Speedy Romeo (Lower East Side)

From Clinton Hill (Brooklyn) to Clinton Street (Lower East Side), Speedy Romeo is a winner, named for a racehorse once owned by the family of Todd Feldman, who is a partner in this wood-fired pizza operation. Co-owner/chef Justin Bazdarich has worked at several Jean-Georges Vongerichten establishments; his chicken parm has panache, and his lemony, cheese-showered Caesar salad is better than any other in recent memory. A signature pie honors the neighborhood with Katz’s pastrami as a topping; patrons can customize ingredients as well. Crusts are thin and nicely blistered. The clever design makes use of every available space—high tables, low tables that can be pushed together, counter seating that faces the glass-walled kitchen and a wraparound marble bar serving cocktails and bottles of wine for under $40.