Want a New York-style pizza in Myrtle Beach? Take a look inside this new pizzeria.
Walking into New York Pizza at 117 Maryport Drive, you see the pizza rotating display cases alongside others containing ready-made food. In contrast, pizza makers in the open kitchen area are busy shuttling pies in and out of the 500-degree gas oven.
With minimal flop and a crispy crust upon first bite, the eatery serves many different slices and pies, as well as garlic gnots, gyros, calzones, Jamaican beef patties and other items.
Whether you order the Sophia Loren pizza— named after the famous actress and topped with fresh mozzarella, fresh tomatoes, garlic and extra virgin olive oil —the pie is prepped, cooked, cut and boxed within 10 minutes of ordering. Everything in the pizza-making process is homemade, says Arben Rroku, owner and manager of the eatery.
“If it’s not crispy, it’s not New York style,” Rroku said. “The dough, it’s authentic (to the) New York style.”
Rroku said New York Pizza opened in December 2023. He started working in pizza in 1997 and previously had two pizzerias in Staten Island and Brooklyn, N.Y., before moving to Myrtle Beach.
Rroku, born in Albania and having lived in Reggio Emilia, Italy previously, added that he found his way into working in the pizza industry naturally.
“I had a different job before I started this, but it wasn’t me,” he added. “I wanted to build a pizzeria restaurant.”
Rroku said he is building off of a pizza legacy in Myrtle Beach. The site, which Rroku runs with four employees, was originally the home of an Original DiCarlo’s Pizza place.
DiCarlo’s specializes in Ohio Valley-style pizza that features cold cheese on top of a hot square. Rroku said the pizzeria continues to offer Ohio Valley-style pizza to pay homage to the eatery he took over for.
“I liked the spot. So it was a perfect fit for me,” Rroku added.
New York Pizza is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. It is next to a Walmart Neighborhood Market alongside South Kings Highway in Myrtle Beach.
