Stretch Pizza
Wylie Dufresne ran wd~50, which is closed, and he now runs a pizza counter on Park Avenue South where one of the pies is an everything bagel. Bryan Kim scored it 7.8 for The Infatuation.
Why go
Kim describes the crust as light, blistered, slightly chewy, and perfectly crisp.
1 The room is pastel, with a long bar and cushioned booths.1 The Infatuation carries Stretch in its guide to the best new pizza in New York, and hands its best-slice title to L'Industrie in Williamsburg. Those are two arguments: L'Industrie is about the slice, and Stretch is about what a modernist cook does with a pizza parlor.3
Order this / avoid
- Order: what Bryan Kim orders.
Be sure to get the chickpea fries, and don't skip the mushroom pie with garlic cream and muenster.
1 - Avoid: booking this as a Dufresne tasting menu. Kim:
Unlike the chef's previous restaurant, the now-closed wd~50, this casual Flatiron spot isn't a culinary experiment. It just wants to make you happy.
1
What locals & experts say
- Bryan Kim, The Infatuation, 7 April 2023, 7.8: "Do potato chips belong in a salad? Is green goddess dressing a good match for garlic bread? Should egg yolk be the main topping on a pizza? Those are questions you'll ask yourself at Stretch Pizza (and the answer to all of them is yes)."1
- Stretch's own site, on the range:
Wylie Dufresne's award-winning pies include classics (cheese and pepperoni), newsmakers (everything bagel) and more.
2
Good to know
- Booking: worth doing. This is a sit-down room.
- Timing: lunch and dinner, at 331 Park Avenue South.
Verdict
should-visit — Dufresne made a pizza parlor, and Bryan Kim's 7.8 is the honest number for the result. Book, and take both of Kim's picks.