If you’ve ever journeyed across the world for a great meal, you’re in good company. Food is one of the main reasons to travel, after all. Now, New Yorkers don’t have to go far to devour one of Napoli’s best and most famous pizzas. After opening a Los Angeles outpost in 2019, L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele debuted in Manhattan’s West Village late last year, and the crispy, chewy pies are some of the best you’ll ever have. 

Head pizzaiolo and partner Michele Rubini oversees the pizza kitchen. According to the Ischia native, “everything’s the same except for the water.” And New York water is often credited for making New York the pizza and bagel capital of the Americas. For those new to L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele, the 16-inch pies may look huge out of the oven, but the crust is super-thin to the point where just about anyone can finish one on an empty stomach.