Grandma pizza vs Sicilian pizza

They are both square, and that is where the similarity fades

Grandma pizza vs Sicilian pizza is a regular argument at a New York counter, usually from someone who likes both and wants the right box. Both pies are baked in a rectangular pan instead of stretched into a round. Both get cut in squares. After that, the dough, the sauce, and the cheese are doing different jobs. This piece explains the usual difference in pizzerias, then says exactly what Brooklyn's Finest Pizza lists, without inventing a recipe the menu does not print.

If you only remember one line, remember thickness. A Sicilian pie in a New York pizzeria is the thick one. A grandma pie is the thinner square, closer to a crisp sheet than to a slab of focaccia. People who want bread order Sicilian. People who want more tomato and cheese against a firmer bottom order grandma.

Sicilian, the thick square

Shop Sicilian pizza in New York is a thick-crust square. The dough rises taller than a round pie. The crumb is open and a little oily in a good version, closer to focaccia than to a cracker. Many counters put cheese down first and sauce on top in stripes or spoons, so the top looks redder than a round cheese pie. Other shops reverse that. There is no single law. If the layering matters to you, ask the counter.

The crust is the point. You taste dough. A square can be a meal by itself. It reheats well if you give it a few minutes in a hot oven instead of a microwave that turns the bottom into a sponge. It is a poor choice if someone at the table wants a thin, foldable slice.

Grandma, the thinner square

Grandma pizza is still a pan pie, still usually rectangular, and still cut in squares. The dough is pressed thinner and often docked so it does not balloon. A common shop version starts with oil in the pan, a layer of dough, crushed or spooned tomato, garlic, and mozzarella that is more often fresh than the low-moisture kind on a round pie. The bottom should brown and stay sturdy. The top should taste like tomato, not like a pillow of bread.

Grandma is the square you order when Sicilian feels like too much bread. It is also the one people compare to pizza they had at a relative's house, which is where the name comes from: a homestyle sheet, not a stuffed crust. Recipes vary by shop. Some are very crisp. Some stay a little tender in the middle. The name is a style, not a trademark.

Side by side

Thickness: Sicilian is thick, grandma is thinner. Shape: both are squares or rectangles from a pan, not rounds. Sauce and cheese: Sicilian often shows sauce on top of cheese in New York shops; grandma often shows tomato over a thinner dough with fresh mozzarella. Bite: Sicilian is bready; grandma is sharper, more tomato, more crisp bottom when it is made that way. Neither is 'more authentic' in a way that ends the argument. They are two pan-pizza habits that both belong on a Staten Island menu.

A round cheese pie is the third choice and the one most people mean by 'regular.' It folds, it has a defined rim, and it is what you get if you never asked for a square. If the table is split, order a round and a square instead of forcing one style.

What our menu actually lists

At Brooklyn's Finest Pizza, the menu names a thick crust Sicilian cheese pizza and a grandma's pizza with fresh mozzarella. Both are listed as large pies you can leave classic or build with toppings the same way the menu describes for those squares. That is the fact we will stand on. We are not going to invent oven temperatures, a secret oil, or a layering diagram the kitchen has not printed on the menu.

Ask the counter if you want to know how today's Sicilian is sauced, or whether the grandma is the crisp style you are picturing. The phone is (718) 815-7070. The address is 1250 Hylan Boulevard, Staten Island, NY 10305. You can also order online and read the item names at checkout. Prices change, so they stay on the menu and the ordering site, not in this article.

The rest of the shop is still a full pizzeria: heroes, pasta, wings, and the dining room. A square pie is a good reason to come in. It is not the only thing on the ticket. Hours are Monday through Thursday 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM, Friday and Saturday 10:00 AM to 10:30 PM, and Sunday 10:30 AM to 10:00 PM.

How to choose tonight

Want height and a soft crumb? Order the thick crust Sicilian. Want a thinner square with fresh mozzarella in the name? Order the grandma. Want both opinions at the table to stop arguing? Order one of each and a round if the group is large. For a party, the parties page and the catering trays are how you scale past a single pie. Half trays serve 6–9 and full trays serve 10–15 when the food is a tray rather than a pie.

Grandma pizza vs Sicilian pizza is a better argument after you have eaten both from the same shop. Ours is at 1250 Hylan Boulevard, on Hylan Boulevard, since 2012. The menu is the list. Order Online goes to order.brooklynsfinestsi.com.

If you are feeding people who have never had a square pie, start with one Sicilian and one grandma and let them taste before you order a second of either. Leftover squares keep their shape in a box better than a floppy round slice, which is useful for a pickup that still has a drive. Reheat them on a sheet, not stacked in a microwave, if you want the bottom to stay worth eating. And if the table also wants heroes or pasta, those are on the same menu. The square pie does not have to be the entire order.

Visit the shop

Brooklyn's Finest Pizza is at 1250 Hylan Boulevard, Staten Island, NY 10305. Call (718) 815-7070.

• Monday – Thursday: 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM
• Friday – Saturday: 10:00 AM – 10:30 PM
• Sunday: 10:30 AM – 10:00 PM