PIZZA REVIEW in New York City: Xeno’s Pizza

My search for the best pizza in New York continues….

I think there was a time not that long ago that I thought I would try every pizzeria in the city. Others have attempted to do that, but of course with so many opening and closing all the time, it’s not really possible.

I also have a job and a family now so the possibility or even thought of hitting every pizzeria seems daunting and exhausting.

The being said, I’m still happy to check out a new under-the-radar spot when I find it. In this case, I had to grab a quick something or other to eat on my way to get my haircut and a slice of pizza seemed as good of an idea as any.

Xeno’s had a bright shiny green sign and had some good reviews on the internet, so I figured I’d give it a shot. Later, I also discovered they were recently featured on Dave Portnoy’s pizza reviews and all over Tik Tok, so I am accidentally on the cutting edge here.

They had some interesting slices, like the spicy Vodka and Chicken cutlet, but I stuck with the most standard I could find, which was the Lady Margherita.

This isn’t the low moisture mozzarella greasy slice you might expect at a slice joint, but Margherita slices are certainly now ubiquitous around the city and I tend to prefer them.

It was a rather large slice, which perhaps justified the $5.25 price tag. The dough was thin with a firm crispness. The crust was the best part actually. As for the tomato sauce, I found it a bit bland yet overly salty. It didn’t have much pop in the acidity or sweetness department. It was a bit flat.

The cheese was nice, but was not the star of the show here. The lackluster tomato sauce was the main component and was only made up for by a nice enjoyable crisp base.

Having not tried every pizzeria in the city (but many), I can say this is by no means a bad slice. It is completely adequate, but nothing special for someone who has been to a large number of New York slice joints.

Is Xeno’s Pizza the best pizza in NY? It’s a passable Margherita slice in a colorful clean environment, but it only gets a 7out of 10 since there is a lot more potential here.