Locals helping locals discover great dining in San Diego.

Explore the site. Check out our recommendations. When you're ready to contribute, please join us.

Join Here
Pizzeria Luigi
Cuisine: Pizza
Neighborhood: Golden Hill
1137 25th St.
San Diego, CA 92102 (Map)
(619) 233-3309
http://www.pizzerialuigi.com/

Recommended by 1 local

One of your favorites, too? Recommend

Eats.It Staff Recs

 
  • Maia   Maia
    08/30/07

    Pizzeria Luigi is home to the best New York style pizza in San Diego. Lookout Bronx!

    What is it about hot dogs and pizza that gets Chicagoans and New Yorkers so riled up? Hand a New Yorker a Chicago style hot dog loaded with every condiment under the sun, and you'll certainly get a nasty look, and possibly even some nasty words to go along with it. Hand a Chicagoan a huge, thin slice of New York style pizza and they'll wonder where the sauce and the dough are. Both cities definitely have made their mark on these two American(ized) classic foods, and I have to say, I'm on Chicago's side for the hot dog and New York's side for the pizza. I've yet to find a satisfactory Chicago dog in America's finest city, but my quest for the quintessential New York Slice is over: I've found Pizzeria Luigi.

    Lesser known than Bronx Pizza, the other New York pizza hotspot in town, Pizzeria Luigi is actually owned and operated by a former Bronx cook. At Pizzeria Luigi, you get the classic New York pizza that you'd get at Hillcrest's Bronx (possibly even better, if you ask me), but with the added bonus of delivery and ample parking. The Golden Hill location across from Krakatoa and the Turf Club is convenient to all of San Diego's main freeways, and the cheap rent keeps the price right. Big slices go for $2.25 for plain or $2.50 for those with toppings, and all tax is included. It's nice to be able to hand over a fiver, drop a buck in the tip jar, and walk away with two slices of tasty pizza. If you want a soda to wash that down with, Pizzeria Luigi has a meal deal for two slices and a soda for just $5.50.

    And oh boy do I mean it when I say it's tasty. It's absolutely perfect: thin crust, quality ingredients, exactly the right amount of sauce and cheese, large and foldable, but still crisp. Bite into a slice and first you get the crunch of the crust, then a little bit of doughiness, and then the flavor of the toppings. Even the reheated slices are great. They have a large selection of various pizzas ready-made. Choose your favorite from spinach and ricotta, sun dried tomato, ham and pineapple, pepperoni, and more, and they'll run it under the broiler while you pay. Even better, pick up a whole pie, made to order for thirteen bucks, and sit out on the side deck with a beer while you wait. My favorite topping combination is spinach and ricotta, with a few shakes of red pepper flakes once it's on the table. Whoever had the idea of putting ricotta cheese on a pizza gets a gold star from me. Just a little creamy and a little gooey, ricotta perfectly complements the salty, stringy mozzarella.

    Pizzeria Luigi is a casual place. Just your typical storefront with some tables and chairs and a counter dividing the dining room from the open kitchen. Nothing special from a decor point of view. The staff is just what you'd expect to see in Golden Hill: young people with tattoos and shaggy hair. The patrons are not much different, though there you see more of the Hispanic families that share Golden Hill with the hipsters.

    In addition to the perfect pizza, Luigi's offers panini, calzones, stromboli, and recently they've started serving up pasta dishes, though to be honest I haven't gotten around to trying those yet. I just can't make myself go in there and not get pizza! That's amore.

    I do not have any connections with this business. I've been here once or twice.
We're in Beta. Please send feedback.