Holiday Outings at Premier Pizza Spots
Where to take friends, family and coworkers while also eating delicious pizza.
Hi there!
Holiday time means cramming in too many parties, events and get togethers than I normally would under the pretense of “celebrating things.” Whether it’s a work event where your group of coworkers awkwardly get together to talk about non-work things only to return to work gossip as soon as the menus are taken away. Are my stories of Charlie getting addicted to using scissors and cutting holes in her shirt really that boring and trite?
If you would believe it I had four holiday pizza outings this past week and each of those rendezvous was a totally completely pizza vibe and experience. The rich tapestry of pizza in the city lends itself to a variety of custom experiences depending on your vibe. And if you’re going to exhaust your social energy you might as well do so while enjoying pizza.
As your high school friends return to town for the holidays and you’re fretting on how to impress the newly enlightened New Yorker, fret not!
Or, maybe three spirits are visiting you in the middle of the night to encourage you to change your ways before you doom yourself to a life of bitterness and loneliness that affects everyone you touch, I got a place for you!
Let’s get to it!
You’re Meeting with Coworkers but You Also Want to Eat Good Pizza
There’s something so sophisticated about a Neapolitan Margherita pizza, isn’t there? It seems so exotic, so refined. The simplicity of the pizza exudes an aura of coolness, like the cool kid in school who is only popular because they’re not trying, or, sometimes actively not trying.
The vulnerability of a Margherita pizza is so attractive. It’s not trying to hide its floppy nature, heck that’s a feature here! The leopard printing is as beautiful as a peacock’s tail feather. An evolutionary signal that it’s ready to form a lifelong courtship with your digestive system.
Even the strips of charred basil give off this “Who me?” vibe. It’s at first repellant, but very cool and intriguing.
The other day I made a rare commute downtown to go on an outing with some coworkers. Pizzaiolo Primo was bustling with other business people celebrating the holidays with pizza, pasta and the occasional salad. One of my coworkers told me they had been eating so many rich, indulgent foods lately that they were going to take it easy on this outing. Instead of pizza they ordered the burrata salad which is maybe the most decadent and rich item on the menu. Imagine a mountain of burrata sitting atop a sprig of lettuce. Now that’s a power lunch.
Anyways - Pizzaiolo Primo is fancy to support a corporate outing, but the food is anything but stuffy. With a variety of Italian specialties it satisfies the group and you can get a delicious Neapolitan pizza out of the adventure.
There’s a Surly Group of Friends, Family Maybe a Kid and You Want to Eat Good Pizza
Spirit’s grandma pie is the personification of a pizza party. A rectangle of pure pleasure. Corner slices for the crunch seekers. Saucy slices for the goopy in your life. A myriad of toppings and fixings both exotic and familiar. Spirit walks that fine line of artfully pretentious and extremely approachable. Like a rich flavorful IPA squeezed into a pounder of PBR.
Spirit has something for everyone and if you get there early enough to grab a booth it has a very chill vibe, especially during the weekday. You can catch up with friends and family, kids can eat pizza and the cocktail menu and list of local drafts will appeal to the relapsed hipster in your party.
A few grandma pies and a couple of round pizzas provide the perfect backdrop to a cool holiday outing. I recently visited Spirit with my fam and our pal Mark and his two kids. It was a blast and we barely made a scene with kids running around and dancing under the glitter of the disco ball.
You’re Meeting One or Two Pals but You Also Want to Eat Good Pizza
If you’re looking for a quiet, chill place to meet one-on-one with someone I can’t recommend Driftwood Oven enough. I was initially turned off when they remolded their interior to be more takeout focus, but what a blessing in disguise it was.
Instead of large tables, long waits and the kind of stuffy restaurant vibe, Driftwood turned into the most chill pizza spot in the city. It’s rare all the counter seating is filled so grabbing a spot after ordering a few slices isn’t a problem. You can get a whole pie or some slices, grab a draft or a pour of wine and hold court without feeling like you’re gumming up the whole restaurant.
Ever since Charlie developed the strength to support herself on a barstool we’ve been weekly regulars at Driftwood Oven. We sit looking out the window and talk about things like what kind of cookie Charlie is going to trick me into getting for her, what is going on in Cocomelon. and what can I possibly do to get you to please eat some more of your pizza because all you’ve eaten today is sugar.
You and Some Friends Have Time to Kill for a Road Trip and Want to Eat Good Pizza
Got all the time in the world? Looking for an adventure? Take any friend coming in from NYC to Rockaway, tell them the cost of a home as well as its square footage and their head will spin off its neck as they bite into a slice from Rockaway.
More often I’ve been making the effort to travel to White Oak to eat pizza at Rockaway because it’s really some of the best in the area. A slice of a hot and fresh plain pizza is an awakening unto itself. The grandma pie is heavenly. The flavors are tremendous and practically perfect in every way.
Even if you can’t eat in, definitely worth the time it takes to drive out and pick up a few pies. You’ll be the start of any holiday meetup.
Thanks for reading! Hope you have a number of amazing pizza experiences this holiday season!
Thanks and pizza ya later!
-Dan Tallarico, Pizza Journalist