The Best Pizza Around New York's Tourist Spots: Times Square, Madison Square Garden

You're coming to New York City, and the itinerary is packed. But since eating is just as important as snagging Hamilton tickets, we're here to help.

NYC's sheer volume of pizza joints means it's easy to fall prey to a mediocre slice, especially near tourist attractions, which tend to be situated in the city's less-than-cool neighborhoods. So we've enlisted Scott Wiener, the tour guide and historian behind Scott's Pizza Tours, to make sense of the madness.

First of all, Farinella is a Roman bakery, which means one thing: amazing bread and doughy, perfectly crunchy pizza crust. Wiener goes for the classic DOC, the amatriciana and the cacio e pepe—then he implores the woman behind the counter to make sure he doesn't order any others.

This Neapolitan-style joint is known for its lightly fried pizzas—a tradition that's been around in Naples for the last few centuries, Wiener explains. He's a fan of the smoked mozzarella; the smokiness balances the sweet tomato perfectly.

This iconic slice joint has all manner of options. Wiener goes for the upside-down Sicilian, which is light and airy, or a regular slice, a foldable but stable slab you can eat over a paper plate while walking to the subway. 

Brunetti, a quaint Neapolitan spot with a backyard and killer specialty pies, might be the most underrated pizzeria in NYC. Run by an Italian father-and-son duo, Brunetti serves one of the city's best clam pies and also ferments its dough in two stages for a deeper flavor.

Situated a few blocks away from the buzzy heart of Little Italy, Prince St. Pizza turns out epic square slices. The pepperoni is perhaps most famous, but Wiener goes for the plain Sicilian, which is lathered with pecorino, leaving little bits of burnt and crunchy cheese in the crust.

Dana deLaski is a freelance writer, photographer and videographer based in New York City. Follow her on Instagram at @dana_delaski.