L&B Spumoni Gardens — Restaurant in New York

Put our name down at around 5 pm and were told it would be about an hour wait. No problem. Then about 20 minutes later we get a call from the restaurant letting us know the wait would actually be closer to two hours. This is double what they said before, so it’s surprising, but we say okay. At 7 pm, we call to check on our table and are told that it’s actually ready. Except no one called us and we had to call to even find out it was ready. We get there and multiple tables are empty, with people being seated right away. Clearly the guy taking the “waitlist” just forgot about us and was seating people off the street without actually honoring their own waitlist system.

The service was a bit lackluster. We ordered a salad, meatballs and a pie. We received the meatballs first then the pizza almost immediately, leaving us no time to eat the meatballs without having the pizza get cold. The salad then arrived after the pizza, which is again not ideal as the restaurant should know people prefer to have their salad first.

The food is overpriced, but that’s somewhat to be expected from a touristy place. Meatball “side” comes with 3 fairly big meatballs that were juicy and tasty, paired with very basic and somewhat bland marinara sauce. The salad tasted good. The pizza itself was fine, but it didn’t taste as good as the original L&B location. By the time we got to it after having the meatballs and salad, it was lukewarm.

In all, I would not recommend dining in at this place. If you want to try the pizza, just get a couple slices from their counter service and eat it at the bridge. But if you actually want to try L&B true pizza, make the trek out to the original location because this Dumbo location is not it.

We ended up spending $100 after tax. Granted, the pizza is big but it’s still way too much for what’s mostly considered a...

After a beautiful day in Dumbo with my family, we decided to head to L&B for dinner. We were a party of seven (four adults and three children), and as expected on a Saturday night, the restaurant was packed.

When we approached the hostess stand, the experience wasn’t very welcoming. The hostess seemed irritated and, when asked about the wait time, responded in a scolding tone: “If you don’t have a reservation, it’s going to be a while.” It left us feeling a bit uncomfortable, almost as if we had done something wrong just by showing up.

Thankfully, a waitress named Danielle walked by at that exact moment with a smile and reassured us it would not be an issue. She quickly got us seated, and to our good fortune, she was also the one who ended up taking care of our table. Danielle completely turned our night around — she was warm, attentive, and made sure both the adults and children felt comfortable. She even went above and beyond to ensure everything ran smoothly despite the crowded atmosphere.

We did notice the hostess glaring at our table throughout the evening, clearly unhappy that we were seated. At one point, Danielle even assertively but professionally reminded her to calm down and just breathe. What started off as a horrible, insulting welcome ended with an amazing dining experience, thanks entirely to Danielle.

To management: Danielle deserves recognition for her professionalism and hospitality. At the same time, I hope attention is given to the way guests are greeted at the door. First impressions matter, and we noticed we weren’t the only ones treated poorly by the hostess that night.

Thank you again, Danielle, for saving the evening and reminding us why good service makes all...

I recently visited L&B Spumoni Gardens and ordered a few dishes to try. The Shrimp Oreganata with linguini ended up being served last, about 30 minutes after the first dishes arrived. I’m not sure if it was forgotten or if it just takes longer to prepare, but the wait felt too long, and by the time it came, I was already full. Unfortunately, the flavor was just average—nothing that really stood out.

The fried calamari, on the other hand, had a nice texture and was cooked well. Lightly crisp on the outside and tender inside—an enjoyable appetizer.

The highlight for me was definitely the World Famous L&B Sicilian Pie. It’s exactly what people rave about—thick crust, plenty of cheese, a nice crunch, and a rich, satisfying flavor. I tried the medium size, and if you’re visiting with two people, I’d recommend ordering one medium per person for a full experience.

The ambience is casual and feels more like a takeout pizza joint, but there are tables if you want to dine in. If you prefer something quick, they also have a bar counter where you can enjoy your order right away.

Service was okay—nothing bad, but nothing exceptional either. Overall, it’s worth visiting for the pizza, but be prepared for possible waits and manage expectations on some of the other dishes. I’d rate my experience 3...