Pizza in New Jersey

[tommy]

I thought you agreed to try the chicken parm hero this weekend (from the Paramus thread)

i did. it was pretty good. i never order those things because

1) i think they're hard to eat, as the chicken is usually a big breast

2) i don't like them very much.

as i'm waiting for the sandwich, i thought, "gee, i should have asked the guy to slice up the chicken. that would make it easier to eat." imagine my surprise when the chicken came sliced up. very nice.

[tommy]

finally made it to The Town Pub in Bloomfield. this place is famous for thin crust pizza.

the front room (where the bar is) is a smoky mess. and this is coming from someone who occasionally smokes. i'd recommend sitting in the back room if smoke bothers you.

they don't have artichokes. i hate when places don't have artichokes. but they do offer the standard toppings.

the pie is similar to kinchley's in that it's a thing crust, and it also has similar flavor. however, i'd rank kinchley's above the Town Pub. can't quite put my finger on why. i do recall that the crust was pretty mushy and soggy by the time i got into the second slice. this might be due to the topping of fresh tomato, but i'm not convinced of that.

any thoughts on this place?

i'll probably return, as it's convenient for me. but i'll sit in the non-smoking room.

Edited May 22, 2003 by tommy (log)

[GoodEater]

Hello All.

This is my first post to this excellent website. I am so glad that I heard about it on Arthur Schwartz- Food Talk to discuss everything with fellow food-lovers.

I like the pizza at Puzo's. They have three locations- Hawthorne, Fairfield and Ridgewood. The Fairfield store is my regular lunch place as I work close by and they have the largest selection of specialty pizzas. They have a great sauce and they use quality ingredients.

The other pizza place that I think makes excellent basic pizza is John's Pizza on River Road in FairLawn. Great sauce here too. Not too creative with toppings but sometimes simple is better when you just want a plain slice.

My main complaint about many pizza places is that they don't have enough flavor in the sauce. I am a real flavor seeker and a plain flat tomato sauce is just showing that the shop owner doesn't really care about what they are doing. It should have garlic, onion, basil and/or other herbs to enhance it as well as enough salt to bring out the flavors.

Also, too much oil on top of the pizza means to me that they are using inexpensive cheese (unless of course the purposely added addtional oil for whatever foolish reason they think it is necessary).

A thin to medium thin crust cooked until it is crispy (but not burned!) is essential as well. A too thick, soggy crust and it is just bread with cheese and sauce. Thanks for letting me express my opinion.

Good Eater in Northern NJ

[Rachel Perlow]

Welcome to eGullet, GoodEater!

I'm curious, have you ever been to Kinchley's and if so, how do you compare it to the places you mention above?

[GoodEater]

Hello Rachel-

Yes I ate at Kinchley's about five years ago. I remember it being a very good, very thin crust pizza but it was too long ago to really remember enough specifics about it to really give an informed opinion about how it compares to the places I mentioned. I will have to check it out once again soon and let you know.

GoodEater!

[Rail Paul]

I like the pizza at Puzo's.  They have three locations- Hawthorne, Fairfield and Ridgewood.  The Fairfield store is my regular lunch place as I work close by and they have the largest selection of specialty pizzas.  They have a great sauce and they use quality ingredients.

Thank you for this excellent first post.

We went over to the Fairfield Puzo's tonight for the pizza. It was excellent. Half eggplant parm, half fresh garlic, medium to thin crust, crispy and black in a few places. Small was about 14" for $13.65. (Large was $17, IIRC).

The e-p side had a slightly sweet tomato sauce with onions, rosemary, tiny bits of black olives, and pepper. The e-p was thinly sliced with fresh ricotta and mozz. The garlic side was shaved garlic, black pepper, mozz, a little red pepper, and salt. Arrived too hot to eat, very fragrant.

No artichokes, but they did have broccoli, red peppers, etc. They seemed quite agreeable to mix and match, etc.

397 US 46 westbound, Fairfield, in the Drug Fair shopping center

[fitz]

finally made it to The Town Pub in Bloomfield.  this place is famous for thin crust pizza.

the front room (where the bar is) is a smoky mess.  and this is coming from someone who occasionally smokes.  i'd recommend sitting in the back room if smoke bothers you.

Interesting... When I lived in Bloomfield, The Town Pub was more famous for being just a good down-and-dirty place to meet up with your friends, and wasn't really known for its pizza. As I recall, The Star Tavern was the pizza place everyone raved about, but I was non-plussed.

At any rate, the Town Pub back room is the place to be, I'm sure, even after all these years! I have to confess, on our recent wedding trip, I was much more concerned with getting the husband to Jimmy Buff's, seeing as there's nothing like it in Texas!

For thin-crust pizza,(okay, go ahead and shoot me), I'd just as soon have a bar pie at The Great Notch on 46... (With nondescript beer, of course...) In this case, atmosphere carries more points than flavor...

Fitz

(Still a chick after all these years...)

[tommy]

fitz, i had no idea the great notch even had food! i was supposed to meet some friends there the other night for drinks in fact (although i bailed), and i suppose i would have found out then. i would have been quite *suspicious* if i saw food come out of there, but maybe, since i'm on a pizza mission, it would have caught my eye. good call. i'll have to go back.

[thereuare]

I finally made it to Totonno's in Coney Island last nite.

Just to give a brief history about this place, so you know it ranks up there with the "great ones", this pizzeria was started in the early half of the 1900s from an ex-employee of the original Lombardi's in NYC, and is noted at the second pizza parlour in NYC.

Very non-descript and non-decour type of place, with many articles and pictures of famous people that have visited adourning the walls, and a VERY laid back atmosphere. There seems to be a 'banter' that exists between the owner and one of the waitresses, with them each taking turns yelling at each other and calling the other one "stupid", but they both seem to enjoy it. You can see the decour yourself:

They produce a Patsy Grimaldi type of pie, but with more sauce and a much more charred crust. I think this version is better than the 'under the Brookyn Bridge' Grimaldi pie, but suffers from the same fate of turning soggy after the first 2 slices (it's not the crust which loses its crispiness, it's the dough under the pizza closest to where you take your first bite that loses its crunch). Here's what it looks like:

(notice the thimbles of soda served in a bottle, a pet peeve of mine, as i like to have a generous supply of liquids near me)

I would rank this pizza in the top 5, but it can't take the #1 position. The location is very out of the way and it was a long subway ride to Coney Island, so i don't know if i would necessarily make the trip again just for pizza, but if i was nearby (20 minutes) it would definately be a great stop to eat.

As of now, i'm in a toss up for #1 pizza between Lombardi's in NYC and Denino's in Staten Island... with Lombardi's being another "fresh mozzarella" type pizza and Denino's being a more 'traditional' cheese pie. I know just the solution to figure out the top position.... I'll have to make a trip back to each!!

(i know this is the NJ thread, but it continues my tri-state area pizza journey, so please don't move the post)

Edited May 26, 2003 by thereuare (log)

[Haggis]

Thanks for the pic of the Totonno's pie - it looks perfect. Do you happen to have any pics of Denino's pie, since that is your favorite? I have yet to make it out to Staten Island for that pie, but an appetizing photo might get me going.

[Rachel Perlow]

I'll allow the post to remain here if you agree to copy it over to an appropriate thread on the NY forum.

[glenn]

I'll allow the post to remain here if you agree to copy it over to an appropriate thread on the NY forum.

I vote get rid of it. It's not conducive for dieting, though neither is this board. Speaking of bored....

[thereuare]

I'll allow the post to remain here if you agree to copy it over to an appropriate thread on the NY forum.

Done!

Do you happen to have any pics of Denino's pie, since that is your favorite?

Sorry, i do not, but as my wife was very embarrassed at me taking this picture, i'll have to hide the camera on the next Denino's trip!

I hope to make it back to Denino's soon, and now that the weather is getting nicer (well, it's supposed to be getting nicer so i assume it will soon) i have an added incentive since Ralph's Ices (across the street from Denino's) has re-opened for the season. (the 'creamed ice' is my favorite... not quite ice, not quite ice cream)

Edited May 26, 2003 by thereuare (log)

[thereuare]

I'll allow the post to remain here if you agree to copy it over to an appropriate thread on the NY forum.

I vote get rid of it. It's not conducive for dieting, though neither is this board. Speaking of bored....

Just make a promise to yourself not to leave Jersey City and you shouldn't have any problems at all!

[glenn]

That would do the trick, but I CAN'T TAKE IT HERE ANYMORE --- I'll be passing right by Gotham Bar & Grill soon, on the way to the movies where I plan to snort as much buttered popcorn as my nostrils allow.

[T. Brooks]

Is Americano's still in JC?

[Jason Perlow]

Relatively new slice place with Grand Opening signs in the Huffman Koos shopping center in Paramus right off kinderkamack, across from the Total Wine store. Had a peek in there the other day, pizza looked decent (they appeared to be using fresh mozz) but havent tried yet. Anyone been?

[Rachel Perlow]

I think that Pizza place is just under new management or ownership because there was a slice place in that same location previously.

[menton1]

Relatively new slice place with Grand Opening signs in the Huffman Koos shopping center in Paramus right off kinderkamack, across from the Total Wine store. Had a peek in there the other day, pizza looked decent (they appeared to be using fresh mozz) but havent tried yet. Anyone been?

Tried it last week, and it was AWFUL. Seemed like it had been sitting there for hours, and tasted like cardboard.

Went again to Uncle Gio's, on Union Avenue in Cresskill, and it is one of the better slices I've had. Fresh, a good homemade sauce, and cheese just the right consistency. Closed on Sundays, oddly enough.

[Rachel Perlow]

Good to know. Won't bother going to that strip for pizza, just the fabulous Babylon, next door!

[klinger75]

I always remember eating at la strada in milburn.

Great thin crust.

anyone been lately?

[albie]

This is a long thread and I don't know whether anyone's mentioned perhaps the latest claimant to thte prixe of "New Jersey's best Pizza:" La Pizza Napoletana on Route 35 in Point Pleasant Beach, not far from Dennis Foy's latest eatery. The guy hails from Naples and learned his craft at their legendary pizzerias Brandi, Trianon and da Michele.

[tommy]

This is a long thread and I don't know whether anyone's mentioned perhaps the latest claimant to thte prixe of "New Jersey's best Pizza:"    La Pizza Napoletana on Route 35 in Point Pleasant Beach, not far from Dennis Foy's latest eatery. The guy hails from Naples and learned his craft at their legendary pizzerias Brandi, Trianon and da Michele.

where abouts on 35? north or south?

[Rachel Perlow]

I always remember eating at la strada in milburn.... anyone been lately?

Haven't been lately, but that's the pizza that I ate growing up. Many's the memory of picking up a sausage pie to bring home, or stopping in for a slice after school. It is the pie I compared all others to and the reason I couldn't believe that people at college ate Domino's or Pizza Hut.

I have been back since college and, while La Strada has good pizza, it doesn't compare to Kinchley's. They are completely different specimens.

[tommy]

can i assume that the Spumoni Gardens in Old Bridge is not related to the Spumoni Gardens in Brooklyn?