Little Pops Pizzeria

Ordered food for neighbors who haven’t been feeling well. Little Pops went above and beyond to write a get well wish inside the box of pizza. Delivered on time and food was delish — per my neighbors. Thanks!

My dad and I always say nothing can beat NY style pizza. We were so excited to find Little Pops pizza and it did not disappoint! We recently dined in their new dining room and service was great! They also have wine and craft beers available for dine in. Vicky and her husband were so welcoming and we will definitely be coming back!

These folks know dough. There is little question about that from my view. There pizza is NY style in the truest form: big slices, thin, foldable, and good greasy. But their menu is full of doughy goodness so let’s breakdown our first visit.
Ambiance
Walk in and you are in the takeout area or by a slice spot. I would love to see them flipping pie dough and getting that NY feel but not so much.
The dining area has my love on the ceiling — outdoor lighting! Wallpaper brick brings a little taste of an Italian restaurant.
Menu
It is pretty robust with many choices. I’m not a huge fan of trying to be everything to everyone so tried to block out a lot of it. I want what they do the best.
Service
A little disappointed. There wasn’t much excitement when we entered. In fact, there was stress and confusion. This was an early Sunday evening. It took about 15 minutes to get a table for six because they had to clean one off. Plenty of room but it was slow going. Our person was also less than excited and we tried hard to engage her. Owner was walking around and chatting it up, which is nice to see. We never had her visit with us.
Line formed as we ate.
OUR ORDER
Pizza
We asked what the recommendation was for a first timer and it was the standard cheese. Love that message — it should stand on its own. We followed the recommendation but did add pepperoni to one side. The pizza is really good. It is NY so the sauce is light and it is mostly cheese and dough. That means those two things have to be on point and they are very good. Without question, best NY I’ve had in Chi area and definitely the burbs. Table was split between ok and great. The ok was the grease and pepperoni as well as service. The great was that even though a lacking flavor, the dough was exceptional!
Pepperoni was uneventful and made it too greasy. Would try sausage for some flavor.
Appetizers
We’ve been on a mad search for garlic knots that match ones we had in college. We’ve found them! These have the garlic kick of Bob Chinn’s with a tremendous doughy taste. Home run!
Mozzarella sticks were recommended and they were a great choice. These are homemade and it shows. Different sizes and lots of cheese with an amazing breaking. Makes me think breaded raviolis would be worth a try.
Dessert
We did he Zeppoles on recommendation from a frequent visitor. These were again a product of excellent dough. Homerun!
Will we be back? Yep.
Rating: we gave it a four because of the apps and dessert. Pizza was a 3.5 and service was a 2 – 2.5. Like to spin the pizza again because I think without the pepperoni we are taking an easy 4.
Tips
1. 18″ is perfect for four people
2. If kids are less of sauce fans, they’ll love
3. Skip pepperoni

You won’t regret it… Gracious owner and kind staff welcomed us into this out of the way gem. I recently lamented about how we didn’t have a great sit down pizza joint to share a meal with friends and family, I think we’ve found it. After a long day of swimming, water slides and sunshine, I pulled up reviews for «best pizza» in Naperville. Little Pops caught my attention with the rave reviews which are well earned. We were starving and took the plunge. We ended up having…
Fried, lightly battered string beans — yum
Boneless hot wings — soft on the inside, crispy on the outside with (fair heat quotient) buffalo wing sauce
Garlic knots — heaven sent knots of dough, garlic, parsley and butter
Spaghetti, one with the homemade meatball — devoured.
Pizza (NY style), rich sauce, fresh toppings, crisp and chewy crust as our main course and a huge Stromboli –with pepperoni,? prosciutto? salami, mozzarella and sauce in a crispy rolled dough — yum and yum.
To finish we had the Zepoli — a generous portion of fried dough dusted in powdered sugar and served hot in a bag — excellent, soft chewy pillows to enjoy.
Little Pops deserves the great reviews, I plan to take friends and family to enjoy the rich food and flavors they enhance with kindness.

We had a great time at Little Pops! Food was great– we had a Caesar salad and two different pizzas! The food was great and both my husband and brother in law are extremely picky since they grew up in Brooklyn! It’s a darling place with a family friendly atmosphere! Mike and Vicki were very friendly and made us feel like family!

First time here, best pizza, appetizers, etc and their zeppolis were to die for. The owner and her son were so welcoming and made sure everything was great. Our server was very attentive. My daughter & niece both loved it as well. It was truly a wonderful dinner experience, definitely coming back and/​or ordering for take out!

This place is a true gem! The owners and servers are friendly and take pride in what comes out of the kitchen. The pizza is fantastic and garlic knots are to die for. If you enjoy real New York style pizza you won’t be disappointed. Nice atmosphere. Can’t wait to go back!

MUST EAT HERE SOO GOOD
I’m what you’d call a born and raised New Yorker not the bum kind but the rich kind I’ve had pizza so good angels bring it too god this is about as good as the real thing garlic knots are too die for pizza is better then anything I’ve had perfect cheese crust and sauce thank you lord for giving us little pops

What a gem of a place. NY style pizza! Winner!
Italian foods delicious, just like mom and grandmothers use to make. Pizza is perfection, giant slices you have to fold in half.
The wings are so good.
Italian wedding soup doesn’t get any better than this, excellent.
Beef of garlic bread wow! Caprese salad was spot on.
Garlic knots to start were good. Mac and cheese Bites yummy!

Being a NY transplant I’ve been in search of this place since 88, and now I have found it. So far everything so exceptional to my days of NY/​NJ.
Back to the days of when there was so much garlic in the air that your eyes would water, and you would want to jump out a window, rather then being crammed in a one bedroom apartment with about 20+ members of your family that you would have to scream just to talk to the person next to you. But we long for those days because the food was so good and the company wasn’t bad either.
While I do not have a time machine, or the ability for weekend flights back to NY to get some real pizza, this place is about as close as we will get. Back to that apartment in Manhattan, with food almost pouring out of the oven, and all of us arguing over who would get to use the only bathroom.
The food is so delicious, that my wife and I refuse to share a cannoli and must have our own, they’re straight out of those little corner bakery’s. They have perfect crunchiness and the filling is something out of a dream so you know they’re are fresh. If they have a Cappuccino that brings me back to a sidewalk café in Brooklyn as the sirens go howling by, and I’m sitting across from my Aunt Loretta; I’m moving in next door!
Truthfully, it’s not the greatest pizza I’ve ever had, that’s a personal matter, BUT ITS PRETTY DAMN CLOSE! I will continue to return hungry for more!
Updated, 2 weeks later. My family and I have been back to visit a few times since we first discovered this gem. I’m really considering requesting a table with our name on it since we’re easily recognized by almost the entire staff. The mozzarella sticks are perfect for a picky 20 month old, or my wife, except don’t ever come between the girls and these little bites of heaven, you’ll loose a finger!
We’ve even introduced a few of our pickier Chicago natives, family and friends, to our new spot, and everyone loves both the atmosphere and the food.
I’ve also gone out of my way to spread word of mouth to anyone that I know who will appreciate this heavenly creation, and will actually listen. I would chisel it in on the Pyramids of Giza, if it wasn’t so damn hot and I don’t want to be arrested for damaging a historical landmark.
My tip for anyone who doesn’t have the overall enjoyable experience’s as we have; is to be respectful and talk with the staff, TALK, Not belittle or complain on social media first, and you will find they will work to earn your business.
P. S. I did finally get my cappuccino, but was over ruled by my better half out of moving in next door. «Sad face»

The pizza is so delicious and decently priced! The crust on the pizza, which is pretty important to me is perfection and tastes crispy on the outside and is soft on the inside, finding that perfect balance between the two. They have achieved the yin-​yang of pizza crusts!!! And their garlic knots are AMAZING!!! I would honestly come just to order 12 garlic knots all to myself! Overall, a great place to go to! The interior décor is so cute! I love this place!

As a transplanted New Yorker, I haven’t had a great pizza in over 40 years. This doesn’t mean there is anything wrong with Chicago pizza. It just isn’t the same. Well, I am happy to report that my decades-​long quest finally came to a conclusion today, thanks to Little Pops Pizzeria in Naperville.
We went for lunch and were greeted by a gentleman with a warm smile and a hearty «hello» as we walked through the door. I would later learn that this is one of the owners, Mike. Mike, his wife Vicky and one of their associates, Sandy, made us feel more than welcome. We felt like we had just arrived at the home of long lost cousins who couldn’t be happier that we finally got there.
We ordered pizza by the slice so we could try several varieties. Can you really find an authentic, New York style pizza in Naperville? My hopes were high but I kept my expectations lower, not wanting to be disappointed. And disappointed I was NOT! This was it, the real deal, pizza I had come to believe I could only find a thousand miles away.
Chicago pizzas come in both crispy and chewy crust varieties. New York style is both crispy AND chewy at the same time. It is unlike anything else around here. The slices were hot and fresh, and served promptly. We had regular cheese, pepperoni and their specialty meat lovers. Each was better than the next and they were all great. After having gone so long without a good NY pizza, these tasted like home. These were the taste of my childhood. It was an emotional experience for me.
We also had the Garlic Knots; best described as gooey, buttery, garlicky bites of heaven. It’s garlic bread, all grown up and on steroids. Make sure you have extra napkins.
For dessert we enjoyed Vicky’s homemade tiramisu. Having come to expect only the finest by now, this was every bit as good as the rest of the meal. It was subtly flavored, rich and creamy. There was no bitter coffee after-​taste you often find with store bought or mass produced tiramisu. This was fresh and wonderful.
I would give Little Pops Pizzeria 10 stars if I could. This is my new favorite place and we will be returning often.

Went here with our local deals coupon. We got the family size Stromboli with added onion and green pepper… amazing! And humongous! We also got the mac and cheese bites which were served with marinara. They came piping hot and creamy! Service was great and very friendly. The owner even came by and talked to us. We took black and white cookies to go… they’re like little donut cookies. I’ve never had one, but definitely will be getting them again.
The restaurant portion of the place is very nicely set up. Romantic lights and brick wallpaper make for a great date casual date night!
Will be back!

All food is made to order — NY style.
Pizza is one of the best in the area. Have ordered couple times and little pops exceeded mom and pop pizzerias

As a New York transplant I was very excited but skeptical when I heard there was a pizza place like back home here in Naperville. I have had the pizza twice and it is very good and definitely a good representation of NY pizza. I am looking forward to trying the food as well

I can’t say enough about how good this pizza tastes. I’ve been to New York and I’ve eaten really crappy pizza in New York. These people take a lot of pride in what they do and it shows.
My suggestion is to try the white pizza if you like garlic you’re going to really enjoy this.

I really want Little Pop’s to succeed-they’re in my neighborhood in a location that has always been a pizza place but could never stick. I give them credit for having an imaginative menu and really caring.
Pizza is solid-​I prefer NY style thin to «Chicago» style-​and sauces for pizza and pasta are good. Meatballs are o.k. but the last two times I’ve had them, they were almost burnt. Portions are large, so you get a decent value here, plus they run daily specials.
Salads actually are quite good-​fresh produce, lots of ingredients and great homemade dressings (blue cheese in particular).

I love Little Pops. They’ve always been super nice too. They go out of their way and deliver it to me in Bolingbrook. I like the sauce which might be the most important pizza ingredient on pizza. I get pepperoni with garlic.

As a native New York boy, it is simply not possible to find real pizza in the Chicago suburbs. At least that’s what I thought. This is a small place, thank goodness they’re expanding since there just isn’t much seating.
Currently, there are no fountain drinks. The refrigerator that had the soda cans and bottles was at sixty degrees. That’s simply not cold enough. we asked for some cups with ice and they said that didn’t have ice. So they need ice, the chance to get a glass of water instead of a bottle. But then we found out they had just got the refrigerator that day so they were still figuring it out. So that’s certainly forgivable.
Ok, onto the food. Garlic knots. The reviews for these have been amazing. I can’t go that far. Good garlic knots have a crunch on then and these were just chewy. Good dough, plenty of garlic, but that crunch was sorely lacking. The marinara sauce was nice and zesty though. We got a large pizza, sausage and mushrooms on one half and meatballs and roasted peppers on the other. The sausage was round and sliced which is how I remember it coming on the East Coast. Just an amazing pizza, the ingredients were well proportioned, and just a magnificent flavor. We also had the Arthur avenue sandwich special. Roast beef, fresh mozzarella, fried eggplant and roasted peppers on toasted bread. It was a great combo.
I also got a free order of Zeppole and little did I expect to get a grocery sized paper bag with about thirty little donuts with a ton and I do mean a ton of powdered sugar. Treated like bits of deep fried heaven. The service was really friendly as we were checked on and I think we got a few extra Zeppole.
There were a few kinks which hopefully will be solved with expansion. But the quality of the pizza alone makes this a place with returning to. Wow.

Checked in to introduce the parents to New York pizza without having to fly to New York!
We ordered 2– 2slice and a pop lunch specials, a small italian wedding soup, and 3 garlic. Vicki gave us an extra garlic knot since she saw there was 4 of us. There really was no need, but that was extremely generous of her. Mike came out to check on us and actually remembered me… talk about making you feel like family! Here’s your 5^th star, Little Pop’s Pizzeria! Good luck to you on the expansion! We can’t wait to come back and visit!