Lucali — Restaurant in New York

The best pizza in NYC!

Lucali is Legendary for their Pizza. Mark has made, in my opinion, the best NYC pizza. This pizza crust is paper thin and crispy. The tomato sauce is bursting with flavor, and the cheese (mozz and parmesan) was excellent quality.

This is where the good part of my review ends.

We arrived at 3:45 pm to get a reservation (party of 3). We didn't mind the wait, it is what was expected. Once we got our reservation (which ended up being 6:30 outside, with the option of eating inside at 10:00 pm) and were told to come back at 6:15.

We arrived back at 6:15 and this is where our troubles started.

Around 6:40 pm the hostess comes out to check on who has arrived. We let her know we are here.

Around 7:10 our name is called and we are seated. At this point it's starting to get colder and the wind is only making it worse. The server comes out maybe 5 minutes after and takes our order (Large Pizza with just Basil and a Small Calzone with Hot Pepper and Mushrooms, it's nice the calzone comes with a large plate of tomato sauce to dip, man I'm so jealous of the quality of the food).

Around 7:50 pm (40 minutes after our order, and 80 minutes after our reservation) our Pizza has arrived, the table all put our hands under the pizza plate to warm them (haha) and the Pizza was amazing. In the time between order and getting our Pizza we saw our waiter twice. She was kind to us, and it was funny to hear when the waiters come out they would say to customers "You guys ok? It's so cold out here." and they would go back inside quickly after, not to be seen again for at least 15 minutes.

In the time waiting, the table next to us got up and went to a nearby by store and bought hot hands and coffee (they eventually requested their pizza be boxed before it came out). We finished the Pizza relatively quickly, had to be in less than 10 minutes. While we are waiting for the waiter to come take the Pizza plate, the wind is whipping blowing parmesan cheese (they put parm under the pizza) blows all over me and one of the other customers, about 10 minutes later the plate is taken (we had to hold onto it so it wouldn't blow away). About maybe 8:10 our waiter comes and take the pizza plate (at this point i had scraped off all the parmesan onto my plate so the wind would stop blowing it on us).

We didn't know how long it was going to be so the rest of my party went to wait in a near by store to stay warm. About 10 minutes later they come back (our waiter didn't notice since they hadn't came back yet). After a few more minutes we decided we'd to all go to the bathroom so we could see inside (atmosphere is awesome inside).

As im leaving I see a Calzone go in the oven and about 5 minutes after going back out our Calzone arrived.....at 8:30 pm (2 hours after hour reservation).

I quickly eat a piece, man so gooood! My party asks if we can box and leave. I walk inside to let the staff know we would like to get a to-go box (I didn't want to chance the waiter not coming out again for a while).

The waiter comes out soon after to come get the remaining calzone and box it, and leave our check. Relatively soon after she brings it out and we leave.

As much as I love the Pizza (it's now my rank #1); I don't think I can recommend Lucali. I think 2 stars is the most fair score I could give (since the Pizza I could not think how it could be better). But, this was the worst service I've received in a long time and as hard is it is to say, I don't think I should or will go back.

Lucali is famous for a reason and I hope this was just a bad night (this Pizza deserves a 5...

We visited from Los Angeles on July 14th to celebrate our 25th anniversary. Of all the restaurants we could’ve chosen, we picked Lucali based on glowing reviews from Google, ChatGPT, and social media calling it the "best pizza in New York." We were thrilled for the experience.

Our Uber dropped us off at 3:20 PM to get in line for the 4:00 PM waitlist. The line was already wrapped down to 1st Pl. We quickly realized we were late if we wanted a reasonable seating time. But we thought: "This place must be amazing if it draws a crowd like this!"

Rain was coming, so when it was finally our turn, we requested indoor seating. That pushed our slot to 8:15 PM. No problem, we figured we’d find something to do and come back.

We grabbed a late lunch at Bar Bruno nearby. Cozy vibe, great service, and that birria pizza with burnt cheese? Incredible. It actually became the culinary highlight of our day. As the rain hit, I ordered a hoodie and umbrella from Target via Uber Eats while we enjoyed our drinks and prepped for a very wet but enjoyable walk across the Brooklyn Bridge.

At 7:50 PM, umbrella in hand, we checked in at Lucali. The rain was pouring by now (you may have seen the subway flooding that night on the news). The woman who had added us to the list was checking people in, thick New York accent, no-nonsense attitude. We stood tucked under a tiny overhang near a corner store to stay dry until we were asked to relocate by the store manager.

At 8:20, I asked about seating. She said we were one of four "2s" left to seat and that it’d be a few more minutes. By 9:00, we were still standing in the rain, soaked and miserable, with only three other groups. That’s when it got frustrating.

A guy parked at a fire hydrant was bothering others, he was seated quickly, likely just to have him stop bothering other guests. Meanwhile, we watched at least three social media influencer groups walk in and get seated immediately. Not just before us, but before everyone. It was clear who was getting priority.

By 9:40 PM, it had been over six hours since we arrived. One other couple, who apparently just showed up at 7:00 PM (without getting on the list), had also stuck it out. Somehow they were on the list anyway. The host occasionally emerged to escort more influencers past us, glancing at us with what felt like annoyance, like she couldn’t believe we were still there. Maybe I should have mentioned that it was our anniversary?

We were miserable, drenched, and ignored. At nearly 10:00 PM, we were finally seated (next to the bathroom door). Our server was lovely and kind, wished us a happy anniversary, and explained the simple menu: pizza, calzone, and a pasta special. We ordered the pizza (adding pepperoni) and the pasta.

The food? Genuinely good. The crust was excellent, the flavors solid. But after such a long, unpleasant experience, we couldn’t fully enjoy it. The pasta portion was tiny but delicious. Thankfully, they served beer, I had a Peroni, which helped. Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this place wasn’t meant for people like us, just regular folks excited to celebrate something special.

There was no gesture for our anniversary. No candle, no kind word from the manager, no apology for the hours we spent in the storm. Nothing.

Lucali might be unforgettable for some, but for us, it was memorable for the wrong reasons. Unless you’re a person of influence, I’d suggest skipping the line and ordering online, or, better yet, finding a spot that values all its...

If I could give zero for the savage woman they have working as a hostess, I would. From start to finish, this place was an absolute disaster.

Had to go there at 3 pm after a 50 min subway ride from Manhattan just to give our name. Like an idiot, i drank the koolaid and did it. Once there, there must have been 100 people waiting in line in front of my brother in law and I. Some Lady sitting on a table outside taking the patrons names down at 4pm, straight out of a Seinfeld episode, said name, number, byob here is your time slot and you pay by cash. Thats it! Went back to manhattan and the family and I came back at 9pm after she gave us a 915 seating.

We arrived and were met by the same hostess on the table with the attitude of a bouncer at a strip joint. Rude, dismissive, insulting... treating the people waiting outside like live stock.

We ended up waiting over an hour and she came out and said "sorry about the delay, we have a table that was late and we are waiting for them to leave. Once they eat their last bite, i will tell them to leave". As i went back to the side to meet my family i looked at the table she said we were waiting for (which in the end wasnt that table) and one of the women on that table made eye contact with me. I wanted to know if the pizza was worth the wait or do we call it a night so behind the window i pointed at her pizza and gave the thumbs up as if i was asking if it was good, she gave me two thumbs up, i smiled and walked away. Not 2 min later, i called my daughter on my phone, as i was talking to her, not paying attention through the crowd of 30 people waiting there, doesnt the bouncer come out and say stop pretending to be on the phone, (i initially didnt hear that), my brother in law (heard it and told me after) said she was talking to you, i thought our table was ready and moved towars her, she said "no who do you think you are pointing at my clients... my wiatress saw you pointing..." in shock i went to confront her and made her realize that the waitresses was wrongfully accusing me of being mean to that woman. Anyhow, after embarassing me in front of everyone, i said why didnt you pull me on the side like a human and tell me what you thought i did wrong. We made a kind of a truce. She said sorry, i will take care of you when your inside. Thinking she will give me better service we waited another 20 min.

Once seated, we hoped the food would make up for the bouncer outside. The pizza was average at best. The place was very dark extremely loud and the waitresses were probably trained by the bouncer outside. Johns on Bleaker destroys this place. Crust like cardboard, sauce bland, and toppings that seemed like they came from a gas station convenience store. 3 pizzas we ordered, one came after the 1st two were finished.

After getting the bill with no "taking care of me" at all, I gave her a piece of my mind walking out after i was told what she originally shouted out to me by my brother in law.

Save your time, money, and dignity — go literally anywhere else on manhattan for pizza. I've had better frozen pizza at home, and at least my microwave doesn't insult me when I use it.

The lame we are sorry about your experience and try to get better bullshit will follow this but honestly, even if i die and come back to life as someone else i would remeber this experience...