Lefty’s Chicago Pizzeria

Been dying to try this place, so after getting my butt kicked in boxing class in North Park, I needed my soul to be replenished with some good pizza.
Right when you come into this place, you definitely get a nice Chicago vibe as there’s a bunch of Chicago décor and memorabilia throughout the place. Really small spot with some outdoor seating.
Ordered the Monster Pizza which is comprised of jalapenos, pepperoni, & sausages (?). Forgot exactly what else was in it, but it was AMAZING after they put it in the oven. It was $ 2.70 per slice and I only got one for now, but I am definitely coming back to get more.

I have heard a lot about this place so I decided to give it a try. I must say I was slightly disappointed. The pizza was good but I felt it needed something. Great service.

I am giving one star for two reasons: gnats (in January 60 degree weather) and customer service.
When we arrived, the women working behind the counter were welcoming and friendly. (Only good part of the visit) Initially, going to Lefty’s, I wanted to try the pizza. Immediately, I noticed gnats. Gnats flying around and landing on the pizza in the case. I was grossed out, so I decided to look at the menu for other options. When we asked a male employee about the menu, he was slightly condescending. We ordered our food, paid, and sat down at a table inside to wait. Within a few moments, I gnats were flying around my head, and my boyfriend and I were swatting them away.
After a few minutes, I started feeling really disgusted. I am a manager in food service, and I know about gnats. I know how they work, how they feed, and how to get rid of them. Nine times out of ten you have gnats because your food area is dirty. It’s as simple as that.
My boyfriend got up to use the restroom and he saw a cluster of gnats on the wall, to the right of the bathroom door. We decided we would get our food to go.
As we were getting our food from the counter, the same male employee of Lefty’s (maybe the manager?) Was speaking to another customer. I missed the beginning of the conversation, but I heard the employee say, «Since you took your sweet time to get down here, we had to remake the food.» He was talking to an older woman customer, where English was clearly her second language. As someone who works in food customer service, I found him rude and unnecessary. The customer wasn’t yelling or being rude, and she didn’t deserve to be spoken to like that.
The food was fine, definitely not the best we’ve had. We will not return. Honestly, my appetite was lessen because of the gnats, so that could have effected the way I tasted the food.

Terrible deep dish pizza. To much sauce took away the flavor of the pizza. They left off the elephant garlic for some reason. Too many better place in San Diego.

Checked this place out the other day, walked in and wasn’t expecting much. The place is tea small and tight but let me tell you, you won’t be disappointed with how much flavor is in their pizzas!!! 4 stars from me! I will return.

The pizza is delicious if you love yourself some meaty saucey slices of pizza! This is your place for that! I love comming here the pizza salads are amazing. Deep dish pizza here will make you slobber when you smell it cooking. They have outdoor seating too :)

My boyfriend and I called ahead and ordered a meat lovers stuffed pizza. We went in 50 minutes later to sit and eat the ginormous beast. Omg, so much meat and cheese! The meat was well seasoned, not too salty. The cheese was nice and chewy. The crust stayed crunchy and didn’t ever get soggy even when heated up the next day. I was only able to get through a slice and a half. My boyfriend ate two and threw in the towel. The pie was cut in 8 slices so we had leftovers for days.
This is a small shop, about 4 tables outside, and two or three plus counter seating on the inside. Definitely order ahead if you plan on getting a stuff pizza. Takes about an hour to cook. The staff was very nice and helpful when we arrived. I’ll definitely come back!

First time here. The place is cute and simple… But wait till you try their pizza. It’s the. They’re nice here too. Definitely coming back.

Today was the first time had Chicago pizza. Midway Deep dish was awesome! Takes about 30 min to cook, worth the wait. Will be back! Love it!

I bought a slice of bacon, tomato and ricotta. It was so good. They pay attention to detail because they didn’t use the watery part of the tomato. The inside dining area is small, but they have a spacious patio in front with several tables and a canopy.

WOW. Ended up here on a whim, Just looking for a quick slice. From the moment I walked in I felt so at home. The two people working the counter were very friendly and genuine. They told me a pepperoni deep dish was coming out and I was like… score?! So I got my slice as I was paying. Sat in the warm outdoor seating and my pizza was perfect and just sloppy enough ;). As I left one of the workers took my plate for me! How nice is that. Overall I must say this place is a must, perfect service and food.

Got contacted by leftys!
I actually said in my post that if I was wrong to correct me and they messaged me and kindly explained. I actually forgot until they messaged me.
3 types of pizza–
1. Thin
2. Deep dish
3. Stuffed crust
So in Chicago deep dish is their (leftys) stuffed crust! And I didnt have that. So ill have to go back and try it out:)
Im pretty sure people not from Chicago come… so no real need to go thru and explain to customers anyway. But if you are from there then now ya know to ask for stuffed crust if you want that.

Came here starving with a friend on a Friday night around 8pm
Ordered a deep dish Monsters of Midway pizza and a small house salad and two pints of 30^th street pale ale.
Staff was awesome and food was great as well. Salad (small size) was plenty for two.
I will be back for sure.
The pizza was only half consumed and there were two very hungry guys eating. Each of us could only eat two pieces leaving two a piece to take home.

Not the best pizza shop in San Diego, but also not the worst. Unfortunately I can’t compare it to real Chicago deep dish, I can only compare it to the chain, Uno’s (which I’m not sure if they’re even around anymore). To me, there wasn’t much deep dish about it. I’ve been here twice now. The first time was to try the deep dish, the second was for thin crust since I now know I do not like the deep dish here. My friend and I split four slices so we could try all of the different toppings. The only one I liked was their veggie option. That might also be because I love veggies and all. When going recently to try the thin slices, they lacked flavor as well. I got a red pepper, ricotta and onion slice that didn’t have much to it and then had a simple pepperoni. The pepperoni was probably the better one that I’ve had here.
I’m just not sure what’s missing here. Maybe it’s the lack of helpfulness or kind manners? When I’m in Chicago, I feel like I’ve always encountered some of the nicest people. That’s just my opinion though.

Everyone is awesome here.
The pizza is amazing. The Al Capone pasta is by far the best I’ve ever had! Just the right amount of spices (I love spicy)
I love coming here … And eating!
This time I ordered the stuffed spinach supreme and it’s so delicious.

cruised here for take out, they got it all right, didn’t mess up the order. The food was awesome as usual. I’ll update my review if I sit in next time.

BEST pizza in North Park!
This place popped my deep dish pizza cherry.
I had their monsters of midway, which was delicious. And then I also had their south sider which was good but not as good as the monster of midway. Next time, I wanna order their stuffed pizza.
It’s so pricey but so worth it if you’re really craving bomb pizza!

Delicious!
The husband just recently returned from for a 1 year deployment and all he wanted was a pizza. We searched the web for the «best pizza in SD» and Lefty’s was on the list.
Now I had Chicago style pizza before and I did not like. The dough was too thick and chew and the toppings made the whole thing a soggy mess. Well not at Lefty’s!
This pizza was freaking AMAZING! We order the thin and crispy Pizza Margarita with pepperoni and the traditional deep dish. That skinny guy cooking in the back certainly put his foot in this one (Southern reference for good food).
We drove all the way from Eastlake to North Park during rush hour for Chicago style pizza and I am so glad we did!

I completely love this place, straight up from the time I walk in the door to the time I get my food and finish!
I always switch up my order BUT tonight I had to go with my favorite, the Italian beef, and though it may not be completely dipped I do LOVE the hell out of it!
I definitely recommend the hot peppers and the cheese! Once you combine all that and the free water they offer its like heaven!
Kudos to everyone that worked tonight as it did make my night as well as gave us 2 free slices of pizza!
Jonny G.

Great little spot located in North Park! It’s on the corner of the street right across from Modern Times Brewing so a great spot to check out either before or after a few brewski’s! Parking hasn’t really been an issue for me here as it is located next to a few housing areas.
First, this place is SMALL. There’s a few seats at the window bar indoors and a few tables outside. Unless you come at an off time, seating for a big group might be hard. They have slices for sale-​thin pizzas for $ 2.25 and deep dish pizzas for $ 3.25. You can get the whole pizza but it does take some time. For thin and crispy it’s 16″ and 25 minute bake time, Deep dish is 16″ and 35 minute bake time, and stuffed is 14″ and a 45 minute bake time. BUT if you’re NOT in the mood for pizza, they have a huge variety of other food including hot dogs, Italian beef sandwiches, fries, salads, and even pastas!
I ordered thin cheese and pepperoni and my boyfriend ordered one thin pepperoni and one deep pepperoni. The portions are pretty generous. However, it is a bit greasy (expected-it’s pizza!). I also tried the deep pepperoni however I wasn’t a huge fan of it. It seemed like just a lot of dough and a lot of sauce. I’ve had deep dish pizza in Chicago and the deep dish there was actually a lot of toppings and ingredients (AKA cheese and meat!) instead of mostly pizza dough. That being said, I haven’t had that type of deep dish pizza outside of Chicago so I’m not sure if it’s the standard here.
I haven’t tried any of their other food but the food they were bringing out looked delicious. Also, it might have a bit of a wait if you order other food because they do get pretty busy!

My boyfriend and I got a pizza here for the Super Bowl… it was the perfect food for such a fun day! We ordered a deep dish pizza, which comes in one size, and it lasted us two for 3 days. I really recommend calling in at least 30 – 45 minutes prior to pick-​up because their deep dish does take a while to make, which was even more evident on Super Bowl Sunday. So plan ahead!
If you’re like me and you can’t just pick one specialty pizza, they would be more than happy to split the pizza into two combinations. We ordered half Pesto Pie (pesto, ricotta, tomato) and half Gold Coast (chicken, sun-​dried tomato, basil, artichokes, elephant garlic) and it was soooo delicious! It’s small so I don’t recommend eating there. Take the pizza home and enjoy with good company and drinks! Give this place a try!