'Underwhelming': TikToker Keith Lee reviews 3 NYC pizzerias
NEW YORK CITY - Social media famous food critic Keith Lee was in New York City to review pizzerias.
Lee reviewed Joe's Pizza, Prince Street Pizza, and Bleecker Street Pizza, at the suggestion of his followers.
Lee's goal with the video was simply to rank the top three spots. At each spot, he ordered a single slice of cheese pizza and a single slice of their most popular pizza.
In his TikTok video, he wanted to give viewers an idea of the size of the slices by holding each one up to the camera to compare them to his hand.
"Me and my family are in New York, and we got suggested a bunch of pizza spots," Lee said on TikTok.
Lee went to Joe's Pizza first and spent $9.50.
"There's a lot of sauce. I do taste onion and I do taste garlic, but it's very faint," Lee said.
He wasn't a huge fan of the pizza and gave it a 6.8/10. Joe's most popular pizza is called the "supreme," which has mushrooms, pepperoni, onions, cheese and a lot of sauce. "I love mushrooms, but these are really slimy," Lee said.
Lee rated the "supreme" a 2/10. Overall, he averaged Joe's Pizza 4.4/10.
"Whoever gave u [sic] these suggestions are not real New Yorker," a TikTok user commented.
"Keith imma need you to take advice from ppl who are actually from nyc," another user commented.
Prince Street won Lee's top spot with a 7.7/10.
He spent $19.58. "I taste the cheese more in this and the sauce is more prominent," Lee said, rating the pizza a 7.5/10.
TikTok food reviewer Keith Lee is interviewed after attending a game between the New York Liberty and the Las Vegas Aces at Michelob ULTRA Arena on June 29, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Aces defeated the Liberty 98-81. NOTE TO USER: User expressly
Their specialty pizza Lee tried is called the "Naughty pizza," which is one of their sold out pies.
"Mhm, that's fantastic," Lee said, rating the pizza an 8/10.
For the final stop, Lee went to Bleecker Pizza.
"It's too crispy, it's almost like, stale," Lee said. However, Lee gave Bleecker's cheese pizza a 7.7/10 rating; overall, it was the best rated cheese pizza.
Lee also tried Bleecker's Margherita pizza special. He felt like he got "punched in the face with their tomato" and said the slice was "underwhelming," giving it a 6.5/10.
The overall rating Lee gave Bleecker's Pizza was a 7.5/10.
"Go have pizza in the Bronx, Queens or Brooklyn. It’s better," a user commented.
"Trader Joes' frozen pizza looks better than this," another user commented.
Not only did Lee have pizza, but he also made a pit stop at the Ceremonia bakeshop in Brooklyn.
Lee had the breakfast burrito, which he gave a 9/10, and a muffin, which was a 5/10.
Lee made another stop at the Taste of Heaven in Brooklyn, which he gave a 9/10.
Who is Keith Lee?
Lee, a former MMA fighter, started posting restaurant reviews on TikTok in 2021. He's known for his brutally honest reviews.
He tries to remain anonymous to avoid special treatment. His family orders for him, either on speakerphone or they tell him how they were treated after, so he can review the full experience.
Lee has said that he doesn’t accept anything in exchange for reviews. He just goes where his fans tell him and shares his experience. He continued to rise to fame after he visited Atlanta and his critical reviews made national headlines.
Lee now has 15 million followers on TikTok.