12/25/07

good east coast pizza

by bdwoz

The pizza is as close to east coast I have found in CA. I have lived in San Jose almost 30 years. The other dishes are ok. I go only for the pizza.

10/19/07

Real New York Pizza

by janibrewski

Giovanni's is the real thing. Born and raised in NY, I'm constantly looking for good NY Pizza, and I've finally found it. Vito's Famous, Pizza My Heart, Amici's, they are all good. But this is the real thing.

Try their Sicilian (thick crust, rectangular pizza) as well.

If you don't like Giovanni's pizza, you don't like pizza.

• Pros: Pizza, Sicilian Pizza, Service
• Cons: Too far from my house!

05/01/04

Over-priced

by vparikh

After reading all the glowing reviews here, we decided to try this place out. We were afraid that on a Saturday night, the place would be crowded but to our surprise, it was deserted. That should have warned us.

We ordered some pizzas and settled down to wait. The service was fine (with smile too). When the first pizza arrived, my friend tried it and found the crust to be burned!. So we sent it back. The other pizza was OK. The crust is OK but nothing extra-ordinary.

The real shock was the bill. They charged us 18% tip because we were a party of 8!. The total bill (for 4 large pizzas and drinks) was a whopping $132!!.

I am a long time Cicero Pizza customer and Cicero's is way better value for the money. This is my first and last visit at Giovanni's.

07/31/03

Great Crust, Good Pizza, Ok Service

by mansona

I think the title of this review sums it up. Seems to be a very popular place to dine for lunch. Service was fairly slow. The crust was superb. Overall, the pizza was good (with the crust being the best part). Service was pretty slow and the price was a tad high.

I would go again, but probably not for lunch, but for dinner so there would be a huge time constraint.

• Pros: Crust
• Cons: Service

07/08/03

REAL NY-style pizza

by garypen

Ever since I moved here from NY, I tried to find decent NY pizza. I couldn't believe the tiny "large" they sell here. And the prices! Fuggetaboutit! (Also, Pineapple on pizza just plain wrong!)

I hadn't had much luck...until now! Walking into this joint on Lawrence Expy in Sunnyvale was like stepping through a portal onto Kings Highway in Brooklyn.

The slices are large. The crust is thin. And, it ain't covered with a bunch of stuff. You can actually have a regular slice of PIZZA with no pineapple, no teriyaki chicken, no nothing, just pizza.

As for the ambience and service, what's wrong??? It looks just like a pizza place. There are tables, chairs, a counter, and an oven. You ask the staff for what you want, and they bring it. What's the problem? Are they supposed to sing and dance?

• Pros: Genuine NY Pizza
• Cons: None

01/08/03

Good Pizza

by jenniferw12

Good Pizza but shotty service. No smiles, no eye contact.

• Pros: food
• Cons: Service

12/13/02

Best NY pie west of the Hudson!

by mcoop

I moved to the Bay Area 9 years ago from Chicago, and struggled to find decent pizza until I happened upon Giovanni's. Zachary's in Oakland/Berkeley is still the only stuffed pie I'll eat out here, but Giovanni's is the working man's pizza--they use the proper cheese, sauce, dough, and ovens to create a masterpiece of simplicity. The atmosphere absolutely sucks, but you'll learn to overlook it after tasting a slice (or a whole pie). I continue to be amazed that Citysearch hasn't done an editorial review, as Giovanni's blows away the reviewed poseurs. How in the heck Round Table even makes it into the top ten amazes me. And Applewood's pizza is just too soft--the crust is too doughy, the cheese too moist.

• Pros: Fantastic pizza, Easy parking, Great value
• Cons: Lousy atmosphere, Can be crowded at noo, Closed on Sundays

11/13/02

Good Dough

by jaimito_99

They have the best fresh bread dough. One of my favorites is their cheesestake sandwich. The service needs improvement (smiles won't hurt).

• Pros: Fresh dough
• Cons: No smiles

10/24/02

The ONLY legitimate NY pizza around!

by nyrangersfan

There are a plethora of pizza places around Silicon Valley which claim to serve authentic NY pizza. Don't believe it.

This is the BEST pizza around. Just try it, you won't be disappointed.

10/07/02

pizza pro

by cpietro

Being originally from Brooklyn,N.Y., I've had many great pizza's. Giovanni's rates right up there with the "BEST N.Y. STYLE PIZZA'S. I've been going there weekly since it first opened!!! Sandwiches are great also.

• Pros: best pizza in No. Ca., fair prices, fresh toppings
• Cons: small menu