Lucali

Possibly the hardest table to get in Brooklyn, this cash-only, BYOB, compact Carroll Gardens institution attracts everyone from locals to pizza aficionados who want to see what all the fuss is about to celebrities like Jay-Z and Beyonce. You’ll increase your chances of getting a table if you get in line at least an hour before they open. On a typical night, by the time the first patrons get through the door (at 5:45), the line is already wrapped around the nearest intersection at Henry and Carroll. The place fills up fast, and when hopeful diners get to the door, they are given a call time and told by the hostess to be nearby at their designated time and that seating is limited to one hour. Those who don’t want to wait for hours either get in the take out line or simply go somewhere else.

Once you get inside this former candy store turned brick oven pizzeria, you’ll get to see former stone mason turned pizzaiolo, Mark Iacono and his team prepare the most sought after pies in Brooklyn. The menu is written in chalk and more than any other place in this list, Lucali keeps it simple. Just small or large calzones and pies with thin crust from dough custom flattened with Lucali’s signature wine bottle, which you may have seen on the pizza episode of Ugly Delicious. Extra sauce is $5.

Nearest G train station: Carroll St