In law school a close friend of mine who spent a lot of time in New York would tell me about the wonders of the food scene in the City. I heard about the likes of Lombardi’s and Grimaldi’s way before I got to try it. Four years later, the same friend would fly down from Toronto to New York and I would meet her at Lombardi’s to experience my first bite of true New York style thin crust pizza with her. So many sleepless exam nights I spent daydreaming of this pizza and it was finally becoming a reality.
We went for lunch on a Sunday and only waited minutes before we were taken out of the main restaurant, passed another restaurant tucked in between and entered in to another room which was an extension of Lombardi’s. My friend had to catch a flight back to Toronto and was rushed to order, eat, experience and leave. There were 6 of us so we ordered two large pizzas. One plain margherita and another with the addition of sausage and olives.
The menu offers a small and large pizza. You can start with the margherita and make additions as you please.
First we ordered a basket of bread sticks with marinara sauce which came out in minutes. It certainly hit the spot.
Not too long after our pizzas arrived. I finally understood why Lombardi’s is so famous- because the pizza was truly amazing. Whoever says otherwise is just plain old hating. Not only is Lombardi’s the oldest pizza shop in the country but it has the best thin crust pizza I have tasted to date in America. All the ingredients were fresh and bursting with flavor.
The cheese. Oh the cheese. The cheese stretched for days. There was enough cheese to cover most of the pizza and marinara sauce oozed through each bite.
Next was the margherita. What could be more simple than a margherita pizza? Yet simplicity is sometimes a good thing. This pizza was simple yet mouthwatering delicious. Generous amounts of mozzarella cheese, marinara sauce and fresh basil. Delicioso!
The two pizzas were more than enough to feed us six. Although, of course there was a subtle fight over the last piece.
While taking one of many bites of pizza, I turned to my friend with a big smile remembering how we bonded over food in law school and would remain close friends ever since. Discussing food was so much more pleasurable than learning the intricate ‘bundle of rights’ in property law. She did not disappoint. The day dreaming sessions in the law school library finally became a reality and lived up to my expectation.
