The search 'Pizza Near Me in Midwood: Di Fara Snips Basil With Scissors' leads to a detail that is no longer current, but the address is still the useful part. Di Fara Pizza sits beside the Q train's Avenue J station, making it the obvious first stop if you want a serious Midwood slice rather than a vague list of nearby shops. It is open Tuesday to Sunday from noon to 8:00 PM and closed on Monday, so the safest plan is a midday visit. If the queue or limited closing time does not suit you, nearby Lucia covers the classic slice, while L&B and L'industrie give you later options elsewhere in Brooklyn.
Ask Karpo in the app for a Midwood pizza plan that checks the day, closing time, price and best order of stops before you leave. You can also ask which Brooklyn option fits a midday visit or a later meal.
Di Fara Pizza, Midwood — the Avenue J slice with the basil story corrected
Di Fara Pizza is the place to start if your search is specifically for pizza near me in Midwood. This legendary family-run corner pizzeria serves thin New York-style round and square pies with imported cheeses, tomato sauce, olive oil and fresh basil. The shop is small and unassuming from the street, opening into a scruffy green-painted room with handwritten signs, framed photographs and pizza memorabilia, a marble work surface and bright overhead lighting. The familiar image of Dom DeMarco snipping basil over the pie with scissors is outdated: current owner Dominick DeMarco Jr. says the fresh basil is now cut in a bowl.
The address is 1424 Avenue J, directly by the Q train's Avenue J station. Di Fara is open Tuesday to Sunday, 12:00 PM to 8:00 PM, and closed Monday. A regular slice costs $5.20 and a regular pie costs $31.20. The limited schedule and unpredictable waits make midday the safest time to go, particularly if you want to eat there rather than arrive near closing. The shop now permits family members and in-laws to work on the pies, a change from founder Dom DeMarco's near-total control of the process. That makes this a good choice for the classic Midwood pilgrimage, not a late-night fallback.
Lucia Pizza of Avenue X, Homecrest — a broader neighbourhood counter
Lucia Pizza of Avenue X is the nearby alternative when you want a familiar, foldable New York slice but a menu that moves beyond one narrow format. This family-owned pizzeria serves New York-style slices, whole pies, Sicilian and specialty pizzas, heroes and pasta. Its compact corner shop has a bright service counter and pizza display, with seasonal sidewalk seating. Compared with Di Fara's worn-in room, Lucia feels more polished and casual, and its broader Italian-American menu gives a group more ways to order without turning the meal into a formal sit-down occasion.
Lucia is at 2201 Avenue X in Homecrest and is open Monday to Sunday from 12:00 PM to 10:00 PM. A New York plain pie is $26.25, while a Margherita pie is $25.49. It is about a 0.4-mile walk from the Q train at Neck Road, so it works well if you are already moving through the southern Brooklyn neighbourhoods rather than standing at Avenue J. One timing wrinkle matters: the pizzeria lists regular hours until 10:00 PM, but its online ordering menu lists pies and dishes as available only until 9:15 PM. Ask before relying on the later kitchen window.
L&B Spumoni Gardens, Bensonhurst — Sicilian squares in an open-air garden
L&B Spumoni Gardens offers a different Brooklyn pizza ritual from the thin slice at Di Fara or Lucia. This Bensonhurst landmark is known for thick, airy Sicilian squares, classic round pies, homemade spumoni and a broad red-sauce Italian-American menu. The large open-air garden supplies the setting: red chairs, marble-topped tables, hanging lights, green walls decorated with flowers and a prominent neon sign reading 'LeB Open Air Garden'. It is a pizzeria-restaurant rather than a quick counter alone, so it suits a meal where the room and the choice of dishes matter as much as the slice.
L&B is at 2725 86th Street in Bensonhurst and opens Monday to Sunday from 11:00 AM to 11:30 PM. A slice costs $4.50, a Sicilian pie $35 and a round pie $24. It is near the D train's 25 Avenue station, making it a practical later option when Di Fara's 8:00 PM closing time rules out a leisurely evening. The menu states that toppings are available for whole pies only. Its signature Sicilian, vodka Sicilian, round and vodka round pies are sold as separate base options, so decide whether you want a topped whole pie or one of those listed formats before ordering.
L'industrie Pizzeria, Williamsburg — ingredient-led slices for a later lunch
L'industrie Pizzeria is the modern counterpoint in this group: a compact Williamsburg shop where standard New York-style slices share the menu with burrata, prosciutto, spicy salami, mushrooms and truffle oil. The storefront is bright and narrow, with an expanded counter-service dining area and an open pizza counter. There is also a dessert programme featuring gelato, bomboloni, olive-oil cake and other Italian sweets. That makes it useful when the pizza stop is part of a wider Williamsburg outing, or when you want a more composed specialty slice rather than the plain, foldable reference point offered by the southern Brooklyn choices.
The address is 254 South 2nd Street in Williamsburg, and hours are Monday to Sunday from 12:00 PM to 10:00 PM. A Margherita pie costs $31, a burrata pie $37 and the L'industrie pie with prosciutto di Parma and burrata $47. It is roughly a six-minute walk from the J, M or Z trains at Marcy Avenue. L'industrie is expensive beside the regular slice at Di Fara or L&B, but it stays open later and is still casual. Its Wednesday sandwich special changes weekly through Instagram, and the online ordering page warns that it can be out of stock.
How to choose
Choose Di Fara if Midwood is the point of the search, you can arrive around midday and the $5.20 regular slice or $31.20 regular pie fits the plan. The Q train at Avenue J puts the shop directly beside your route, but its Tuesday-to-Sunday schedule and unpredictable waits make it a poor choice for a tightly timed evening. Choose Lucia if you want a plain slice with more menu breadth, a daily opening schedule and a later stated closing time, while remembering that its online ordering menu ends earlier than its listed 10:00 PM hours. Lucia's $26.25 plain pie and $25.49 Margherita also give you a lower-cost whole-pie option than Di Fara.
L&B is the better answer for thick Sicilian pizza, spumoni, a full Italian-American meal or a garden setting, and its 11:00 AM to 11:30 PM hours are the broadest here. L'industrie is the choice for burrata-led toppings, desserts and a Williamsburg stop that runs until 10:00 PM. The routes are not interchangeable: Lucia is about 0.4 miles from Neck Road, L&B is near the D at 25 Avenue, and L'industrie is about six minutes from Marcy Avenue on the J, M or Z. No guaranteed parking arrangement is supplied for these shops, so do not assume a convenient space; use the train details to build the safer plan.
One correction before you search
Older guides still describe Dom DeMarco personally snipping basil over every Di Fara pie with scissors. That is no longer the current process. Dominick DeMarco Jr., the current owner, says the shop now uses fresh basil cut in a bowl, and Dom DeMarco died in 2022. The basil remains part of Di Fara's appeal, but the scissors detail should not determine your expectations when you arrive at 1424 Avenue J.
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Ask Karpo first
Before leaving, ask Karpo in the app to check the opening day, stated hours, slice or pie price and likely timing for your chosen shop. For Di Fara, plan around a midday visit and the Q train to Avenue J; for Lucia, use the Q train to Neck Road and walk about 0.4 miles; for L&B, take the D train to 25 Avenue; and for L'industrie, walk roughly six minutes from the J, M or Z trains at Marcy Avenue. Ask for the route order that matches your meal time, especially if Di Fara is closed or you need a later stop.
