Wow, DiFara is open again!

Aside from the implicit warning conveyed by the repeated Health Department closings (the place really is a pit -- stay away from the bathroom!) I would also echo the warning that DiFara is very, very far from anything that could remotely be considered a tourist attraction.

These things said, it's a great experience. A tiny neighborhood joint where Dom DeMarco (and ONLY Dom Demarco) has been making pies for decades. I think more than 40 years. I'm told that in that time he has taken only two days off for vacations, one of which was for his daughter's wedding. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that those were the only two times when Dom has washed his hands in 40 years, either. In any case, he's basically obsessed with making great pizza. He's got incredible imported cheeses, herbs that he grows in his window and snips directly onto the pizza... My advice would be to order a square pie, or a slice of a square pie -- the whole crust/sauce/cheese combination is different from the round pie version, and I greatly prefer the square. And try very, very hard to get there in a non-crowded period, or you may go home after an hour having not even obtained any pizza at all. Dom's slow, deliberate pace never changes, no matter how huge the crowds building up at the counter get to be. Avoid weekends!

I have been told that an establishment's restrooms reflect the standard of cleanliness in the kitchen.

I'm voting for Pizza Suprema, on 8th and 33rd, across from the post office. Yum.

I'm voting for anyone BUT Grimaldis. Last time I considered a pie there must have been 60 people lined up outside! shhhhhhhh!!!!

GerdaFaust: you can see most of Dom's kitchen from the counter, and you can see the rest of if you venture behind the counter to make your way to the bathroom. Clean it definitely ain't.

I'm quite compulsive about food safety and hygiene issues. I've been known to buy a sandwich and then discreetly throw it away as soon as I leave the store, because they guy who made it had his hands in something questionable before he touched my food. But I'm willing to take my chances from time to time with Dom's pizza. His ingredients are certainly impeccably fresh. His oven is probably hot enough to kill any living pathogens that make it into the food, and even his hands get cooked a little every time he sticks his bare hands into the oven to retrieve a pie. After 40 years of that, the man must have no nerve endings left in his fingers whatsoever. Besides, I'll take a risk now and then for something that good.

Anyone going to Coney Island can hop on and off the subway at DiFara. Not sure I'd make the special trip there either. But if you're looking for New York Style pizza it's sold by the slice at the counter.

Go to any local place outside of Times Square. Get a slice. You can go in and look at the pizza before you buy. If it doesn't look good - walk out! Simple.

Can go to Ray Bari on 3rd Ave and 56th Street if you need midtown/east. They also have pasta dishes.

Buying pizza by the slice is the NY way to go.

I love La Pizzaria on 3rd Avenue between 30 & 31 in Murray Hill. They use the best ingredients and they are the only place in the neighborhood that does.

I loved John's (the one in the converted church) in the theater district. Cool atmosphere and great pizza.

But I also enjoy the slices AND the strombolis and calzones (ask for extra sauce) at Ray's, which has locations EVERYWHERE in NYC.

"Ray's" isn't necessasrily everywhere in NY. There are pizzaerias with similar names: Ray Bari, The Original Ray's, Ray's Original, etc. These are owned by different people!

John's is actually on 44th, not 42nd.

I love Grimaldi's, and for those venturing to Staten Island, Joe & Pat's on Victory Boulevard has great pizza. If you want a nicer full-on Italian restaurant, Trattoria Romana on Hylan Blvd. has great food and sublime pizza.

Another vote for Grimaldis! Easy to get to on Subway and you can walk back over the Brooklyn Bridge. Go around 2:00 or later and you'll avoid the wait (though it will still be hopping) and be sure to wash it down with a Brooklyn Lager! Mmmmm.

there are many Ray's and few are related. We used to love the Ray's on 6th and 10th but they too now offer medicore slices.

Lombardi's is great. Not the cheapest place around either.

If you want to venture for the best pizza in NYC...take the 6 train up to the BRONX.....LOUIS & ERNIE's pizza on Crosby Ave & Waterbury Ave....AMAZING!!!