Denino's Pizzeria & Tavern

John Denino, who came to New York from Sicily as a small child, opened a tavern on what was then Richmond Avenue in 1937. When his son Carlo took over in 1951, one of his first moves was to put pizza on the menu, and the family has been making thin, crisp pies here ever since in a no-frills tavern room. Denino's has since opened outposts in Manhattan and New Jersey; this is the original.

Order the M.O.R. — meatballs, onions and ricotta — and a clam pie or a plain margherita alongside it; the crust is cracker-thin and still holds up to the toppings. Fried calamari is the traditional opener. It is a sit-down place with table service, so plan on sitting down to whole pies rather than grabbing a slice. Come with a group; the pies are made to share, and the room has the easy, multigenerational noise of a place families have been coming back to for decades.