Only in NYC - Scarr's and L'Industrie Pizzerias
Thanks to everyone for the suggestions, a shame a human can only gorge themselves so much.
Hi there pizza peeps!
I am writing to you with a belly full of pizza. I need to hire someone to jump up and down on my stomach to get all this food out of system. I am a clogged up chimney in dire need of a flushing.
But I did this all for the sake of dinging on the most recent batch of legendary pizza places that have sprouted in New York City. L’Industrie (2017) and Scarr’s (2016) both came highly recommended to me from readers of this newsletter, so on my most recent trip I made sure they were at the top of itinerary.
By nature of existing in NYC, pizza shops get a tilted review. It’s such fertile pizza soil that any pizzeria that makes it a year has to be one of the best in the country. And maybe at a certain point, before the internet, that was the case. But these days I’m not sold that the best pizza in the world exists in the big apple (or the big pizza??). I think we are spoiled with delicious and exciting pizzerias in Pittsburgh so these slice slops may not hit as hard as they could in a world where Pittsburgh has zero pizza places.
That was something I was thinking about on the trip home. L’Industrie and Scarr were both amazing, but imagine going from frozen Frescheta to that. My head is on the verge of exploding thinking about that.
L’Industrie - New York Slices 5.0
L’Industrie was our first stop for pizza. My sister and I bravely got into line, the oldest people by far waiting for the hippest slice of pizza. It was 7pm on a Monday night, but the shop was bumping. The tables outside were full and the street was overflowing with hunched over youth folding up slices and rushing them into their mouths.
We got a box full of slices, a true sampler of delights. I wasn’t sure what to expect from L’Industrie except that “it was amazing” so we went in mostly blind. Here’s some initial thoughts.
They had a New Yorker slice that seemed to be self-explanatory to everyone but me and my sister. We were surprised to see it was a slice with dollops of ricotta, sausage, pepperoni and a piece of basil.
The pepperoni slice was too much for me. I’m not a huge pepperoni guy, and I appreciate the art of moderation, but this slice was flooded with grease and the pepperonis was a fleet of Noah’s arks.
These slices were next-level in their simplicity. The cheese melted together perfectly, the crust was structurally sound, flavorful and a delight to eat. There wasn’t a single wasted moment with these slices. After consuming three slices I still felt light as a feather.
The crust was croissant-like in its flakiness. It was chewy, crunchy and melted in my mouth. That piece of the pizza where the cheese ends and the crust begins is my favorite, L’Industrie executes that perfectly.
The bursts of cool ricotta on the New Yorker slices was heavenly. A soothing balm that blends in perfectly with the rest of the slice. Really elevated it to the next level.
Scarr’s Pizza, Freshest Possible Slices
Scarr’s is revered in the pizza world for going above and beyond to deliver the freshest possible pizza. According to this article, they are milling their own flour for their pizza dough in an effort to provide the next great New York Slice. The pizza here is instantly edible and digestible. I ordered so many different slices the guy behind the counter tried to get me to order a whole pizza, but no, I needed a sampler of Scarr’s pizza despite how uneconomical it is.
The fresh flour is felt during the digestion of the pizza. The slices look and feel like pizza, the gluten network impossible thick and sturdy. When you ingest a slice it doesn’t sit in your belly, it almost evaporates into your body. Becoming one with your bloodstream and immediately going to work providing you with the sustenance you need to walk 4 miles in Manhattan to catch a showing of Funny Girl.
I admire the pizza at Scarr’s and really enjoyed eating it. The flavors, the structure, the crust are all 10/10, truly stellar pizza experience. I did find their selection of specialty pizza a bit lacking (a pepperoni pizza with jalapeño) and there were no slices of the grandma pizza available.
But if this is where NYC pizza is going, then I welcome the next wave of New York Slices. These quenched a thirst for huge slices that I didn’t know I had. Now, it’s rare to get a single slice here in Pittsburgh but someone needs to start working on replicating the Scarr’s formula here in this city.
Very cool! I love pizza more than ever. My faith in the world of pizza is renewed and what I really want right now is a huge plain slice. Might have a trip to Slice On Broadway in my future.
Thanks for reading and please consider sharing this with a friend. Pizza ya later!
-Dan Tallarico, Pizza Journalist