The Upper West Side is about to get another reason to loosen its belt. Lucia Pizza, the Brooklyn-born pizzeria that has been steadily taking over New York one dangerously delicious slice at a time, is opening its first Upper West Side location at 159 Columbus Avenue, between West 67th and 68th Streets.
And yes, this is the former Starbucks space—because apparently the neighborhood has decided caffeine can take a backseat to pizza.
Lucia’s tells us, “It’s a small challenging spot but I think we did a pretty rad job at building it, we’re gonna have some outdoor seating.”
Lucia’s new Upper West Side pizza shop is expected to open in late September, assuming construction stays on schedule. The nearly 900-square-foot storefront will mark another Manhattan expansion for the family-owned pizza operation, which traces its Brooklyn roots back to the 1970s.
Lucia has built a following with its New York-style pizza, offering everything from classic cheese and pepperoni slices to more indulgent specialty creations. The brand has already expanded beyond its original South Brooklyn home, with locations in SoHo, the Upper East Side and Gramercy.
The Upper West Side arrival also lands in a particularly pizza-hungry neighborhood. With Lincoln Center just a few blocks away, Lucia could become the perfect pre-show stop—or the place to conduct the important post-show debate over whether one slice was, in fact, enough.
Spoiler: It probably wasn’t.
The opening comes as Columbus Avenue continues to attract new food and restaurant concepts, adding even more culinary energy around the Lincoln Center area.
For Upper West Siders, the equation is simple: new pizza, prime Columbus Avenue location and a Brooklyn favorite moving uptown. The only real question left is whether Lucia will become the neighborhood’s new go-to slice—or simply make everyone’s pizza loyalty much more complicated.
Either way, the Upper West Side is getting saucier. And we’re not mad about it.
Photo: (Instagram / lucia.newyork)
