Greatest Jersey Pizza that most people haven't heard of

[Jeffsayyes]

I'm planning a big Jersey Pizza Tour... totaling around 25 pizzerias over 5 weeks. I know of the most popular ones, star, santillos, ah pizza etc, but what are some ones that one might consider the best, which have been pretty much unreported on?

I'm always looking for a great place out of nowhere. Got anything?

Kate & Als and Pete's in the market seem really interesting. Are they worth a stopover?

[MGZ]

There are a few "pizza" threads worth checking out. For example, this one's the biggie:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/186329

Then there are also a few focused on Monmouth County, in particular:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/637912
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/702192
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/721882

Most of the worthy choices are discussed.

[sbier]

We moved to northern Ocean County from Manhattan almost 8 years ago and were pleased to have recently found the best pizza place we've tried in this (Brick) area - Denino's South, 869 Mantoloking Road, Brick 08723, [phone]:

http://www.deninospizzeria.com/

The Brick store apparently opened in October 2010 and is a branch of the Staten Island original. Very nice folks, too. Haven't tried the sausage/meat pies yet, but the plain cheese pies are excellent, with delicious crust (similar to Vic's in Bradley Beach as opposed to Pete & Elde's [Neptune] crackery thinness), good cheese - and well oiled. Good/decent start-off Caesar salads, too.

[Tay]

Unfortunately it pales compared to the SI location.

[diablo]

Yes on the Kate and Al's. Unique pizza made in a sheet pan. Best enjoyed outside at one of the flea market picnic tables on a nice sunny day.

[Jeffsayyes]

yeah we are almost def going there. How does Pete's compare? should we choose one over teh other?

[diablo]

Never had Pete's so I can't say.

[Heatherb]

I like them both - would pick one or the other and save room for more pizza from elsewhere.

[Sdenred]

Agreed.

[tommy]

As noted there are a bunch of threads listing peoples' favorites, some of which are quite current. I'm not sure if people have been holding some secret places in their vest pocket for a thread like this, but I guess we'll find out. I suspect it will just be another list of favorite pizza places. Which isn't such a bad thing.

Pizza Town - Elmwood Park
Ah'Pizz - Montclair

[Jeffsayyes]

we had the first of probably 5 tours today.
Star tavern, ah'pizz, spirito's, al santillo's

ah'pizz was awesome. al santillo'swas a great experience- al is wonderful.star was great too, the top reminded me of margarita pizza in jamaica, but in a bar pie.

[fourunder]

Did Al show you the oven.....it's quite a site. He's one of the nicest people I ever met in the food business.....and he's very knowledgeable about his trade

[Jeffsayyes]

oh yeah, he's great. http://www.flickr.com/photos/orlick/s... very passionate guy. great pizza too.

[fourunder]

If you are ever in Bergen County....give Lodi Pizza and Pizzatown a try.....the SLICES & whole pies are great. You can have both in less than a two mile stretch on Route 46.

http://offthebroiler.wordpress.com/2007/07/18/nj-dining-pizza-town-usa/

http://offthebroiler.wordpress.com/20...

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Lodi Pizza Restaurant
19 US Highway 46 W, Lodi, NJ 07644

[Jeffsayyes]

100 percent going to Pizzatown USA. Lodi seems really interesting. Do you think it could be considered best in the state?

[tommy]

Lodi's slice was horrible on my one visit. Maybe I'm missing something.

[menton1]

I had a slice at Lodi on my recent visit to Pizzatown. Lodi makes a slightly smaller pie, cuts it into 6 slices. The slice is much too thick, and the cheese and sauce were bland and tasteless, IMO.

But I wasn't thrilled with PTUSA's pizza, either; the warmed-up slices don't seem to heat up well, probably the only way to go is a fresh whole pie there...

[njmarshall55]

Just a quick joke...guy walks into a pizza parlor and orders a large. Owner asks if he wants it cut into six or eight slices. Guy says, "Make it six. I can't eat eight."

Fonly remember Pizza Town. Maybe next time i'll stop. Steve's in Fair Lawn was always a good one. But, like the old saying goes, pizza is like sex. When it's good, it's great. When it's bad, it's still pretty good.

[Ike]

I'm no pizza connoisseur, but I loved the slices I got at Pizzatown USA the other day. Not too much cheese. Great sauce. Crispy. Not heavy. Yum.

[HillJ]

What's not to love about Spirito's. Pizza is wonderful but it's the ravioli and garlic salad that keep me returning!

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Spirito's Restaurant
714 3rd Ave, Elizabeth, NJ 07202

[OGguy]

From yesterday's Star Ledger -
Sylvia (nee D'Alessandro) Spirito, 90, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, May 3, 2011, at the Trinitas Regional Medical Center, Elizabeth, N.J. Relatives and friends are kindly invited to attend the funeral from the Petruccelli Funeral Home, 232 Christine St., Elizabeth, N.J., on Saturday, May 7, at 9:30 a.m., thence to St. Anthony's R.C. Church, Elizabeth, N.J., where at 10:30 a.m. a Funeral Mass will be offered. Interment will be in Rosedale Cemetery, Linden, N.J. Friends may call on Friday, May 6, from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Mrs. Spirito was a lifelong resident of the city of Elizabeth. She was the former co-proprietor of Spirito's Restaurant, located in the Peterstown section of Elizabeth, from 1985 to 1996 with her late husband, Frank Spirito, and was the sole proprietor from 1996 to 2001. Mrs. Spirito was predeceased by her husband, Frank Spirito, who died in May 1996; her five brothers, Anthony (Tears) Guiliano, Vincent (Wings) Guiliano, Thomas (Gimps) D'Alessandro, Pasquale D'Alessandro and John D'Alessandro, and her sister, Raphaela DiMaio. She was the beloved mother of Beverly Anne Sporer, Gemma DeGregorio, Margo Berzito and Toni Peduto. She is also survived by two sisters, Anna DeMaio and Marie LaMorte; six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, contributions in care of her memory may be made to the American Heart Association , 1 Union St., No. 301, Robbinsville, N.J. 08691-4183.
Published in Star-Ledger on May 5, 2011

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Spirito's Restaurant
714 3rd Ave, Elizabeth, NJ 07202

[HillJ]

First Ferraro's burns to the ground and now Ms. Sylvia is gone. Sounds like a memorial pizza is in order for lunch today.

[eatinman]

ah'pizz was good, but it's gone downhill - as the food comes out luke warm & has just fallen off of their game - which I feel bad about, cause I really thought ah'pizz was great!

[foodislove1958]

I'd reccomend a few...
Vic's, Bradley Beach
Vesuvio's Belmar
My favorite newcomer...Salerno's in Hazlet on Bethany Road....

I know Pete and Eldas rides high..just really never worked for me.....First 2 I mentioned very old school...Salerno's..newere but great quality....my favorite..the Buffalo Chicken..

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Pete and Elda's
96 Woodland Ave, Neptune City, NJ 07753

Vesuvio
725 S Main St Ste 3, Forked River, NJ 08731

[TomDel]

Here’s a couple:

Papa’s in the Chambersburg section of Trenton http://www.papastomatopies.com . It’s the second oldest (1912) Pizza (Tomato Pie) restaurant in the country. I believe Lombardi’s in NYC is the oldest (1905).

My favorite is JoJo’s http://jojostavern.com located at 5 points in Hamilton Twp. Go in an off hour as they are almost always crowded.

[harrison]

Queen Margherita in Nutley got this great write up on Slice today I've never tried, but will be soon!

http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives...

[fourunder]

I've heard from friends who live in Nutley, that Ralph's is the best in town......any thoughts?

[tommy]

I never understood this. Their slices are exceedingly mediocre. Maybe a whole pie is better.

[harrison]

I also tried Ralphs from good reports - slices only. It was good, not great.

[briansnat]

Cafe L'Amore in Oakland makes outstanding pizza. Among my favorites.

[gooter]

Pompei. On Broadway between 22nd and 23rd St. in Bayonne. Outstanding "thin crust" pizza.

[jethro]

Livingston Pizza on Rt. 10 in Livingston has what I would call authentic pizza. Thin crust, good ingredients, but no seating. Get a few slices and eat in your car on a nice day. It's really good. I agree with Tommy about Ralph's. Drove there one day, got 2 slices and although I ate it, didn't drool like my co-worker told me I would.

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Livingston Pizza
73 W Mount Pleasant Ave, Livingston, NJ 07039

[hcentro]

+1 for Pompei in Bayonne. Consistently excellent.

[menton1]

Is Benny Tudino's still going in Hoboken? It's been years, but I have memories of an excellent slice of pizza there... Although things never stay the same.

[tommy]

I think what doesn't stay the same is peoples' tastes. Benny's is still there. I don't enjoy it anywhere near as much as I enjoyed it 20 years ago.

[phDuh]

Yes, tommy, somehow the 'doormats' at Benny's taste differently when it's not associated with a late night in Hoboken!

[Tapas52]

Papas Tomato Pies !!!!!!!

804 Chambers Street
Trenton, NJ
609-392-0359

http://www.papastomatopies.com/

[Jeffsayyes]

damn, i think this thread is opening up something I'm not even ready for.
Here's our map
http://bit.ly/h9hUJL

We're not locals, so just like a best of the neighborhood probably isn't worth the trip. but the exceedingly unique or delicious is. Thanks for all the great support! this might never end.

[maryanne06]

I'm glad to see that Patsy's Tavern in Paterson is on your list.....mangia! Just check out their hours before you go....they open a little later on weekends.

[fred the fressor]

I don't know how anyone can do a list of pizza in NJ and not include Patsy's. I went a few months ago with several friends. Three of us grew up around Patsy's so we knew what we were getting. I wish I had a video camera to capture the looks on the other two friends who had never been there as they tasted the pizza. After their first bite, they realized that they were eating the best pizza they ever had.

[tommy]

It's all subjective but I don't like Patsy's as much as I like other places that serve what I consider similar styles (Kinchley's, Nellie's...although Patsy's is a bit thicker).

But the place overall is worth a stop. Real old-school joint. Looks like nothing has changed since the 70's, and probably decades before that.

[menton1]

This is not the famous Patsy's in East Harlem, is it? (Their pizza is paper-thin)

Were you on vacay?

[tommy]

No, but this Patsy's is old, too. It's Italian-American, old school. Like my grandparents enjoyed.

[fred the fressor]

It's been there since 1931. They added the tavern a few years later just after Repeal. In the 50's when I was a kid, you had to dodge the bocce balls that the old guys where playing in the alley just out the back door.

It has been owned by the same family.

[tommy]

It's a great a spot. Good bit of history there!

[Jeffsayyes]

That's amazing you mention it, because we just had another tour today and Patsy's was the last stop! I loved it. They cook their pies in 2 sessions, once in the pan, then again in a different, the original, oven. The crust was really somthing to think about, one of my favorite bar pies to date. No relation to patsy's, btw.

We also went to Kinchley's, Nellies, a mano and brunos in clifton.
Kinchley's was probably better than nellies. fra diavolo at kinchley's gets a special mention. . a mano has a lot of integrity, I liked ah pizz better actually, but still very respectable. Brunos was one of the best sicilians ive had-- cheese under the crust and the very fluffy bread over the sorta fried crust--- that was some great sicilian.

Anybody hear of Strawberry's? someone just tweeted me about it, and from the singular picture on yelp, it looks pretty damn good.

[HillJ]

http://strawberryspub.com/pdf/menu.pdf

I just had their sauteed spinach pizza today. Really good char on the thin crust.

[menton1]

There's not much in the way of pizza in NJ that's unique or great. Check out the Serious Eats "Slice" blog for some places that may catch your fancy...

[sbier]

How come no Denino's South?

[rruben1]

Paradiso Pizza on Route 46 in Rockaway. Outstanding ingredients, great combinations. Mmmmm. I can't wait until Passover ends. I'm there.

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Paradiso Pizza
179 US Highway 46, Rockaway, NJ 07866

[Jeffsayyes]

How does it compare to denino's SI?

[sbier]

Never been to the SI store, but Tay in this thread says Brick/South palls by comparison. My own guess is that they're probably the same. Have you been to Denino's in SI?

[Jeffsayyes]

yes, it's a nice place. Solid pizza, but not my fav in staten island by far. Lots of people LOVE it, so that's cool. When you go in there and someone has ordered a clam pie, the smells are intoxicating.

[EthnicNJ]

Excellent list. You might find some other gems here: http://www.ethnicnj.com/food/italian/...
I'm partial to DeLucia's in Raritan and Cranbury Pizza for traditional Jersey pies (not thin crust or Napolitan style) out of old ovens.

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Cranbury Pizza
63 N Main St Ste 2, Cranbury, NJ 08512

[Jeffsayyes]

Yes, your list is great. I love the site as well. I always want places that are not just good, but can be considered the best by someone - Not necessarily me, but someone. Polarizing is one of my favorite adjectives.

[fishnut]

The funny thing about pizza is that you can ask 5 of your friends about their favorite and you
may get 5 different answers. There is so much variety out there that one person's best is
another's least. If the best pizza in the world was located 20 miles from my home, I doubt
that I would make the trip for a slice. I prefer mine plain or Sicilian and there are plenty of
local places that serve decent stuff. It may not be the best.... but just a simple tomato
and cheese pie is enough for me.

[tommy]

We're hoping to hear about the "greatest" on this thread.

I disagree that plenty of local places serve decent stuff. Most local places serve mediocre stuff.

[MGZ]

There's that word again!

[tommy]

Ni.

[Jeffsayyes]

yes, I agree. That's what I love about pizza. It's such a polarizing food. That's why we're going to so many places. Obviously we can't go to every person's favorite (I will never be done doing this in NYC even), BUT we can probably go to 25 places that lots of people are passionate about. I love getting suggestions from someone that's not connected to the foodie community.

Just went to a place last month: galleria in ozone park, queens. Not a sexy area at all, and barely one person has written about it online other than a couple of yelp reviews and a local paper article, but woah... that's a real slice! and they only serve 2 pies at a time, regular and spinach. That's cool.

[bifpocaroba]

There are only 2 pizza places for me.Both are excellent and both in Essex co.
The Star Tavern needs no intro but Frank Anthony's in Verona is the BEST pizza in the the surronding area and I wouldnt make that claim if it wasnt true.. It's their own homemade mozzerella with fresh tomatoes and basil on a crispy brick oven style crust.. In all seriousnes, this pizza is one of the best you will ever eat. Eat it there instead of getting to go.

[HillJ]

Nomad Pizza is certainly known...but well-known...not sure about that.
Well worth getting to know!

[billybauer17]

id say Crust and Crumble is definitely a diamond in the rough in Asbury Park gourmet pizzeria and great pastries + breakfast pizzas too

[mocozeke]

Nonna's in Florham Park - Nonna's pie is best
Star Tavern in Orange - white w spinach
Landmark in Livingston - Old World w sauce on 1/2

[Jeffsayyes]

what the heck is landmark?? Is there any pictures of the pie online? I can't research like I generally do for my tours, I have to go by pictures and word of mouth to find the people's favorite pies.

[mocozeke]

Landmark is a small red tavern on Rt 10 just east of the Livingston circle. They have nice selection of beer, excellent ribs, salads and pizza. No website, no pictures. It is a thin crust pie. The old world has black pepper, garlic and olive oil and can be with or without sauce (usually my wife and I get sauce on half). Here are some other reviews

http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-landmark-livingston

http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/53/584896/restaurant/North-Jersey/Landmark-Livingston

http://www.dexknows.com/business_prof...

[Jeffsayyes]

you think it could be considered the best in NJ?

[menton1]

That's a low bar, anyway...

[harrison]

Not as good as Star if you want to use that as a barometer

[mocozeke]

I put Landmark and Star on same plane comparing Old World w sauce on half with White Spinach Pie (my favorite at Star).

[gregkeller]

Kinchley's Tavern in ramsey is on your map, i'd make that a definite. That place rocks. It's almost always packed. Best thin crust i've had.

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Kinchley's Tavern
586 N Franklin Tpke, Ramsey, NJ 07446

[Curlz]

Just went to Kinchley's for the first time this weekend...we had a Fra Diavlo pie and added sausage. The FD wasn't super-spicy, which makes me think that their base sauce is probably on the sweet side; LOVED the sausage!

[ansky4]

Sun Tavern in Scotch Plains has delicious very thin crust pizza. We routinely order a pie with mushrooms and eggplant and are never disappointed. Had several of their dinners, eggplant parm, seafood platter, etc., also good.

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Sun Tavern
600 W Westfield Ave, Roselle Park, NJ 07204

[rizzo0904]

All Natural Pizza on Asbury Ave in Ocean City.

[Duppie]

While properly not the greatest, I really like the Bruschetta Tomato pie at Aljohn's in Plainsboro.

[BetterButterCatering]

ROsario's in Bordentown, AMAZING!