"Briny, salty, garlicky, juicy, oily, toasty, chewy... this is the perfect food!"
Bruce Bilmes and Sue Boyle
"Pepe's pepperoni has a distinctive character. It is sliced thick and has a peppery bite -- great harmony for gobs of oozy mozzarella cheese."
Michael Stern
"Thick, spicy pepperoni, chunky and juicy sausage, and chewy cheese sits atop Pepe's unparalleled crust."
Bruce Bilmes and Sue Boyle
"The original pie that Frank Pepe sold from a rolling cart on the streets of New Haven: crushed tomato and grated cheese. Without the oozy cheese, this pizza has a bright, savory character unlike any other."
Michael Stern
"If you don't love clams, or you don't love garlic, you're not likely to fall in love with Pepe's white clam pie."
Bruce Bilmes and Sue Boyle
"It's the jaw-achingly good and salty crust that makes a Pepe's pie what it is."
Bruce Bilmes and Sue Boyle
"No cheese at all, not even Parm. We would have to believe that both Pepe's use the same canned tomatoes - yet we thought these tasted sweeter and more tomatoey than the ones used in New Haven. Perhaps that's just because in the plain pie they have nothing to fight against (we've never had one in New Haven)."
Bruce Bilmes and Sue Boyle
"Here's one thing that makes a Pepe's pizza so wonderful: the underside of the crust, all spattered and spangled with burned crumbs from the oven's floor. The combination of yeasty aroma and fire taste is one of gastronomy's finest treasures."
Michael Stern
"A wee bit saltier than we remember and with a crust that isn't quite as brittle, this white clam pizza is nonetheless a masterpiece: oil, spice, garlic and marine-sweet clams atop a bed of bread that is a joy to chew."
Michael Stern
"Pepe's in Fairfield is more user-friendly. The tables are even equipped with grated cheese (not so in New Haven)."
Bruce Bilmes and Sue Boyle
"The kitchen of the new Pepe's almost exactly replicates the old one. The pizza-makers' techniques haven't changed for decades. The result: a meal with indescribable soul.
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Michael Stern
"Here are our friends Greg and Lauren, along with Jane, at the table as our 3-pizza meal began to draw to a close. We must have used 50 napkins between us."
Michael Stern
"Pepe's oven is as busy as O'Hare Airport, with pizzas going in and coming out several times a minute."
Michael Stern
"We are still trying to figure out a time of the day or week when we won't have to wait in line. The hours at this Pepe's, by the way are 3pm to 10pm Monday through Thursday, 11:30am to midnight Friday and Saturday, and noon to 10pm Sunday."
Michael Stern
"Pepe's now offers something to keep you busy while your pizza cooks."
Bruce Bilmes and Sue Boyle
"Offered only in the summer, Pepe's fresh tomato pie includes fresh basil and garlic; lots and lots of garlic."
Bruce Bilmes and Sue Boyle
"It's the combination of the pizza crust and the intense heat of the coal oven that makes a Pepe pie better than all others."
Bruce Bilmes and Sue Boyle
