Regina Pizzeria (North End Original)

Regina Pizzeria on Thacher Street in Boston's North End is a pilgrimage site for pizza lovers, and bringing your kids here is giving them a foundational food experience. The original location has been making pizza in the same brick ovens since 1926 — nearly a century of the same thin crust, the same tangy sauce, and the same charred, bubbled edges that make every other pizza feel like a rehearsal.

The restaurant is small — maybe 30 seats across wooden booths and a handful of tables. The walls are exposed brick covered in decades of photos, newspaper clippings, and celebrity autographs. The kitchen is open, and the ovens are visible from most seats. On a busy night, the place hums with conversation, clinking glasses, and the sound of pizza being slid in and out of ovens.

The pizza: thin crust, slightly charred, tomato sauce that's tangy and bright rather than sweet, mozzarella that melts into pools, and olive oil that ties it all together. The cheese pizza is the purest expression and should be ordered on every visit. Toppings (sausage, pepperoni, peppers) are excellent but secondary. A large pizza feeds a family of 4 with average appetites.

The wait: Regina doesn't take reservations and the restaurant is always full during prime hours. Weekday lunchtimes (11:30-1) and early weeknight dinners (5-6 PM) have the shortest waits (0-15 minutes). Weekend dinner can mean a 30-60 minute wait. There's no comfortable waiting area, so be prepared to stand on the sidewalk. It's worth it.

Critical note for visitors: there are Regina Pizzeria locations throughout the Boston area — at Fenway Park, Faneuil Hall, and suburban malls. Those are franchised operations that do not use the same ovens or the same dough recipe. They are acceptable chain pizza. The original Thacher Street location is on a different level entirely. Make the trip to the North End.