
Not sure about the "decent" though. I'd hate to recommend places I have never stayed in.

Broadway Hotel Hostel you can get in for even under 50 bucks and it has some ok reviews but that's for a shared room, which to me is even worse than just a shared bathroom.
If you friend wants his/her own room with a shared bathroom you are breaking into the 100 bucks (even if it's slightly above).

And then there is the HI New York City Hostel which appears to be super popular and even gives guests the option to bunk up strightly by gender.
They appear to be very solid on the price front and location+amenities.

But again, it's a Hostel. I personally hate bunking with strangers on the road. If your friend-friend doesn't mind that sort of setting it might be an option.

 

[sbjnyc]

You can sometimes get really good deals on Priceline but you have to really know the area (and how to use Priceline) to know what kind of hotel you're getting.

 

[sbjnyc]

I grew up in Queens & three places that stand out & are still around with the same amazing slices are Amore in Whitestone, New Park in Howard Beach & Gloria's in Forest Hills. Gloria's used to be on Main Street in Flushing, but they re-opened years later on Queens Blvd.

Gloria's is good. I used to love Al Dente's years ago but that place declined faster than Girardi and now it's closed. Never recovered from the pizza connection I guess. Primadonna also used to be good but not so much anymore. Avellinos in Rego Park imo gives Gloria's a run for its money. There's this place on cross bay near rockaway blvd that I remember but I haven't been there in a while (ozone pizza?).

 

[Chaels Arms]

Joe's Pizza is still the best slice on the planet. I have dreams about that pizza when I plan a trip home. Can't wait til September. I make sure I'm very hungry when it's time to eat there. One day I plan to order a large pie & eat it all in one sitting. I've actually done that at Grimaldi's here in Vegas. No I'm not obese, I just really like pizza, & nothing is better than Joe's.

I grew up in Queens & three places that stand out & are still around with the same amazing slices are Amore in Whitestone, New Park in Howard Beach & Gloria's in Forest Hills. Gloria's used to be on Main Street in Flushing, but they re-opened years later on Queens Blvd.

Yes I've had DiFara, multiple times. It's very good, but not life changing, not worth a trip to Brooklyn, not worth the wait, & not worth the price. We actually have two DiFara locations here in Vegas. They buy all the same ingredients from the same suppliers as the one in Brooklyn, even have a water filtration system to mimic NYC's water, but they have no idea how to cook the crust. It's still way better than 98% of the pizza out here, but nothing like the one on Ave J.

New Haven is an awesome spot for pizza. Very, very under-rated. A hidden gem if you've never been there.

Nick's of Forest Hills is phenomenal as well. I had Amore once a few years back and don't really think I was that impressed. New Park is a great spot. Gotta check out Gloria's.

Again, with DiFara you really need to just accept beforehand that it's out of the way, not worth the wait and not worth the price. All that being said, it's still the best slice I have ever had. Remove the price factor and the wait and the dinginess of the location and just go slice vs. slice and DiFara is the best.

I've heard the same reports about the Vegas location but didn't know they had two out there. I've heard it was good for Vegas but not comparable to the original. It'd be hard to mimic what they have going in Brooklyn. Having the constant turnover they have means you're always eating a pie fresh out of the oven. NYC has spoiled me for pizza in that sense since I'm automatically turned off now whenever I get a slice that's been cooked, placed in the display and than reheated. You don't get that at the top places like Joe's, Di Fara, Louie's and Ernie's etc. or the Neapolitan style places like Lucali or Roberta's.

Agreed on Joe's. Top 5 spot for me.

 

[Chaels Arms]

Not yet. It's definitely high up on my list though. What would you recommend getting there?

Regular pie and a square pie. One of my all time internal debates is DiFara's regular pie vs. their square. I still can't decide which I prefer.

Don't order slices. It's a waste of time and you're not getting bang for your buck. Even if you're going solo just grab a pie, have some slices in there and take the rest home, their slices are still decent reheated. Last time I went with three people around lunch on a weekday during a downpour and we were actually the only people in there. Finished a regular pie and a square at the location and split a regular and a square pie to take home. If you can swing it try to go during the day on a weekday to make the wait reasonable.

 

[sbjnyc]

I've heard the same reports about the Vegas location but didn't know they had two out there. I've heard it was good for Vegas but not comparable to the original. It'd be hard to mimic what they have going in Brooklyn. Having the constant turnover they have means you're always eating a pie fresh out of the oven. NYC has spoiled me for pizza in that sense since I'm automatically turned off now whenever I get a slice that's been cooked, placed in the display and than reheated. You don't get that at the top places like Joe's, Di Fara, Louie's and Ernie's etc. or the Neapolitan style places like Lucali or Roberta's.

The difara's on the strip is in the food court at Caesars. Plenty of turnover there so that's not the issue.

 

[Megustaelhockey]

Friend of a friend coming into NYC for a week and was asking if I knew of any place for under $100 a night that was decent. Anyone have ideas?

They were hoping for Manhattan. I've lived in Manhattan or commuted now, so other than the random hotel treat - never really researched budget lodging.

Not possible in 2017. Sorry.

 

[East Coast Bias]

Not possible in 2017. Sorry.

Yeah that was my initial response to the question. But I figured I would throw it out there.

 

[GordonGecko]

Not possible in 2017. Sorry.

It's possible with airbnb if you don't mind sharing a room in a shared apartment and being a little further from the subway like in alphabet city or the east side

 

[Boris Zubov]

The difara's on the strip is in the food court at Caesars. Plenty of turnover there so that's not the issue.

The other location is actually named Dom DeMarco's. Way off the strip out by Red Rock Canyon. That was the first one to open here in 2011. They serve all the DiFara pizza choices, but it's also a full restaurant & wine bar. They have menu selections such as pastas, salads, calamari, chicken parm etc. They do entrees like cioppino & veal marsala. Food is very good, a little pricey, but a nice option out here even if you don't want pizza.

Unfortunately, they also added lame pizza selections like a BBQ Chicken pizza to cater to the "I grew up on the west coast, & I have no idea what good pizza is" crowd.

 

[Boris Zubov]

Nick's of Forest Hills is phenomenal as well. I had Amore once a few years back and don't really think I was that impressed. New Park is a great spot. Gotta check out Gloria's.

Again, with DiFara you really need to just accept beforehand that it's out of the way, not worth the wait and not worth the price. All that being said, it's still the best slice I have ever had. Remove the price factor and the wait and the dinginess of the location and just go slice vs. slice and DiFara is the best.

I've heard the same reports about the Vegas location but didn't know they had two out there. I've heard it was good for Vegas but not comparable to the original. It'd be hard to mimic what they have going in Brooklyn. Having the constant turnover they have means you're always eating a pie fresh out of the oven. NYC has spoiled me for pizza in that sense since I'm automatically turned off now whenever I get a slice that's been cooked, placed in the display and than reheated. You don't get that at the top places like Joe's, Di Fara, Louie's and Ernie's etc. or the Neapolitan style places like Lucali or Roberta's.

Agreed on Joe's. Top 5 spot for me.

If your ever in that area, give Amore's another try. Their pizza is outstanding. I hesitate to say this, but it's almost as good as Joe's.

I happen to love reheated pizza if it's done right. I like it when it comes out of the oven, sits on the metal tray for about 10 minutes to cool down & the crust soaks up the sauce. Place it back in the oven for about 45 seconds to bake the crunch back into the crust & it's heaven on a plate. A reheated Joe's slice is total bliss.

The problem with DiFara out here has nothing to do with turnover or slices sitting around. They just have guys who have no idea how to cook pizza. They take it out of the oven almost raw. No bueno. Plus two slices on the strip is $20. Dom DeMarco's off the strip won't even sell you a slice, it's full pies only.

There are just way better pizza options out here including Grimaldis, IMHO. Grimaldi's out here is a much better representation of the original than DiFara. A large pie at Grimaldi's is $18, which is very reasonable. They stuck to the basics just like Brooklyn; pizza, salads, & calzones.

 

[superyan]

Friend of a friend coming into NYC for a week and was asking if I knew of any place for under $100 a night that was decent. Anyone have ideas?

They were hoping for Manhattan. I've lived in Manhattan or commuted now, so other than the random hotel treat - never really researched budget lodging.

I'm not sure what the person's minimum standards are, but this place is often around $100 per night.

 

[sbjnyc]

There are just way better pizza options out here including Grimaldis, IMHO. Grimaldi's out here is a much better representation of the original than DiFara. A large pie at Grimaldi's is $18, which is very reasonable. They stuck to the basics just like Brooklyn; pizza, salads, & calzones.

I've never had good pizza in vegas so I just avoid it now. I haven't been to Grimaldi's but will give it a try next time I'm out there.

 

[patnyrnyg]

Friend of a friend coming into NYC for a week and was asking if I knew of any place for under $100 a night that was decent. Anyone have ideas?

They were hoping for Manhattan. I've lived in Manhattan or commuted now, so other than the random hotel treat - never really researched budget lodging.

I would be VERY leery of any hotel in Manhattan that has rooms for under $100/night. If your friend knows ANYONE in the hotel business, tell them to hit them up see if you can get friends and family rate for him. Was able to get a room in Chicago at one of the big hotel chains for about $65/night that way 5 years ago.

 

[Boris Zubov]

I've never had good pizza in vegas so I just avoid it now. I haven't been to Grimaldi's but will give it a try next time I'm out there.

There's a place in the Cosmopolitan that sells a very good slice (for Vegas standards) if you're looking for a quick bite. The place actually doesn't have a name or a sign & can be tricky to find the first time. When it opened, that was part of their selling point, almost like a speakeasy.

If you have time to sit down for a pie, Grimaldi's is in the Fashion Show Mall or the Grand Canal Shops in the Palazzo. I reccommend the Palazzo, as it's a much nicer location. There are wine bars, cocktail lounges, etc.

Those are the best pizza options on the strip. Everything else I've had has been crap.

 

[sbjnyc]

Thanks, there's several good places in Cosmo - it's a shame they don't partner with anyone back east. I like Holsteins and Momofuku (though I haven't tried the one there yet). I think I might have passed that place you're referring to but never went in.

Problem with Grimaldi's is it's starting to look like Papa Johns with all their locations. I'll still try it out.

 

[Boris Zubov]

Thanks, there's several good places in Cosmo - it's a shame they don't partner with anyone back east. I like Holsteins and Momofuku (though I haven't tried the one there yet). I think I might have passed that place you're referring to but never went in.

Problem with Grimaldi's is it's starting to look like Papa Johns with all their locations. I'll still try it out.

Agreed... That's what happens when the founder sells out to corporate interests. But out here beggars can't be choosy.

 

[Chaels Arms]

Di Fara is opening another location in a Williamsburg food court, North 3rd Street Market in September. Should be real interesting to see if we get another location with Di Fara-esque pizza or if it's more akin to the Vegas branches.

 

[sabremike]

I'll settle for the $2.75 2 slices and a can of soda places because I'm poor. Pizza in those places really isn't that bad, especially given the price. Better than most places upstate where I live.

 

[HFBS]

Again, with DiFara you really need to just accept beforehand that it's out of the way, not worth the wait and not worth the price. All that being said, it's still the best slice I have ever had. Remove the price factor and the wait and the dinginess of the location and just go slice vs. slice and DiFara is the best.

Many moons ago, long before any of this crap started, I would get in my car, park near DiFara's, get a square pie with fresh garlic to go, and get home while it was still hot.

No insane long wait, no hipsters coming from Alameda by way of the city so they could run and tell their friends back in yo-yo land. The old man wasn't old back then and he did what he did. And back then his family wasn't pushing to create a watered down dynasty.

 

[Brooklyn Ranger]

As we used to say back in the day--my heart bleeds.

 

[highandwide]

Yeah that was my initial response to the question. But I figured I would throw it out there.

Also, if you do go the route of cheap motel, I'd make sure to check yelp for reviews to see if they are apart of the city's homeless hotels/motels voucher program to avoid aggressive panhandling, open drug use and/or infestations.

 

[Chaels Arms]

Many moons ago, long before any of this crap started, I would get in my car, park near DiFara's, get a square pie with fresh garlic to go, and get home while it was still hot.

No insane long wait, no hipsters coming from Alameda by way of the city so they could run and tell their friends back in yo-yo land. The old man wasn't old back then and he did what he did. And back then his family wasn't pushing to create a watered down dynasty.

I WISH I could have went there back then. I only go there now when I can swing by on a weekday in the early afternoon to try to avoid all the craziness. You still have to deal with the big pizza tours sometimes though.