Location: Whitehall Commons, 8170 S Tryon St, E Charlotte, NC 28273
Like most New Yorkers I don’t try to hide the fact that I am a pizza snob. We may be obnoxious at times, but I won’t apologize because our pizza is among the best in the world. In my opinion, even better than that of Rome. Being in the south most of us northerners miss having a real pizza place on every corner. With garbage like Fuel, Pure Pizza and Hungry Howie’s littering the area one wonders if there is any place that will serve an acceptable slice. In my opinion Luigi’s gives a decent effort at giving a quality pizza experience.
The Good: With two locations (that are both difficult to get to) I concentrated on the White Commons location. Once in the distance past there was also a location in Dilworth, but for some reason it didn’t fly. It does speak to the taste of pizza eaters here that Fuel in Dilworth can thrive, while Luigis disappeared.
When I first visited Luigi’s about 5 years ago I was pleasantly surprised of how authentic it was. The inside reminded me of a NY style place and the pizza was fairly close in terms of quality. The crust was crisp and I really enjoyed the sauce. Fast forwarded to present day and I can say that some of what made it good remains, some but not all. The meatball hero Parmigiana is still pretty good and better than most you will find in Charlotte. Maybe not as good as many places in the North, but the elements that make it tasty remain. The size of the hero alone puts it way ahead of the majority of most sandwiches in the area. The bread, while not 100% identical, is still pretty good. A bad sauce can be a deal breaker as well, but thankfully Luigi’s is OK. Overall I feel Luigi’s makes a pretty good hero and you won’t go wrong ordering it.
The pizza ranges from acceptable to pretty good. The last time I went it was closer to acceptable, but it was still far better than the majority of places in Charlotte.
The Bad: It may be strange to put the pizza in both the good and bad categories, but I have to. As mention the last time I went it was acceptable. Unfortunately that’s a far cry from what it used to be. The crust was not crisp like I remembered it, and a good crust makes a slice. When you order a whole pie for take out, I find the crust to be even worse suffering from an even greater sogginess. Another complaint I have with Luigi’s pizza is the sheer size of the slice. I don’t know what it is about Charlotte pizza places that so many of them feel the need to give you a mutated slice, but I find it a bit off putting.
Prices are also a bit higher, although a quality pie does cost more. Its just a large one topping pie can run around $20 and hero sandwiches around $8.25 its not the best value.
The Ugly: Back in the good old days Luigi’s had a easily accessible location on East Blvd. With its demise one has to go near the border of South Carolina or through the overcrowded Whitehall shopping center. Neither is a place I want to go when I getting a quick slice. Wading through a crowded Wal-Mart parking lot does not make for an easy dining experience. I will travel a distance for really good pizza, but for pretty good pizza I will make other arrangements.
The Verdict 6 out 10: I can recommend Luigi’s if you are in the area. It may not be the absolute best in Charlotte, or even as good as it used to be, but it’s still is a solid slice. It’s much better than most of the pizza in Charlotte and may (almost) fill the void that many Northerners felt when transplanted here. Although not spectacular it is on my top ten of the best pizza in Charlotte.