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    Hard Times Pizza

    4.0 (341 reviews)
    InexpensivePizza, Italian, Pasta Shops
    Open 12:00 pm - 10:00 PM

    Order Hard Times Pizza Takeout or Delivery

    Hard Times Pizza Photos

    Business Info

    HARD TIMES PIZZA ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Classy
    Moderate noise
    Dogs allowed

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    Recommended Reviews - Hard Times Pizza

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    We had a great experience here. The service was extremely friendly and welcoming, and the pizza was incredibly fresh with high-quality ingredients, exactly how I like my pizza. The garlic knots were just as fresh and delicious. At one point, there was an annoying person causing a scene, and the cook came outside immediately to check in on us, which we really appreciated since it was just my wife and I. That level of care stood out. I would 100% recommend this place and will definitely be coming back.

    Couldn't stop eating the first slice even though I knew I wanted to take a picture lol
    Ariela T.

    The Pizza here is as delicious as New York Pizza! and I'm from New York! I ordered a slice with mushroom and onions, the boss lady ended up asking the chefs to make me a bigger slice because she judged the first one too small. Ended up with 2 slices! Very grateful for the dedication to quality. I will definitely be ordering from here again.

    BBQ chicken slice $7+

    Saddest slice I've ever seen! Ordered a bbq chicken slice as custom, since it's not in the menu. They charged over $7 for a dry burnt slice with 1/3 of the toppings one typical slice from a bigger pie has.

    Cesar Caesar Salad Lg
    Eileen M.

    I actually come here for Italian Pasta Co. The pastas are great. My favorite is the Penne w/ Pink Vodka sauce. But today I came here for the sleeper items. I am actually making Risotto at home and wanted some sides (bc I'm too tired to make it and I had to wrack my brain to figure out, who has the best garlic bread... then I remembered this place because the Garlic Knots are amazing! When I arrived I saw their Cesar salads as well. The garlic knots and salad were a perfect compliment to our dinner. My fiancé loved the knots. So garlicky and soft. No pics of knots because we ate them really fast

    The Knots
    Seb F.

    Just ordered on Grubhub.... These soldiers are making that dough... that sauce... and that ravioli like Champs! Stand attention to the Bronx Pizza - although a little greasy it's got that crunchy NY dough... The Meatball Sub was the show stealer... Cheese Ravioli wasn't playin... Happy Independence Day!!!

    Build Your Own Cheese Pizza (Medium - 16")

    Pizza was very poor quality tasted awful and unsanitary the worst pizza I've ever had this place is awful food made me sick

    Subpar pizza and even supposedly for a 12" one. Feel a bit bamboozled here.
    Ian L.

    I ordered out so can't speak on staff, ambience of interior but I hate to say off the bat this place isn't worth it. I hate to say it because people these days need to make money but also at the same time spending money on food has gotten way too expensive and quality has gone way too down. Unfortunately, this is the case. I took a bite of everything when I received it and it was, good. Not great and nothing to write home about. I only ordered because it seemed a good deal for the BOGOs on Postmates and to get a pizza on top of that I thought, "What a great opportunity for leftovers!" I also perhaps partly my fault mistakenly thought it was another location attached to a different great spot called "Best Fkn Pizza" and had great reviews on Yelp. I don't know if this is part of that chain of "Italian Pasta Co's" or not but I'd say go with any other location if it is or just don't order here. The pasta vodka bake is good, sauce is decent but I can make better vodka sauce at home. The pasta seems okay but boxed and nothing special. The pizza isn't great and it's supposed to be 12" and it's lacking. I've gotten bigger frozen pizzas at the store for lessIt's a sad pizza, truly disappointed in it. The garlic knots are okay but a bit doughy and not any garlic flavour to be found really, super plain again too. Usually you can't really mess those up. Meatballs are okay, sauce is bland and the meatballs have no fennel or herbs so I'm truly guessing they're brought in from a supplier. Honestly, the only thing that I'm looking forward to is the tiramisu at this point. There's plenty of neighbourhood places that do Italian and pizza much better for the same price and better portioning. I should've regrettably stuck with those. If you've got a fave Italian spot near you doing the same stuff and know it's good, order there. I hate to drive business away but things are expensive these days and to get basic sub-par Italian food I could've done better at home and have all for $60 not including tax + tip these days is really gutting.

    pepperoni pizza
    Jennifer F.

    Came here with my boyfriend two weeks ago! we found this hidden gem thru yelp and called back today only to see we got there too late :( however they still called us back after closing to ask if we wanted anything. they didn't have to do that but they did! which I thought was beyond sweet, but we decided to not make them stay passed closing time waiting on us. Will definitely be back on Friday this time on time!! this business just gained two new fans !! 10/10 recommend especially for the size and price of their pizzas. Sucks to see bitter people putting down a small business. Staff was extremely polite too! so thank you, forsure will be coming back to this gem!

    Pizza and knots
    Myan T.

    Just ordered takeout and I was pleasantly surprised! My husband and I both made our own small 12" pizzas. There are tons of customization options but I chose jalapeño and pineapple (my go-to). I also opted to get a thick crust which I was very happy with. I hate soggy crusts! We also ordered garlic knots and the hot wings. Garlic knots were good but wish they were a bit more garlicky. The hot wings were spiced perfectly and were thicc and juicy. They weren't as crispy as I wanted but they were takeout wings so not a problem! We can always throw them in the air fryer. We added extra ranch and it paired perfectly with the pizza and wings. Delivery was ~40 min to DTLA. Food was hot and fresh - couldn't really ask for more! Overall this pizza place is a solid spot, and I would order again!

    Four cheese pizza with pepperoni

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    14 days ago

    Dough good- not soggy. Sauce perfect. Cheese perfect. It was a clean clear slice. Not a drop of grease.

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    Great food and service! An Echo Park must! The pizza is good but the pasta is amazing.

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    2 years ago

    Just ordered pizza from Uber Eats got the meatballs and knots and pepperoni pizza so good. I got thin crust not bad

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    The food was unforgettable. Highly recommend the Quattro Formagi. I will be returning.

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    Ask the Community - Hard Times Pizza

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    Bacetti Trattoria

    Bacetti Trattoria

    4.1
    (376 reviews)
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    For some odd reason, a lot of Italian spots have seemingly cropped up overnight in Echo Park and…read morethe greater region. Out of sheer luck, my best friend decided to chose this spot for our girls' night dinner, and we have decided on consensus that we savored every bite of our meal. We started our meal with the absolutely delectable focaccia erbraica, a cinnamon roll looking starter bread with olives, currant and a generous sprinkle of rosemary and salt. It came with a pad of homemade honey butter and a dab of olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette. It was so umami and paired with the butter seemingly melted in our mouths. We also countered that carb bomb with deliciously charred broccolini with walnuts and a squeeze of citrus. Highly cruciferous veggies should only be grilled based on how fast we cleaned our plate. As for the entrees, the plates are meant to share, but I skipped lunch and ate my own bowl of mafaldine short rib pasta (yes you read that right). It was so hearty and satisfying. As a kid, I loved stealing the cooked lasagna noodles and eating them by itself when my mom would make lasagna, so having it on my own bowl of pasta (in the form of mafaldine) gratified my inner child. The short rib was so tender and it was perfectly sauced. I could have eaten another bowl. My friend ordered a steak and a rigatoni alla carbonara, and while I didn't try the former, the latter rigatoni was so delicious as well. For dessert, we ordered the tiramisu, and luckily the last one of the night. It had equal parts espresso soaked cake and cream, and it was the perfect sweet note to end our epically delicious meal.

    Bacetti is a beautiful restaurant serving delicious food, but our experience was unfortunately let…read moredown by some confusing and inconsistent service. The restaurant is located near Dodger Stadium in a hilly residential area that isn't particularly pedestrian-friendly. Parking was by far the biggest logistical challenge, as we couldn't find any dedicated parking options beyond residential street parking. It's worth planning extra time if you're driving. We arrived around 7:45 for our 8pm reservation simply to check in, not expecting to be seated early. The host, seeming a little bothered, let us know our table would be ready closer to our reservation time and offered grabbing a drink at the bar next door as an option while we wait. We didn't want to order drinks, so we stood against the wall in the waiting area across the host stand. We were single-file, hugging the wall and not blocking anyone. Nevertheless, we were quickly told we couldn't wait there and needed to either go outside (it was cold) or sit at the tables next to the bar. After taking the indoor option given to us, a server came over to take our order. We explained that we were only sitting there because the host had directed us to wait there until our table was ready. The server responded, "Well, if you're here, it's basically expected you order a drink." Restaurants: please do not play games with your patrons. If purchasing something is expected to use the waiting area you direct us to, it leaves a really bad taste to discover it after you've sat down. After 8, we were seated in the main restaurant for our reservation. Our server was friendly, personable, and never made us feel pressured to order more than we wanted like I've encountered in other places. The menu was explained as family-style, with dishes intended to arrive around the same time. Unfortunately, the pacing of the meal didn't match that explanation. Instead of arriving together, the dishes came out individually over the course of about 1-2 hours, often 10-20 minutes apart. I completely understand that everything is made fresh, but it was disappointing after being told the meal would be timed differently. Setting accurate expectations would have gone a long way. The food itself was excellent and easily the highlight of the evening. While the dishes leaned a bit salty, everything was crafted artfully with quality ingredients. The stuffed fried squash blossoms, carbonara, pesto, and peach & burrata salad were all standouts that I'd happily order again.

    Photos
    Bacetti Trattoria
    MAFALDINE short rib ragù, parmigiano
    MAFALDINE short rib ragù, parmigiano
    Aperol Spritz only 3/4 full

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    Aperol Spritz only 3/4 full
    Louders

    Louders

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    Been here a couple of times, and this place never disappoints! Everything we tried was really good…read more The restaurant is on the smaller side and can get pretty loud. They have TVs playing K-pop music videos, so if you're looking for somewhere quiet and intimate, this probably isn't the place. This place is very lively and loud just like the name (in a good way). That being said, all the staff were super friendly and attentive. They kept checking in on us to make sure everything was good and that we had enough water. We had the kimchi carbonara, Korean fried chicken, mentaiko pasta, and uni pasta. Out of all the pastas, my favorite was definitely the kimchi bacon udon carbonara. The uni and mentaiko pastas were also good, although I remember them being a little salty. My friend got the corn cheese for $16, which is lowkey expensive for what it is, and honestly, it tasted like any other corn cheese. The stir-fried baby octopus with pork belly was another standout and one of our favorites! They also have a seafood boil, which we definitely want to try next time we're in town. They're open pretty late too, so I highly recommend checking this place out! Just a heads-up: parking is valet, and there can sometimes be a wait on weekends.

    My wife and I had the tteokbokki and wings, and both were so good. The atmosphere is fun, and they…read moreseriously have some of the most attentive staff ever. We never had to look around or wait when we needed something. My only beef is the small parking lot, the long wait, and of course, valet. Other than that, Louder's is a great spot for Korean food, drinks, and a fun night out. Definitely worth checking out.

    Photos
    Cozy, but nothing special inside. The place looks like a comfortable Asian-style pub.
    Cozy, but nothing special inside. The place looks like a comfortable Asian-style pub.
    Shrimp Rose Pasta
    Shrimp Rose Pasta
    Sausage & Rice cake

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    Sausage & Rice cake
    Pizzana Silver Lake

    Pizzana Silver Lake

    4.6
    (210 reviews)
    1.2 mi
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    Wow. Just wow…read more Pizzana delivered one of the best dining experiences we've had in Los Angeles. This may very well be the best Neapolitan-style pizza in LA. We ordered the pepperoni pizza and the arugula salad with chicken, and both were outstanding. The chicken deserves special recognition--it was perfectly seasoned, incredibly fresh, and cooked to perfection. Chicken breast is often dry, but this was surprisingly juicy and flavorful. The salad itself was super fresh, and the nuts paired beautifully with the lemon dressing, which may be one of the best salad dressings I've ever had. Honestly, we'd come back just for the salad. As for the pizza, it was exceptional. The sauce was rich and flavorful, and the dough was absolutely incredible--light, airy, and perfectly textured. Every bite reminded us why Pizzana has such a strong reputation. It's an absolute must-try. The service made the experience even better. Our waitress, Niko, was fantastic. She was warm, welcoming, and took the time to explain every dish and answer all of our questions. To top it off, she surprised us with complimentary ice cream, which was such a thoughtful touch. The wine was also excellent. I enjoyed the Fèlsina Chianti from Tuscany, with beautiful notes of wild berries, black currant, and rose petal that paired wonderfully with the meal. From the food to the wine to the service, everything was outstanding. We left already looking forward to our next visit. Highly recommended.

    Was excited to try Pizzana after hearing great things about it so I decided to bring my friend for…read morea birthday dinner. From the start, the experience was lacking. It was a little awkward walking in and just standing there for a few minutes until someone noticed us because there's not really a host stand. In the Resy notes, I noted it was for a birthday and requested a nice table, but we were given a side table right next to the kitchen/bathroom instead of a nicer booth table. We eventually moved one table down because it wasn't the best vibe having staff continuously walking back and forth by our table. The drinks were good, Caesar Salad was average, the Vodka Pizza was decent, and the Cacio e Pepe could have used more flavor. I also had to ask if they offered any birthday desserts because it wasn't acknowledged and we were given a scoop of vanilla ice cream which was nice. Overall this place is more of a casual dinner/happy hour spot than a place to celebrate an occasion. Employees were friendly though!

    Photos
    Diavolo and margherita crudo pizzas.
    Diavolo and margherita crudo pizzas.
    Vodka pizza - meh
    Vodka pizza - meh
    Vodka pizza

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    Vodka pizza
    Masa of Echo Park

    Masa of Echo Park

    4.2
    (5k reviews)
    0.1 mi
    $$

    If you're a deep-dish pizza lover, you HAVE to try Masa in Echo Park! I got the "Lots of Meat"…read moreDeep Dish and it was seriously so good. The crust was thick, crispy on the outside, and perfectly cheesy and flavorful, with plenty of toppings in every bite. Definitely a hearty, satisfying pizza and easily a 5/5 for me. Masa is definitely worth checking out if you're in Echo Park and craving a really good deep-dish pizza! The spot is really cute too!

    My daughter and I were leaving a KCRW members-only event at LACMA on a Saturday night and had some…read moretime before an 11:00 PM 70mm IMAX showing of The Odyssey at AMC Universal Cinema. Since they're open until 10:00 PM, we decided to stop by Masa of Echo Park for our very first visit. We called in advance to go over our options, and the people on the phone both times were fantastic--kind, helpful, and empathetic. They clearly explained the house policy: in-house deep dish orders have a 9:00 PM cutoff. Since we wouldn't make it in time for that, we placed a deep dish order over the phone to go and planned to eat a thin-crust tavern-style pie in the restaurant. For our dine-in pie, we ordered a tavern-style pizza split 1/2 Laguna (mozzarella, parmesan, and fresh basil) and 1/2 Baxter (pepperoni or veggie pepperoni, ricotta, house hot honey, mozzarella, parmesan, and fresh basil). We expected the Laguna side to come topped with fresh basil as described on the menu, but as you can see in the photos, we were served what was essentially just a plain 1/2 cheese pie on one side and 1/2 Baxter on the other. When we pointed out to the server that the Laguna half was missing its basil, she insisted it was a Laguna and claimed the Laguna doesn't come with basil. The server was kind enough to bring us a side of fresh basil to add ourselves. After we left, we looked back to the menu description (which explicitly lists mozzarella, parmesan, and fresh basil). While we appreciated the quick fix of the plentiful of fresh basil she brought us, it was frustrating that neither the kitchen nor the server simply owned up to the oversight. A quick apology and accountability go a long way--it's truly the difference between a 3-star and a 4-star experience, and it's what builds trust with first-time diners. Miscommunication aside, the thin, crisp tavern-style crust was great--it hit with nostalgic vibes like Monty's in Highland Park back in the 1980s. I'd easily come back just to grab a tavern-style pie to go. Strangely, the pizza cooled down surprisingly fast in the dining room. It did not hold the heat well. As for the deep dish, we saved it for breakfast the next morning, and it was delicious. We ordered a small "All Meats" deep dish--which is more than enough food for two people. When they say "lots of meat," they mean it: there was a massive sausage patty stretching across the entirety of the top of the pie alongside plenty of pepperoni. The cornmeal masa crust adds incredible depth and flavor to the dough. To me, it holds its own right alongside Chicago icons like Pequod's or Lou Malnati's, though the cheese layer was lighter than other establishments. The dining room is dark and a wee bit dated, giving off the feel of an old-school Italian spot (or a former Mexican restaurant converted into a pizzeria) with dark red and brown tones. The temperature inside was a bit on the cool side, but still comfortable. They sat the two of us in a generous booth easily large enough for five people. It's a huge space overall, offering a nice mix of tables, booths, and a large bar area. This corner of Echo Park has grown into a bustling food hub, but parking was easy on this night--there's a public lot behind the restaurant, though we lucked out with prime street parking just a block away (perks of arriving after 9:00 PM on a Saturday!). We arrived at 9:16 PM and let the host and server know we had a deep dish to go and wanted to sit down for tavern style and drinks. They reminded us a couple of times that the deep dish had to remain to-go due to the late hour, which was no problem at all since we already knew the drill. (Though interestingly, a review from May 29th mentioned guests could call ahead to fire a deep dish pie to eat in-house upon arrival to offset the 45-minute bake time--that policy wasn't an option during our visit). The initial phone service and host team were wonderful--they even gave us great local parking tips over the phone. However, the floor service faltered once the Laguna mix-up happened. The server also never introduced herself by name, and her defensive response to a basic menu correction left a somewhat sour note on an otherwise friendly night. Masa nails the food--the tavern crust is top-tier and the deep dish is a meat-lover's dream. With a bit more accountability on the service side when kitchen mix-ups happen, it could easily be a regular go-to. For now, it's gonna be a grab and go place--keep the great food, skip the less than service.

    Photos
    Masa of Echo Park
    Traditional Deep Dish Pizza slice. Yummm
    Traditional Deep Dish Pizza slice. Yummm
    Bread and butter. So soft and warm.

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    Bread and butter. So soft and warm.

    Hard Times Pizza - pizza - Updated August 2026

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