Variety Pizza Deli & Bakery

When you order from Variety Pizza, you have to accept a trade-​off. For some people, this trade-​off is worthwhile; for others, it isn’t.
What’s the trade-​off, you ask?
On one hand, the food here is very, very, very, VERY reasonably priced. I haven’t been fortunate enough to find another pizza place in the Capital Region with the extremely generous price-​to-​portion ratio that Variety offers its customers.
On the other hand, the quality of the food is pretty poor. The pizza is saggy and bland; the sandwich toppings don’t seem to be the freshest; and the food prep area doesn’t look as clean as one would expect it to be.
If you’re strictly looking for something very affordable, then Variety may be for you. If you’re strictly looking for good food quality, then Variety is likely not for you. If you’re interested in both affordability AND quality??? Well, as I said, get ready to accept a trade-​off. And if you lean toward the side of frugality (like I do), maybe the trade-​off will ultimately be worth it.

This place is upper madison ave’s little secret. 1^st I came here as a I’m starving let’s just grab something quick. Every time I come here the owner is so accommodating. I order the cheeseburger combo almost every time and when the grill isn’t on anymore or for whatever reason he always turns it on for my order and just explains I have to wait a couple extra minutes. Their potato salad is amazing and when he was short from a 1b to give us for our order one time he gave it to us complimentary since he was short of it. Amazing! I love living walking distance from here!

Okay pizza, they must buy their chicken wings from the mob, they are all broken, and damaged. Low prices though.

Ordered delivery and the lady couldn’t hear me well even though I was speaking clearly. I didn’t hold it against her, but she seemed to have a bit of an attitude. I placed the order and all was well, but then a few minutes later I got a call back from the restaurant and they said they undercharged me $ 3. They then expected me to pay the extra charge on my card, even though it should be completely on the establishment. I wouldn’t normally care about this, but the employee on the phone was short and rude with me & even hung up the phone.

Upgraded from 2* to 4*
Why? It’s not on the strength of their pizza, but rather the discovery of a fairly remarkable secret about this place. It’s somehow related to the New Mt. Pleasant Bakery in Schenectady.
So?
Well, it just so happens that the New Mt. Pleasant Bakery makes the best loaves of challah in the region. Except it’s a pain in the neck to drive all the way out to Schenectady for a loaf of bread. Sure, they sometimes have them at the Nisky Co-​op, but they sell out, and that’s a haul too.
AND if you call Variety Pizza early enough on Thursday, you can order loaves of challah for a Friday pick up at their convenient location in Albany.
The loaves come in two sizes, large or small. And you need to specify if you would like it sliced or unsliced. For reference, small is a normal loaf and large is a double one. For a family of four, a small loaf is plenty. Unsliced is the only way to fly. That way, you can cut it as thick as you like for the most decadent challah french toast. Or, you can simply tear it apart like a wild beast and truly appreciate the texture of the braids.
Oh man. This is a game changer.
5* challah + 2* pizza = and average of 3.5* but I’m rounding up because the challah is so good. Plus it’s super convenient and the staff at Variety are really nice.

The Customer is Always Right
Couldn’t wait to write this review…
Called in an order for delivery for a group of three… the cheese steak combo I ordered was not delivered with the fries, when we called back about this the man had a very nasty attitude & would not even listen to what we had to say. He insisted he put the fries in the bag. When asked where were they he claimed he was not a «magician» and someone in our group ate them. I then drove the 3 miles to get my money refunded & return the meal minus the fries of course. He refused to refund me & insisted on giving me more fries by that time I was furious. I accepted the fries and left the establishment Swearing to write this bad review and to call the BBB. Whatever happened to customer service? And on top of all that the sandwich was not appetizing! Rudeness!!!
I’m only giving it a star because this will not post without one.

Neighborhood pizza joint attached to the same entrance as the Curry House.
Well, it is cheap cheap cheap — five big slices of pizza, a large sub, two bags of chips, three bottled drinks for just over $ 20. And relatively fast, despite a lot of confusion at the register. And the New York standard style pizza was almost OK, at least the broccoli and goat cheese, if a bit on the chewy and gluey side. And the staff are friendly enough.
But…sandwiches were in the disaster zone as far as preparation (stale white bread, suspect cold cuts, indifferently prepared. And a pretty filthy dining area, matched by a suspicious restroom without towels (and all three soap dispensers empty). And a prep area to match.
I think their heart may be in the right place, but it’s going to have to be cleaner and tastier to lure us back despite the low end prices.

My favorite pizza in the area. Good topping/​cheese ratio, tasty sauce, and thin crust with just the right amount of crunch. A good all around pizza joint. Try their buffalo chicken pizza!

Ask for your slice well done/​crispy and you won’t be sorry. I’ve tried lots of pizza in Albany and my favorite is still Variety… I’m from Brooklyn; I know good pizza! People are particular about their pizza and might not agree, but it’s at least worth a try to decide for yourself.

I got a burger, grilled cheese with bacon, onion rings, and a Caesar salad. I ordered through grubhub and the delivery was super quick even though I live in an annoying apartment complex.
Burger was standard. Pretty bland but not overcooked at least. The grilled cheese came on whole wheat as requested — but no avocado in the house, unfortunately.
My only real complaint is about the Caesar salad, which was really just a regular garden salad with a side of Caesar dressing. It has all kinds of random veggies like peppers and cucumbers and onions that would never appear in a traditional Caesar.

Not the worst pizza you can get around here

This may be the most underwhelming food experience I’ve had in… well…ever. Ordered their «gourmet» turkey sandwich. On what planet is this gourmet? It’s plain turkey cold cuts on a hard roll with American cheese, lettuce, tomato, and mayo. Perhaps what makes it gourmet is the fancy bag of Lay’s potato chips and the pickle that came with it. Give me a break.
The grilled chicken salad… super meh. There is absolutely nothing noteworthy about this place. I’ll stick to Mild Wally’s from now on. What on earth was I thinking, straying away from a pizza place that delivers Ben & Jerry’s ice cream? Momentary lapse of sanity, I suppose.

I used to get delivery from Variety all the time because it was around the corner from me. It wasn’t mindscrambling, but the food was decent, and I liked their hot wings, although they like most of the food here were inconsistent. Subs were good too. Pizza was ok. The hungrier I was, the better it tasted. Don’t expect for your mind to be blown, but pretty good and the staff was nice.

I’ve been here twice to get slices, and both times, have left disappointed. The pizza always looks like it’s been sitting out, and even when reheated, still just doesn’t seem to bring it back to life.
Daniel B. is right, the cheese does float on a layer of sauce. The ingrediants all taste fine, but something about the pizza doesn’t bring it all together.