Sunday, May 26, 2013

Sunday, May 26, 2013

From the Source

NYC turning point: $5 slice of pizza, no toppings

In New York City, where the price of slice of plain cheese pizza and a subway fare have been roughly the same, one Brooklyn eatery is upsetting the historic equilibrium.

31 comments

NYC turning point: $5 slice of pizza, no toppings

POSTED: Friday, July 31, 2009, 9:37 AM

Inquirer staff report:

In New York City, where the price of a slice of plain cheese pizza and a subway fare have been roughly the same, one Brooklyn eatery is upsetting the historic equilibrium.

As the New York Times reports today, DiFara’s Pizza in the Midwood section, is now charging $5 a slice. That’s $2.75 more than the subway fare and still, the Times says, “crowds form at the counter … and spill onto the sidewalk.”

A regular round pie, by the way, is $25.

Read more breaking news in our From The Source blog.

Inquirer Online Desk @ 9:37 AM Permalink | 31 comments

31 comments

Next Story: Sestak formally announces Senate run

Comments (31)

Comment removed.

Comment removed.

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 4:50 AM, 08/02/2009

I have been to Di Fara's too and it is not all that special. It is a good slice but certainly not $5.00 a slice special.

— Wildman Bill

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 11:01 AM, 08/01/2009

cgsnipe77 - brilliant, biting commentary. You have a rapier-like wit. You should have your own column.

— COskier

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 8:04 AM, 08/01/2009

Thanks for your perspective, beeford.

— Jen D

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 5:21 AM, 08/01/2009

Hey Philly, I'm in buffalo andd I have yet to taste a philly steak. Willl Smith has intriqued my taste buds. Write me at yahoo (remove the #8) seriously and tell me where I can get a steak the next time I visit N.Philly? You want good chicken wings go to it's birth place on Main street ask for the Anchor bar. okay

— blkfootblaque8

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 4:41 AM, 08/01/2009

1. Most people in Brooklyn don't have much formal education. 2. Most people in Brooklyn who follow baseball are Mets' fans. 3. Now are you really surprised that some people do stupid things?

— Delaware Jim

Comment removed.

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 3:18 PM, 07/31/2009

I can get a handmade slice from a guy "straight off the boat from Italy" at any number of places in Philly. $5 is too much for a plain slice "to go", given the marketplace norms, but as others have noted one can pay anywhere from $1 to $5. There's always a range in any marketplace. P.S. I'm certain that Dom di Fara's pies are great, and THAT's what is worthy of being talked about!

— BillMarston

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 3:06 PM, 07/31/2009

Joe's Pizza on 16th street will soon follow suit. It's already a ridiculous $3 a slice.

— BobbyG215

Comment removed.

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:58 PM, 07/31/2009

Being originally from NYC (moved here about 5 years ago) I’d like to think I know what good pizza is and unfortunately I have yet to find any here in Philly. If it's good fresh ingredients and the dough is thin and cooked perfectly then I would have no problem paying $5 a slice. I have never eaten at this specific place but I do know people who have and they have told me it is great pizza. I think most NYers are foodies and are willing to pay extra for good food because it is so accessible. A sorry greasy minute steak slapped with cheez wiz is not exactly something to be proud about!!

— lemmingsrus

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:36 PM, 07/31/2009

The same people complaining about a $5 slice are the same people who pay $3 for a cup of coffee from starbucks.....dopes!!!!

— mars t.

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:29 PM, 07/31/2009

it is pizza. There is a 90% + make-up on a pie.

— SlinkTMP

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:10 PM, 07/31/2009

Thanks beeford! There are many people who can actually write and check facts out there who are unemployed, maybe philly.com should hire some of them and get rid of those are are consistantly bad.

— Rob Neyer sucks

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 12:02 PM, 07/31/2009

$5 is outragous! Phillyblog is dead visit SpeakPhilly.com

— SpeakPhilly.com

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 11:57 AM, 07/31/2009

I was just at Di Fara's a few weeks ago while visiting friends in NYC, and this place lives up to the hype. First of all, this article sucks, try Googling Di Fara's and you'll find about 100 articles gleaming with praise. Second, $5 / slice is the only thing this guy can do to cut the wait from 1.5 hours to 1 hour for a pizza. Third, it's not in Midtown, it's in Midwood, a middle to lower middle class neighborhood in Brooklyn and the store is a hole in the wall. Fourth, and most important, Dom Di Fara was straight off the boat from Italy about 50 years ago, and he's the one who makes every single handmade pizza, with most of the ingredients imported from his hometown, and he personally hands you the slice. It’s quite an experience, sort of like witnessing history. Di Fara's has been getting a lot of press recently (see the Stephen Starr article from a couple weeks ago), but it's so far off the beaten path in Brooklyn, that it's 90% locals. Also, it takes about an hour to get slice because so many people are willing to wait, even in the freezing cold. Trust me, it's worth the wait, but I wouldn't do it again for a while. Lastly, I can’t believe everyone is making such a big deal of $5 for an amazing dinner when we all pay more than that for a crappy beer at a ballgame. Isn’t $25 for a pizza split between 4 people still a cheap dinner? You think Stephen Starr is going to charge less???

— Beeford

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 11:51 AM, 07/31/2009

We Philadelphians have the greatest food in the world. The best hoagies, cheesesteaks, pizza - you name it. God Bless this City.

— BillyBob369

Comment removed.

Comment removed.

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 11:18 AM, 07/31/2009

99-cent slices at 43rd & 3rd, all day every day. Huge lines.

— Mh225

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 11:17 AM, 07/31/2009

@tmac71: I would tend to doubt those tourists are from Philly. You try charging a Philly person $5 for a single slice and they will likely tell you what you can do with not only the slice but the whole pie.

— kw802

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 11:14 AM, 07/31/2009

the only reason why they are charging $5 is because 1. they are in midtown 2. tourist would buy it and 3. their lease went up and trust me the natives would not buy from them...

— pabywaybk

Comment removed.

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 11:07 AM, 07/31/2009

tmac71 - Yeah, because we don't have pizza here in Philly, right? Are New Yorkers paying $20 for a cheesesteak when they come here?

— Zero

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 11:00 AM, 07/31/2009

what does this have to do with New Yorkers ? probably tourists from philly buying the $5 slices

— tmac71

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 10:55 AM, 07/31/2009

$5 Thats some BS

— cusoraider

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 10:44 AM, 07/31/2009

Could New Yorkers BE anymore arrogant? I'd rather buy a box of Elio's for $3.

— Zero

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 10:35 AM, 07/31/2009

People are like sheep. They'd stand in line for a caning if a line had formed and someone influential told them it was cool. This is particularly true in NYC. What a bunch of trend f*ckers.

— Radioheadless

0 like this / 0 don't • Posted 10:27 AM, 07/31/2009

I would charge $6. a slice if people are still getting in line. Must be some good pizza. I would not pay $5. a slice, but apparently I do not make the kind of $$ the folks in NYC make.

— Kevin O.