Patsy's Pizzeria (East Harlem)
Pasquale 'Patsy' opened this room at 2287 First Avenue in 1933 and it has not moved.1 The oven burns coal.2 Hannah Albertine rated it 8.0 for The Infatuation.1
Why go
East Harlem was Italian Harlem when this opened. Neha Talreja calls it one of the first pizzerias the neighborhood had.3 The room still runs dark wood, tile floors and white tablecloths. Framed photographs cover the walls, of the place and of the people who ate in it.3 Frank Sinatra's portrait is one of them.2
Sonal Shah edits The Infatuation in New York. She went in May 2025 and made this her first pick for dinner in the neighborhood.2
Order this / avoid
- Order: the plain pie. Albertine does not hedge about it and neither would I.1
- Order: a plain slice at the counter if you are on your own. Time Out puts the split plainly: sit down for a pie or stand up for a slice.4
- Avoid: the meatballs. Rao's is a seven-minute walk away and Shah puts theirs well above these.2
What locals & experts say
- Sonal Shah, The Infatuation's New York editor, on 5 May 2025:
These pies are great, cracker-thin and cheesy, and though the dense meatballs aren't a patch on the ones at Rao's, they do scratch the itch.
2 - Hannah Albertine, reviewing it for The Infatuation on 14 January 2022:
you'll need to order the plain-it's thin and soft but holds up the bright red sauce and big circles of mozzarella cheese, and it's the reason you're coming to Patsy's.
1 - Time Out New York, in 2010:
This is East Harlem's favorite parlor, and with good reason.
4 - The limit: the most recent piece I have found on this room is Shah's, from May 2025.
Good to know
- Payment: cash. Shah said so in 2025 and Time Out said so in 2010.24
- Getting there: the 6 train to 116th Street.4
- The name: other pizzerias around the city trade as Patsy's. This is the East Harlem room, the original, on First Avenue between 117th and 118th.14
Verdict
should-visit — Stop at the pizza; nothing else on the menu is why the room is still here. Turn up and take whatever table is free.