Sal's Pizza Bar — Restaurant in Florida

Update 4/5/2024: I came back and tried a slice especially after seeing so many positive reviews and I still can't find what the fuss is about. I came at night when it was busier thinking maybe if I got pizza during a busier time it would be better/fresher, but nope and on top of that the service was a process to say the least. I got a basic margherita pizza slice and it was still greasy and lacked flavor. This definitely isn't the best in Orlando, let alone within this zip code. For those saying this is the closest to NYC pizza, when was the last time you were in NYC? If you're a local looking for a new pizza place to join the amazing local cuisine we have here in Orlando, I unfortunately can't recommend this place.

If you're a tourist who's looking for a semi cheap pizza alternative that is somewhat better than what your resort offers than I guess this is the place for you.

Old Review Another place I have been itching to try that is opening in the O Town West area and unfortunately it was a very mixed experience, but I'm still happy to have Sal's open in the area.

First off the ordering experience, I thought the prices were fair for what is being offered here, definitely a no frills experience. I ordered through their website, which was easy to navigate, although the pictures of some of the dishes really wasn't doing the place any favors. A new place, so I can totally understand that.

The order was ready at the estimated time. The place is very small and compact, but they make a decent use of the space, I think they would benefit from having signs hanging from the ceiling that says "Order Here" and "Pickup Here" since there appears to be some confusion with some guests there as far as where the line started/ended. The service here though was excellent, everyone was very friendly.

Our group ordered several pizzas and appetizers and these are the ones I can speak for. First off, everything was still warm by the time I got home, but it all went downhill from here. First I tried the buffalo chicken pizza, I actually enjoyed the flavor at first, the chicken was dry, which is fine and I really liked the hot honey that was drizzled ontop, but that hot honey was really carrying. On parts of the slice that didn't have the hot honey, everything just seemed kind of flat, and the crust just didn't have much as far as flavor, I also would have appreciated some more texture, some crunch? Everything was very soft. I will also admit these are GIGANTIC slices, so if you like large portions, you'll definitely like it here.

Next I had the meat lovers pizza and boy was this inedible. I have never seen so much grease pooling on a pizza before, the cheese and all the toppings would kind of just slop off the pizza onto the plate and the pizza box itself was coated in the grease. I understand it's a meatlovers, but this was borderline inedible and I wish I didn't eat it in the end since my stomach did not agree with the pizza not too far afterwards. Most of it got thrown away, unfortunately.

As far as the appetizers and the pasta, the fettucine alfredo I would equate to that you would get at in the frozen department at a dollar store, it just wasn't very good. The mozzeralla sticks weren't that far behind, there wasn't much if any of a cheese pull, it just didn't taste fresh, they did stick it in the oven when we got there but it tasted like something I just microwaved and the marinara sauce didn't help either. The garlic rolls, were fine though, very garlicy, although once again I wish it just had a slight crunch to add some texture diversity.

Overall, I really don't know if I came on a bad night or not, or if I just got some not so good menu items. Based on what I had tonight I wouldn't suggest it personally, but I can definitely see this being a great option for families. I do hope for the best for this place and maybe I will come back in the future to give it another shot with just a slice.

TLDR: Very mixed experience, excellent service, fair prices, but the food for the most part missed this...

When I found out we would be getting a new pizza place, I was excited. Growing up eating New York Pizza, I really wanted to love this place.

The first pie I got, I tried and it was just okay. I thought, alright, it’ll be better next time. Well, I’ve ordered at least 3-5 pizzas, multiple calzones, and their lasagna, all of which were just okay. The lasagna is a sloppy thin mess reminiscent of one of those freezer section lasagnas with no flavor or authenticity to it.

The calzone is fairly inconsistent, sometimes it’s great sometimes it’s just OK.

The pizza itself, I’ve always felt like the sauce was lacking. It’s not very flavorful AND they put so little of it, it’s like eating a dry slice of dough and cheese. This last time I ordered, I attempted to ask for a little extra sauce and they wanted 3 extra dollars for a half a ladle of sauce, when the pizza hardly has any to begin with. I told the girl on the phone, I just wanted a normal amount of sauce, not necessarily extra, but not the minuscule amount I’ve gotten in all of my orders. She said she’d write a note for them and that was that.

I get there and this place is always packed and chaotic, so they must be doing something right but also the area doesn’t have a lot of competition. Picking up a to go order is always a hassle because you have people staring at the display case and you don’t want to be rude trying to get your food and leave while the window shop but there’s no organization or staff taking charge and greeting you proactively or directing people in some sort of queue. Before I’m handed my pizza, there’s a paper note on it that the gentleman behind the counter reads before giving me a dirty look and quietly handing me my pizza. Not a good sign.

I get home and at a first glance I thought they gave me a pepperoni pie, but then I quickly realized they put little dollops of sauce on top of a cheese pizza. This could’ve been done spitefully so that I could see the extra sauce they gave me or it could be that they batch make a ton of pizzas and are too lazy to prepare made to order. In either case, the end result is a pizza still dry as a bone with globs of sauce disproportionately making for a very inconsistent eating experience from bite to bite.

I’ve never understood people that love a restaurant and go repeatedly only to leave a bad review on the one off visit they have out of dozens — unfortunately, this isn’t one of those reviews. My experience has consistently been...

After hearing nothing but rave reviews about Sal's Pizza Bar since it's opening a year or so ago, I've been wanting to try this place, described as the most authentic NY pizza in Central FL. I have to say this place did not disappoint, but... with a couple of caveats.

First of all, the crust is true, authentic NYC style pizza. IYKYK!! Thin, with a crispy bottom side, with so much flavor from the fresh tomato sauce and toppings, and a nice, slightly chewy edge crust. We did one of their "standard" sized 18" pizzas, 1/2 meat lovers (pepperoni, italian sausage, bacon + added olives) and 1/2 margherita.

Now... I am a meat-a-saurus, and LOVE my meats on pizza (if good quality, as these most definitely are). However, that being said, my first bite of the meat lovers was a bit surprising. First, we'd ordered sliced black olives, which the person taking our order acknowledged and related back, and even added it as an upcharge on the meat lover's half of the pizza (although now I noted it only said "olives"). But what we got was not sliced black olives - it was sliced greek kalamata olives - an entirely different flavor - and very, very salty! In fact, with all the meats plus the kalamata olives, it was actually a bit too salty, but it was good, it was fresh and hot, and we were starving, so we didn't want to say anything - it was dinnertime, and had gotten very busy, even on a weeknight, and the pizza took a while to come out of the oven initially (but totally worth the wait). Just wish it had black olives (not sure if maybe they don't have black olives?) because kalamata was a bit overwhelming for the flavor of almost each bite (didn't want to waste them and kick them off, so we just enjoyed it for what it was... just not exactly what we ordered).

Ironically, as a meat lover, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the Margherita side, with fresh mozzarella and extra crushed tomato sauce... so good, and so much easier to taste the flavors of the crust itself, the amazing sauce, and the very tasty, chewy cheese - so good!

Overall, the pizza was quite plentiful, and very tasty, and definitely reminded me of eating slices in NYC at one of my favorite little family-run Italian places just down from time square. Definitely the closest to NY pizza I've had in...