New York Pizza Tonyz, Koto City, Tokyo
As part of our series on the best NYC-style pizza slice shops in Tokyo, we present this review of New York Pizza Tonyz, in Koto City, Tokyo. While Tonyz is not open every day (Saturdays and Sundays, only), it’s easily one of the best slices in Japan.
I’ll say it again: Warning – warning; this shop is only open on Saturdays and Sundays. And it’s possible for him to sell out, so plan for lunch if you want to be sure to get a slice.
Tokyo’s Tonyz Pizza Slices – Tonyz with a “Z” – is located in Koto City (by train: about 40 minutes east of Shibuya). It’s not a centrally-located shop, but – we heard good things. And we wanted to know:
Is Tonyz Pizza the best pizza slice place in Tokyo? It might be.
We took the Hanzomon Line out to Monzen-nakacho Station, and then made the walk to the shop. As we arrived at about 12 noon on a Saturday, there was a group eating slices out on the sidewalk.
The guys eating pizza out front were all smiles as we rolled up; as if we all knew the same secret. I could tell this was going to be a good thing. And it was.
Just look at that pizza.
The Tonyz NYC pizza slice shop is owned and operated by Tony Shinozaki, a Japanese guy that lived in Queens, New York, as a kid. He came back to Japan for some of this primary school years, then back to NY again for college. His passion for New York is obvious, and it was fun to have lunch at his spot, and ask him some questions about pizza. The dude is a real pizza master, a proper “pizzaiolo.”
Doing the New York “pizza in the window” style better than any other shop in Tokyo, Tonyz pizza case is just a foot or so off the street.
Looking into that case, you can see he does several types of pizza. Each has a half-classic, half-creative name, paired with a location in NYC. You got: NYQ Regular Cheese Pizza, Cheezy Hot Jalapeno Jackson Heights Pizza, NYQ Pepperoni Pizza, Potato Blue Cheese Forest Hills Pizza, Angry Hawaiian Long Island City Pizza, Shitake Senga Shea Stadium Pizza, Pesto Dani’s Kew Garden Pizza, a Red Pepperoni Vodka Rego Park Pizza, and Artichoke Vodka Astoria Pizza.
Wow.
I confess I wasn’t even curious about the price at the time, but as you can see; the NYC-style pizza slices at Tonyz are between 700 (for the simple cheese pizza slice) – 900 JPY each. Most are +/- 850 JPY. That is pretty expensive for a slice of pizza. (For some contrast, 2Bro’s Pizza in Kobe does a banger cheese slice for 220 JPY.) Given the quality and originality of the ingredients, you might classify Tonyz as “gourmet” pizza slices.
We were there for lunch, and we ordered three slices; A slice of his Pepperoni Pizza, the Shitake Mushroom Pizza, and that Jalapeno Pizza slice.
Look at that, the Three Amigos; quite the ensemble. Good lookin’ pizza.
The Pepperoni Pizza slice was a perfect specimen; well built, tasty, absolutely classic. Certainly a better taste than whatever it is they are serving at the Pizza Slice chain.
For a little variety, I was glad to try the Shiitake Pizza. No tomato sauce on that one, but two kinds of cheese (mozzarella, but also provolone). Some olives. Tasty, different, savory, but I don’t think I would order it again.
Tonyz “cheezy” Jalapeno Pizza slice was the star that day.
Cheezy Hot Jalapeno Jackson Heights Pizza Slice: Velveeta and Mozzarella Cheese, Sausage, Olives, Parmigiano Reggiano
— As described on the pizza menu at New York Tonyz Pizza Tokyo
Spicy. In addition to jalapeno, that pizza features sausage and olives. It also had a surprising cheese mix. Was that American cheese? I asked him, and yeah, he confirmed it was “American.” But as I wrote out the description for this review, that is Velveeta cheese.
For those that don’t know what Velveeta is, it’s a soft, super-processed “cheese” (think canola oil mixed with other ingredients with names that belong in chemistry experiment). The mix of jalapenos and Velveeta cheese creates a “nachos” flavored pizza. (Ummm, nachos.) Very “American junk food,” but creative and absolutely hit the spot.
Very good.
(When I was a kid, my grandpa used to use Velveeta as bait when we went fishing; that plastic cheese sticks to the hook. If you look close, you can see a box of that “not really cheese” in the lower-left corner of the pizza case.)
Tony is a true craftsman, and he says every pizza has a different style. The Hawaiian Pizza at Tonyz takes the familiar pineapple, uses bacon instead of ham, and has ricotta on top.
Angry Hawaiian Long Island City Pizza Slice: Ricotta and Mozzarella Cheese, Pineapple, Bacon, Hot Sauce, Parmigiano Reggiano
— From the pizza menu at Tokyo’s New York Tonyz Pizza
Tony refers to that ricotta as “fluffy.” I didn’t try that pizza, but I want to.
His Pesto Dani’s Kew Garden Pizza has a basil pesto genovese sauce and fresh basil on top. Nice.
I asked Tony’s which of the pizza slices was his personal favorite; he said, “it’s the Cheese.” When he tries a new spot, he says he always tries the Cheese. I told him that when I ate at Pizza Bar on 38th, the executive chef told me his favorite is the Marinara. It is a kind of high-end pizza truth that when the pros want to know what’s up, they go back to the minimal, to the basics.
There was hip-hop playing on a big screen (a screen so big, it had as much real estate inside as the pizza case). I made a comment that I’m used to seeing hip-hop associated with NYC pizza (for a good example, see Rocco’s New York Pizza Slices here in Tokyo). When I made that comment, Tony kind of gave me a kind of low-energy, blank stare. I asked him if he was a hip hop head (already knowing he was not). He said he’s “old school.” He said he likes disco; “Sonny and Cher.” Alright, then.
I ordered a beer: 350 JPY. While the pizza may be a little pricy, that beer was a screaming good deal.
This dude loves NY. Toward the end of our visit, he shut off the hip hop to put a NY Met’s game on his big screen. It was February; to my knowledge, that isn’t baseball season (it’s not even spring training). He’s so into his team, he’s watching reruns of baseball games. I like that. Go Mets.
To write this review of New York Pizza Tonyz Tokyo, I read through all the notes I took that day. In my notes I can see I asked Tony why he is only open on weekends. He said “It’s only me,” which isn’t exactly a complete explanation. Maybe he has a day job during the week? I am still not sure why this is a two-days-a-week shop.
I know that from those questions about the shop hours, he made an abrupt transitioned into a comment about his dough; he lets his dough ferment for 72 hours (which adds to the flour). He also does Sicilian-style pizza on Sundays. There are good practices going into these pizzas. Tony “iz” for real.
There was a line when we showed up. There was a line while we ate. There was a line when we left. Everyone standing around outside, eating slices. Ninki-desu, yo. Really good flavor; it’s easy to see why this place is genuinely popular.
And please remember boys and girls: Credit only (yes, credit) – no cash.
Highly recommended.
For more Tokyo Pizza see:
— Marumo Pizzeria in Ebisu, Tokyo
— Pizza Bar on 38th’s omakase pizza at the Mandarin Hotel in Chuo City, Tokyo
— Rippongi PST Pizza in Minato City, Tokyo
— Savoy Asabujuban Pizza in Minato City, Tokyo
— Pizzakaya in Minato City, Tokyo
— Simple, but wonderful uncut Napoletana Pizza at Frey’s Famous Pizzeria in Minato City, Tokyo
— Devil Craft Pizza in Kanda, in Chuo City, more Chicago pizza at DevilCraft Gotanda in Shinagawa, Tokyo
— Shibuya pizza at Kevelos, in Tokyo
— Sabasu Pizza in Akasaka, Tokyo
— Komazawa Pizzeria da Peppe Napoli Sta’ Ca” in Setagaya City, Tokyo
— Seirinkan Pizzeria in Meguro, Tokyo
— Butcher Republic in Ebisu, Tokyo
Pizza Slices in Tokyo
— Rocco’s NYC Pizza in Kita City, Tokyo
— NY pizza slices at Nim’s Pizza in Asabujuban in Minato City, Tokyo
— Pizza Slice Cat Street in Shibuya, Tokyo