Nicole S.
Yelp
The best American (New York) Italian food around. Also, the best service. The servers here will treat you like family, and if you're lucky enough to visit when the owner is making his rounds, he will embrace you like family, too.
It was so hard to figure out what to get because everything on the menu sounds so delicious. They have several different 18-inch brick-oven-cooked "pies," and because I was visiting with several people, we chose The Renzi (tomato sauce, mozzarella and Italian sausage) and the Patsy Searcy (chili oil, honey, sopresatta). Both were amazing, but I think I loved the one with honey and chili the most because that sweet and spicy element added just a little something. These brick-oven pizzas come out with chewy yet crispy crust, with slightly charred bits. The pizzas are wonderful.
We also got a salad for the table, and chose the arugula salad, which comes with white beans and parmesan. Exquisite. Why I never thought to put beans in a salad ... I don't know. But now my mind has been opened. Beans with arugula and cheese is my favorite combination.
Of course, I had to get a Caesar salad too, because I need to try the CaeSal everywhere I go. This Caesar salad was fresh and crunchy, with a toasted parmesan tuile on top (kind of like a lace cookie, but made with cheese).
Meatballs: This is a big one for me, because I love meatballs. These ones at DeLuca's come over tomato sauce, with a dollop of ricotta and toasted crostini. The meatballs were tender and I could have eaten a whole order just by myself.
Someone at my table was gluten-free, and luckily, DeLuca's offers gluten-free pasta. She said it was delicious!
I was super surprised to see that they offer cheeseburgers here. The owner is very proud of his cheeseburgers, so we had to get one to try. WTF: The cheeseburger at DeLuca's is amazing. And not just for an Italian restaurant. I can honestly say that this DeLuca's cheeseburger was one of the best I've tasted in a while. It's very simple and just comes with a hamburger patty and cheese on a bun, but really, that's all you need. Don't be ashamed to order a cheeseburger at DeLuca's -- because this is definitely an item to get.
We ended our meal with dessert. They have seven (!) desserts on their menu, and we chose the olive oil cake, lemon ice box cake, and tiramisu. I loved the lemon ice box cake the most -- it was super rich and creamy, and not at all too lemony. The citrus cleansed the palate and was a nice way to end a superb meal.