We turned up without a reservation, so ended up eating slices at the bar. Maybe because of this, we didn't experience anything other than perfect service.
Our bartender made sure that our pizza requests were quickly fulfilled and that our glasses never stood empty too long, all without being in the slightest overbearing.
We tried a whole host of slices and, whether vegan, vegetarian or meaty, everyone seemed 100% satisfied. I know I was.
We'll book a table next time though.
Mike's review hits it right away: awesome food, quick but sometimes interrupting service (which can be quite annoying when you're eating and every three minutes you're asked if everything is ok) and a very odd paying experience.
Having known this in advance we did check the bill and were a bit astonished that they added the tip automatically although the menu said they only do so if you are four or more people.
We didn't agree with what they put on the bill so we placed another sum then suggested in the glass. I guess they didn't expect that and so they checked three or four times with all their coworkers.
The food is awesome - there's no discussion about that - but the odd service and paying experience left a bitter note.
Mike thinks this review is helpful
I love the Pizza. This is my favorite pizza hot spots.
Mike thinks this review is cool
Amazing vegan pizzas and they even have a vegan oven!
Pizza was absolutely perfect, fresh, hot, tasty and big portions. I can't say enough good things about the chef, his vegan pizza abilities and their amazing ingredients, including two different vegan cheeses and an amazing spicy vegan sausage.
The atmosphere is a little dark in the evening, but that could add to some of it's charm if you're on a date or something.
The service is a bit......odd, to say the least. Extremely quick service, all very nice, but, over-attentive. Having 3 different waiting staff interrupting your discussions every 1-2 minutes is a bit over-kill, or perhaps it was because we were in the middle of the restaurant where all of the wait staff had to pass. I like attentive service, but the balance between private time and interruption time needs to be practiced a little more.
Also, be prepared for an odd paying experience. Pala appears to be building a reputation for having their wait staff pressuring for a bigger tip once you've paid. I understand NYC ain't cheap, but I've recommended the place to 4 different small groups of friends looking for a vegan pizza night out in the city, and all of them called me the day after asking what the deal was with the wait staff pressured them for a higher tip.
Overall though, the pizza is worth the odd service experience, so definitely go there often, or better yet, call ahead for pickup and eat back at your hotel.
Pala (between Houston and Stanton) makes really great pizza! the crust is thin which I like, they put a lot of effort into the process of making their dough, let it raise for 72 hours, use only organic ingredients and no chemical enhancers and you can even watch them preparing the pizza, in the open kitchen and on a screen listing their ingredients and photos of the dough balls non-stop (slightly annoying). toppings are organic and fresh. in short, the pizza is yummy. they recently even added gluten-free and vegan options (they use Daiya cheese). I picked the vegan Pizza Romana, sampled the appetizer Crostini and had a bite of their delicious soy sausage.
service was attentive, sometimes maybe a little overbearing, even interrupting nice conversation with my friends, I did feel well taken care of mostly, up until we paid and the waitress, Olivia, complained about our tip (15%) and made me feel extremely awkward. definitely left a bitter aftertaste and ended the evening on a not so pleasant note.
I would go back for the pizza, though.
I'd also recommend to reserve, as the place fills up quickly.
Mike thinks this review is helpful
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