Leonardo’s Pizza by the Slice

If you like New York Pizza, you are going to enjoy Leonardo’s. It’s greasy, cheesy and just plain gooey. In other words, it’s everything you want in a New York style pizza.

First time visit. Tried the calzone, which takes fifteen minutes to make (said counter staff). It was brought to our table. Nice dough, lots of cheese, and very tasty… but very few green peppers– truly hardly any. Ate ¼ before got to the first pepper. Restaurant was clean. Arrived at 11:30 on a June weekday so plenty of parking and no wait. The deep dish pizza looked really good, so will give this place another try. Will avoid the calzones unless I want just cheese.

When I graduate, Leonardo’s is going to be one of the places I miss the most. Every time I go I get a small organic salad. Pro tip: order it on a large plate so that you have no problem losing yummy pieces of dried cranberries or slivered almonds. I would say I order this because the salad is delicious but honestly I order the salad so I can get the 2 free rolls. The rolls are warm and perfectly doughy. They come with a garlic butter sauce and a marinara. The marinara is fine but I could bathe in the garlic butter sauce its so amazing. The best part of this meal is that it fills me up for only $ 5! The perfect college student meal!

A classic pizza joint. So happy it’s still around after such a long time. Service is still laughable. But the nostalgia makes up for it.

Great pizza and fast service! Always order for pick up with my roommate and the cashiers are always so friendly and understanding when we make several additional requests (every single time)! We get the NY style cheese pizza and garlic rolls. The rolls usually come with one garlic sauce and one marinara sauce but we always request that both sauces be garlic since we never touched the marinara. Along with this request, we also have our check split in half, and then we usually add on sodas as well. Adding on one thing after the other, you’d think the cashiers would give us attitude. But they never do! Not the BEST NY style pizza I’ve ever had (since I am from NY) but really great taste, fast service, reasonably priced, and close to campus.

Garlic Rolls. That’s it.
Im giving this restaurant 4 stars because this was one of my favorite restaurants when I was in undergrad. It’s mostly due to their garlic rolls which come with marinara sauce and garlic butter. When I was having a bad day, I would just order a whole box and feast.
After trying their pasta, pizza, salad, and coffee numerous times I feel like Leonardo’s has a problem balancing quantity vs. quality. I noticed their food comes in huge portions with some of the food falling off the plate. However, the pizza and pasta taste bland and lack seasoning. Every time I get a salad, it is doused in dressing and cheese. They give a huge amount of coffee which I did appreciate. You can add your own condiments from their condiment bar.
One of Leonardo’s personal gems is their own private parking lot. Gainesville has a lot of trendy places to try but I’m always deterred by where to park. Leonardo’s has a big private parking lot right beside the restaurant. This way you don’t have to worry about paying a meter or getting towed.

I worked here ’87-’89 while I was a student at UF so this place will always hold a special place in my heart. Back in the day this place rocked, literally, seven days a week. Punk rock blasted and the beer flowed continuously. It was just pizza, beer and garlic rolls back then and it was oh so very good. The menu has changed over the years and the pizza slices are no longer rectangular, but it’s still good. I’ve gone back several times since I graduated but have never had a chance to post a review. We went this past Saturday and it was still as good as ever. I had the signature Big Leo and a slice of pepperoni. My wife had a vegetarian slice and my son had a calzone. His girlfriend had another slice that I can’t remember. We split a half dozen garlic rolls, which by the way they no longer tie. Looks like they just wad up some dough nowadays. It was much quieter and yuppified /​dignified and the same pizza oven was still crankin’ so not all is lost. I really do think that this is the best pizza in Gainesville, putting aside the fact that I had some great times here.

TF?! Why is the cheese not cooked all the way? Turned over the pizza to eat the crust at least… Nope… Tastes like a cigarette. First time here, might give it another try in a few weeks after this taste leaves my memory.

I went to undergrad in New York City so I’m slightly a pizza snob, and usually laugh when businesses advertise themselves as «New York pizza». Leonardo’s however, is as close to a New York or maybe New Jersey style pizzeria as I’ve seen outside the area.
Decent prices and specials, decent selection of pies, and decent pizza! Vegan option. Generous size. Deliciously fresh and huge salads. Craveable garlic rolls. Surpassed my expectations!

Not thrilled.
When I lived here, back in my college days, I used to eat at Leonardo’s and loved it.
Fast forward 14 yrs.
I’m here visiting my mom and as we are passing by, she says, «Hey, wanna get pizza?» So of course I say, «uhhhh Yeah!» (who doesn’t want pizza?!) Lol
We are standing at the counter, not directly up to it, since we were unsure of what we were getting… and the chick behind the counter seemed to be a little annoyed. There’s not many people there… it was around 3:30−4pm.
My mom steps up and places her order. She’s good her calzone will take 20 mins. Ok that’s fine. I then tell the chick what my daughter wants, and I take a look to see what I want. In a hurried fashion, the chick says, «is that it???» I’m like…” no. I’ll take 2 slices of the big veg and a drink.” She then asks if we want to wait for the pizza until the calzone is ready. I tell her yes except by daughters pizza. We grab our drinks and pick a table.
My daughters pizza is done first and shortly after, a guy brings us the rest of the food but I see I only have 1 piece of pizza. That’s when I realized she only rang me up for 1.
Fine. So we eat and then I go back up and order another slice. I’ll add that this slice tasted different than my other slice… has a weird taste so I didn’t finish it.
We finish up, throw away our stuff and go.
Now, let me add that all the locals and people who have previously lived in Gainesville know that Leonardo’s has been there a long time. But I think they could work a little harder on their cleaning in the dining area, if you ask me. Especially with the fact that this is a college town and they get a lot of foot traffic being next to UF.
About 2 – 3 hrs later, it hits me out of nowhere and I get sick… several times. I still don’t even feel right (I went there earlier today)…ughhhh…
So based on my last visit, I can’t give a good review because I feel so badly right now

I have to give Leonardo’s by the Slice some love. If you go or went to UF, it’s basically a rite of passage. You can see and smell the history everywhere. It has a funky vibe, lots of wooden booths and good people watching. I remember many a days reading the alligator while chomping down on my lunch between classes.
If you haven’t been, it’s order at the counter and pick up when your name is called. If you want table service, they have the bistro next door or 706 down the street.
I usually get the meal-​a-​rama with one slice, garden salad, and a fountain soda. I tend to upgrade the slice and last few visits enjoyed the florentine (spinach, ricotta, mozzarella, tomato, feta, sundried tomato). The recipe still hasn’t changed for the salad over so many years. Love the sprouts and the raspberry vinaigrette.
Oh and those rolls though! Super delicious and a must add on. The dough has a little sweetness to it and with the extra decadent garlic butter dip and marinara dip, you are in carb heaven. Really. Don’t miss this.
Leonardo’s, you’ll always have a special place in my heart. Thanks for the memories and delicious food.

Decent pizza, deep dish is great, but sometimes they «run out» of deep dish dough which can be depressing after a night of craving thick doughy goodness. Nonetheless this is a nice joint I would recommend to some buddies for a nice lunch. Also not too pricey.

Leonardo’s has the best pizza in town in my opinion. They make great deep dish Chicago style pizza. all of it is made and put in the oven right in front of you. the pasta and salad are good as well. then place is a little bit small but its a perfect location for a pizza joint right off of UF campus. I will say that. the pizza is a little greasy for my taste, but that garlic dipping sauce is one of the best I’ve ever had lol

I was there when they opened in the early 70s, when they featured deep-​dish pizza. I left town for 40 years, and now here I am again — still enjoying the pizza and ambiance of Leonardo’s.
The pizza is N.Y. style; thin crust, lots of cheese and just the right amount of sauce. It just has the taste… if you’ve had good, authentic pizza, you know what I mean. It’s like Italian Umami. Crispy crust, really delicious, with quality ingredients. Also, the slices are very large, and they give you delicious grated garlic and grated cheese on the side.
We don’t live near campus, but we always look forward to taking a ride to Leonardo’s. It’s a little spartan, but there are lots of funky wooden booths for two, which makes it more intimate. I like the staff, too; they’re always very nice to us.
Leonardo’s is consistently good — you won’t be disappointed.

When I graduated from UF I also like to call that my graduation from a lot of other things undergraduate me was into. Cheap beer, cheap food, and cheap housing have treated me well… enough…but I started aiming higher. In terms of restaurants, no table service and grimy ambiances have lost much of their charm over me (not all: I like that feel now and again). Leonardo’s Pizza By The Slice is a solid piece of pizza and a quick trip on tread from campus, but with a strong competitor in direct eyesight and lackluster everything I may say spend your dough elsewhere.
The Space
Less than 3 blocks east of UF and off of University, Leo’s By The Slice is pretty easily spotted and arrived at, as they do have a private parking lot behind the building. The spaces can be kinda tight so maybe don’t lug a goliath vehicle on over for a pie. Walk in through the front patio area of outside tables and you’ll immediately see the available by-​slice choices, with seating off to the left. Between the pace of the place and the crowd they’re attracting, the clean factor always clocks in around «all-​male 4-​bedroom apartment on a Sunday» but the outside tables give a nice view of the hustle and bustle anyway.
The Service
Given that they don’t actually come to your table, I can’t expand on this too much except to say that I have dealt with pretty memorable rudeness at Leo’s on one occasion. Seems as though we were dealing with an issue surrounding the availability of their garlic knots, and things got a little heated. The visit that instigated this review, the service was just fine, so I’ll average it in-​line with my star rating.
The Food
I’ve been to Leo’s more times than I remember and convenience has always been the name of the game. Even with my last visit, we were literally driving and thought «oh yeah, they have stuff ready-​to-​go and it won’t break the bank». Among the notable items are their garlic knots, which come with a side of marinara and straight garlic butter (no complaints here: bread + garlic butter = yes) and their «thick» slices (hard to find deep-​dish in town, and no one else in the area has one to compete so you might as well get one).
The thinner by-​slice ‘za options outweigh the thick pies by a lot, but with even a vegan one available no one should have any major qualms. Ingredient quality is pretty high, which is why whole pies have scary price tags compared to the approachable lunch specials. I’ll say I like their sauce pretty well, though it’s a bit acidic.
And one other thing: their water straight tastes bad to me. Just sayin’.
Final Thoughts
«Get in, get out» pizza could do worse. The next step down in ambiance would be grabbing pizza out of the window .5 miles west in midtown, but that journey is surprisingly worth shlepping backwards in time to the days of old. For Leo’s, I’ll take the Millhopper location, sporting a more traditional dining experience, 10 out of 10 times. I will say they have the saving grace of using 3 of 4 taps for FLA beers, 2 of which are a Gainesville brewery. Might convince me to dine-​in again down the line.

This was one of the best pizza’s I’ve had in a while. The pizzas were made fresh and tasted amazing. The service was fast, but a little disorganized. Definitely check out if you’re visiting Gainesville or if you’re from the area and haven’t gone yet.

Always thought this place was good guess I was wrong horrible service and really bad food I will not go back
I ordered the pizza salad combo salad was frozen and wilted with no dressing or flavor at all pizza was soggy and limp dripping in grease the best thing about the experience was the cherry coke lmao good try Leonardo’s but you might want to lose the cocky hipsters

I visited my friends in Gainesville recently and they swore by this place. I’m a huge pizza fan/​critic and I had high expectations — and Leonardo’s definitely met them.
When I first walked in and saw the variety of slices, I was torn — I didn’t know what to order. I ended up just getting plain ol’ cheese and had no regrets. It was cheesy, fresh, and just simply delicious.
My friend recommended the rolls and when I first saw them, I was hesitant. I was expecting your typical small, crunchy, greasy roll topped with garlic, but these rolls aren’t like that. HOWEVER, I was pleasantly surprised! These rolls and doughy and warm and soft, and if you dip them in the sauces they give you, expect heaven. Seriously.
The atmosphere is casual and very college-​town like. Service is great too. Prices are BIT high for a pizzeria, but I can’t really complain because the quality was great. Too bad this place is about a 6 hour drive from my house… :)

Convenient in location and prices for pizza slices if you are a college student, however, I am not.
Near campus, you can walk here and cheaply eat a slice of gluten free pizza and GF beer.
Old building with no heat, (hey. It gets cold here you know? For Fla anyway) it’s a fast food type pay, then eat at the tables. Small tables and booths in a cozy L shaped sized room.
Lots of choices written colorfully above cashier and kitchen to order. Nice staff.
Like the healthy and vegan choices.
Bad news is… One of the worse gluten free I’ve had, it’s a thicker crust that is gummy. Tasted like cardboard that was soaked in water. Not much taste.
The regular pizza wasn’t much better.
Not very hot either. Maybe it’s because they sit out waiting to sell by the slice?
Salad was creative but small portioned.
Worse experience was this Caution ladies: unless you are a desperate blind drunkard, do not use the restroom. It is literally outside. You walk through the dining room to the back, turn right by the garbage and just when you think you are lost, it’s to the right .
Over rated, my family won’t return when there are so many competitors around and we are no longer poor coeds.

I cannot believe that I have yet to review Leonardo’s by the Slice.
I am a regular here for the best of reasons. Do you want pizza in Gainesville at a great value, but maybe don’t have time or energy for a big production? Leo’s is the place. Easily the best pizza in Gainesville, this casual eatery is located on the corner of 13^th and University, just next to campus.
Here you will find a selection of pizza slices ready to be heated and consumed. Somehow, each piece is still fresh and delicious. The slice method allows you to mix and match, without being required to purchase an entire pizza.
Leo’s is a Gainesville staple, having served locals for generations. Stop in for lunch and enjoy the bustle of passerby on University Ave. The staff is accomodating, friendly, and speedy!
My only criticism: Sometimes at night the pizza selection is diminished as they start closing down. I advise you to visit well before close to ensure you get the best variety of slices!