Your favorite pizza places?

In Atlanta, the best place is Marcellos Pizza and Subs on Roswell Road. It's perfect!
Oz Pizza in Decatur GA is a close second.
And I'll always remember Pappy's Pizza and Oregano Alley in Virginia.....RIP.
But for a chain, Donato's was great, even though they didn't last down here. Who would have though McDonalds could make good pizza?

What about Pappa Gino's in the Boston area? I have not had a slice there for over five years. Are they any better than they used to be?

Pizza,
Secret Pizza Place In Chicago that not many people know about "Brick's Pizza" it's close to Lincoln Park and is out of this world. When I lived in the city it was an once a week stop. Loved it.
S

The best pizza in East Tennessee is Big Ed's Pizza in Oak Ridge(Just outside of Knoxville)! The atmosphere can't be beat! On Friday/Saturday nights, people are lining up outside the door just to get in. They don't really even have a menu! There's no such thing as an apetizer at Big Ed's! Its just pizza, beer and softdrinks! You eat off of little paper plates! Its the kind of place where you can watch the pizza being made and if someone is having a birthday the whole restaurant sings! It's mostly a local hangout but definately worth the trip!

quote:

Originally posted by zussers

The best pizza in East Tennessee is Big Ed's Pizza in Oak Ridge(Just outside of Knoxville)! The atmosphere can't be beat! On Friday/Saturday nights, people are lining up outside the door just to get in. They don't really even have a menu! There's no such thing as an apetizer at Big Ed's! Its just pizza, beer and softdrinks! You eat off of little paper plates! Its the kind of place where you can watch the pizza being made and if someone is having a birthday the whole restaurant sings! It's mostly a local hangout but definately worth the trip!

I was in Oak Ridge on a sentimental, sightseeing visit not too long ago, and we never thought about Big Ed's until after we returned home. Boo.

I miss Western Mass. pizza. Ciro's, Family, Roma, Village..and of course Papa Ginos, which is long gone but not forgotten.

See? Now I'm hungry.

The Buffalo, New York areas has some of the best pizzerias in the country. Here are my ratings for the area:

1. Dino's Bocce Club---established in 1946 Amherst, NY
2. Just Pizza---Buffalo, NY
3. Bozanna's Pizzeria--Clarence, NY
4. Mazia's Pizzeria----Clarence, NY
5. Mattina's Pizza-----Kenmore, NY
6. Besta Pizza---------Getzville, NY
7. Martino's Pizza-----Kenmore, NY
8. Pizza Junction------N. Tonawanda, NY
9. Sorrentio's Pizza---Williamsville, NY
10. La Nova Pizza-------Buffalo, NY

The price for cheese & pepperoni large pizza ranges in price from $6.99 to $12.75. Of course Buffalo is noted for its chicken wings which are usually part of a pizza/wing combo. The best chicken wings period are in the Buffalo, NY area.

quote:

Originally posted by pdxyyz

Marco's Pizza St Ann de Bellevue west island Montreal. DOn't know if it's still there. It was good enough that when my mother would travel home to visit her parents she would pick up 5 half cooked and drive 300 miles back home.

Capone's in Tualatin Oregon. Great all around Italian place.

Escape from New York Pizza, 23rd St, Portland Oregon. Massive NY pizza by the slice.

I have eaten at Escape From NY Pizza in Portland and on Haight St. in San Francisco and I was impressed. They have a memorable west coast pizza.

Really? Escape from NY? I'd always sort of ranked them with Blondie's, but not quite up to the Arinell standard for NY-style pizza in the Bay Area.
Given the choice (on the West Coast, that is), I'll take North Beach Pizza any day! Super greasy, excellent crust, mmmm.
I also really like Zachary's in Oakland, but that's such an oddball pizza. Not really a deep dish, not really a stuffed pizza; it's very good, though. Think of it as somewhere between a pizza and a lasagne.
Sorry, New Yorkers! I know that's not "real" pizza. Our California minds must be addled by all this sunshine.

i am from CT but live in CO now. I have been desperately seeking New Haven style pizza for three long years with no success. Any suggestions? I live in the Denver area, but am willing to travel....I NEED MY PIZZA!!! Places I have tried here are: Beau Jo's (ok, not great...crust is too grainy) Woody's (just not right) and a few other mom&pop places that had a cardboard crust.

I have a new favorite in New Haven, BAR on crown street. Their pizza is excellent, and the service exists! Plus they have a great selection of beer. In the end, pizza should be served on a cookie sheet.

Thanks,

loyal

LOYAL, I live here also. From Chicago and the pizza is not what we are used to in Chicago and NY. Found a place that is close and good stuff. Fiorie's just North of Holly and County Line Road if you live near Denver. The owners are from Chicago and make a pretty good thin crust pizza!

The place is in a mall on the Northeast side of the intersection and is also a bar. (Sportstbar)

Email me and I can find out exactly where if you need help.

Don

quote:

Originally posted by capnhank

Really? Escape from NY? I'd always sort of ranked them with Blondie's, but not quite up to the Arinell standard for NY-style pizza in the Bay Area.
Given the choice (on the West Coast, that is), I'll take North Beach Pizza any day! Super greasy, excellent crust, mmmm.
I also really like Zachary's in Oakland, but that's such an oddball pizza. Not really a deep dish, not really a stuffed pizza; it's very good, though. Think of it as somewhere between a pizza and a lasagne.
Sorry, New Yorkers! I know that's not "real" pizza. Our California minds must be addled by all this sunshine.

Hank --didnt know Arinells was still around--remember their grand opening--i was delighted to find real pizza in Calif---but after a few yrs i beleive the place was sold because both the locations i went to went downhill rapidly. How are they doing as of late?

First time posting; all the Chicago places mentioned do far are really good (Lou Malnati's, Giordano's, Gino's, Uno/Due, etc), and visitors are encouraged to try any of them, but the best, to me, has got to be Pal Joey's in West Chicago (not the West SIDE of Chicago). In a small strip mall on the south side of Rt 38 (Roosevelt Rd) just before Rt 59. Great crust (I've only had thick), sauce kind of sweet, fresh ingredients. The favorite of mine and my husband's for over 20 years.

quote:

Originally posted by kathyb

First time posting; all the Chicago places mentioned do far are really good (Lou Malnati's, Giordano's, Gino's, Uno/Due, etc), and visitors are encouraged to try any of them, but the best, to me, has got to be Pal Joey's in West Chicago (not the West SIDE of Chicago). In a small strip mall on the south side of Rt 38 (Roosevelt Rd) just before Rt 59. Great crust (I've only had thick), sauce kind of sweet, fresh ingredients. The favorite of mine and my husband's for over 20 years.

My wife grew up in West Chicago and has always stated that Pal Joey's is her favorite pizza place of all time. We make sure to go there whenever we visit her folks, who still live in the area. She loves the deep dish with Sausage, Mushrooms, and Green Olives. The green olive thing sounded weird to me but the salty tang of the olives really added to the flavor. Good call, kathyb.

zussers:

Glad to know Big Ed's in Oak Ridge is still thriving. I used to eat there when Big Ed himself lurked around the place. He had to be one of the widest humans I've seen. It was always fun to go there and watch the engineers from the federal facilities attempt to unwind.

Fred Sauceman
Johnson City, Tennessee

I live in Albany now, but Orange County, New York is "home," and when I'm home I make sure to have at least one meal from Main Street Pizza in Chester (located on Route 94). The owner is Portugese and everything he makes is delicious. I've had pastas, pizzas, if he makes it, I'll eat it! This is my absolute favorite.

quote:

Originally posted by anselmo1

The Buffalo, New York areas has some of the best pizzerias in the country. Here are my ratings for the area:

1. Dino's Bocce Club---established in 1946 Amherst, NY
2. Just Pizza---Buffalo, NY
3. Bozanna's Pizzeria--Clarence, NY
4. Mazia's Pizzeria----Clarence, NY
5. Mattina's Pizza-----Kenmore, NY
6. Besta Pizza---------Getzville, NY
7. Martino's Pizza-----Kenmore, NY
8. Pizza Junction------N. Tonawanda, NY
9. Sorrentio's Pizza---Williamsville, NY
10. La Nova Pizza-------Buffalo, NY

The price for cheese & pepperoni large pizza ranges in price from $6.99 to $12.75. Of course Buffalo is noted for its chicken wings which are usually part of a pizza/wing combo. The best chicken wings period are in the Buffalo, NY area.

There are just to many to list in CT
Anselmo1 as in Phil Anselmo ???

quote:

Originally posted by stanpnepa

Old Forge, PA style. Square pies (we call 'em "trays") with a slightly sweet, tomato-laden sauce. Cheeses are often a blend from American (somehow it works) to Monterey Jack. It's goopy, it works...and it tastes like nowhere else.

i like the victory pig's pie best!

quote:

Originally posted by john_1

San Diego is not the pizza capital of anywhere, but a couple stand out.

One is Di Crescenzo's in Rancho Bernardo. They have pretty good Italian Beef sandwiches too. Not as good as in Chicago, but pretty good.

Another is a chain, though I don't know how big they are. I do like BJ's Pizza. I know they have at least a couple in San Diego (one is in La Jolla in La Jolla Village Square, or whatever it's called now.

I used to work at Royal Menu in Riverside, IL, and loved their pizza and Italian beef sandwiches. I don't know how they ever made a profit 'cause I was always dipping into the beef with chunks of bread.

Went to colleg in Champaign IL at UIUC. We are planning a trip back there and Papa Del's is high on the list.

Anybody have any other suggestions for San Diego? I will have to check out the rest of this list.

As a small kid growing up in the early seventies, the parents of my best friend across the street took us to a small hole-in-the-wall place in Cardiff. It was very greasy, but verrrah good! We ate there until around high school, and then for some unknown reason we stopped going there. On my most recent trip down to SD over X-Mas, I saw that it was still there, and looked to be still w/o any corporate parents. I checked a website for an address just before writing this suggestion, and according to the site this place has now been in business for 39 years. That's got to count for something in a business as brutal as the restaurant business.

Besta Wan Pizza House
148 Aberdeen Dr.
Cardiff, Ca.

Franzone's in Bridgeport, PA I live in Oregon now and have for years but I still keep a menu of theirs around and wish they would deliver. Thin , bubbly crust, good sauce, try the mushroom pizza, and have a birch beer while you"re at it.

I have to say, I am bias to Brooklyn Pizza.
Lenny's on 86th st. in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn is the best.
The crust is the right thickness, the sauce is great. Over all a great pie. Not to mention the specialty pies. WOW so goooood, and off track slightly , the rice balls are the best I've ever eaten.

I like Lenny's on 86th Street. It has everything that a great pizza should have. Even an el overhead (subway).

Have you ever tried another Lenny's? There is one on Fifth Ave. next to the Prospect Expwy and a Lenny's in Queens near Queens Blvd. and the Queens Mall.

Lenny has turned out to be a good name for pizza.

I grew up in central New Jersey, where you can get wonderful "Tomato Pie." This regional specialty (few places outside the Trenton, NJ area make it I think) is very thin crispy crust--but nicely chewy edges--with a sauce made from olive oil and fresh tomatos and very little to no cheese. It is really really really good.

The place to get it is Delorenzo's on Hudson Street in the Chambersburg (Little Italy) section of Trenton. It's always mobbed and tiny (and no bathrooms!) so most folks--who stand on line in all weather to get this stuff--do take out.

A very good pizza (thin crust and a bit more cheese) can be had at another Delorenzo's (different owners but same family) on Hamilton Avenue in Trenton.

The best pizza I ever ate was at Cafe Italiano on 20th St. in downtown Birmingham. It was the sauce--it was really dark and almost bitter. I have no idea what made it so distinctive but it was great. And lots of cheese that covered the sausages so they stood out as bumps on the pizza.

It was run by the family of one of my classmates (Bobby Williams are you out there somewhere and do you have your Mother's pizza sauce recipe?). This was in the mid '60s.

Cafe Italiano is long gone, but what I wouldn't give to relive one of those meals my family ate there all those years ago.

I agree that Mineo's and Aiello's in Squirrel Hill are great Pittsburgh pizzas. For some yummy, idiosyncratic Pittsburgh pies:

Jioio's in Greensburg and Latrobe, PA for a thin, slightly sweet pastry crust pizza that is best eaten in. If you take it home, heat it on a baking sheet to restore the crust's full glory.

Stroll Inn in Kennedy Township, PA for a Sicilian-style rectangular pie with a bright-tasting tomatoey sauce and plenty of quality toppings. Try the sausage--it's excellent, local hot sausage.

Aaahh... a Jioio's EBA (everything but anchovies) or a Stroll Inn sausage, pepperoni and extra cheese! Add some beer, and experience heaven. In my twisted opinion, anyway...

Lauren

Frank Pepes
Sallys
Colony Grill
Modern
Roseland

All within an easy drive...

Any list leaving out Joe's can't possibly compete. Plus, Merrick over Grimaldi's? Who we kidding?

quote:

Originally posted by wanderingjew

This is a tough decision, but here it goes.

1. Famous Rays NYC (the one on 6th ave and 12th street)
2. Di Fara's Brooklyn NY on Avenue J
3. Violetta's Merrick NY
4. Mineo's Pittsburgh PA
5. Pepe's New Haven CT


How about the worst

1. Every Chain (pizza hut, domino's, godfathers, little ceasar, etc
2. Every local pizza joint in Seattle (believe me, I tried them all

As a kid growing up in the 50's I used to love a great little place called Rickies in North Troy N.Y. very simple thin pizza with sauce that must have been cooked for days.

Also in Lansingburgh N.Y. a place called Verdile's FANTASTIC WHITE PIZZA (not greek) I think they are still there.

Out here in the bay area it's the Cheeseboard in Berkeley, Not New York but one of the best in the west.

Also great pan pizza's from Binghamton NY area it might be Vestal Bakery, They are huge and delicious square baked.

If you're ever in Milwaukee, Fillipo's on Lincoln is the best that city has to offer. So says my friend Ando, who hasn't figured out how to post to this forum.

Dino

quote:

Frank Pepes
Sallys
Colony Grill
Modern
Roseland

Amen to the Colony !