OT: Best Pizza in CT

[jmail1]

Zuppardi's is the best pizza when you eat it right out of the oven.

 

[mauconnfan]

Had the pizza at 5 Church’s yesterday. Honestly it’s the best I’ve had outside of New Haven and Little Rendezvous.

Is the Rendezvous still a quality pie?

 

[Dove]

Is the Rendezvous still a quality pie?

I would like to know , too. Haven't had theirs in 10 years.

Tried Grand Apizza in downton Madison Friday night. Place was jamming but the pies were okay. Their 4 Cheese has American cheese in the mix. It doesn't work. Adds a creaminess that makes this pie too rich.

And then there is Brickside Pizza in Ivoryton. Picked up a pie after work two weeks ago. Got home and popped it in the oven for 5 minutes and it was fantastic. Very thin crust with tasty toppings. A hidden gem.

 

[Tommyboy]

So, I did the unfathomable and ordered pizza from Zuppardi's by mail. 6 personal pies came for $60. They were a little bigger than personals actually, somewhere between personal and small. Since we pay $20 for 1 cruddy pizza up here, it was well worth it. I didn't tell the kids what they were eating, and they knew immediately that it was quality.

Sad that pizza by mail (sent overnight) is better than fresh local pizza.

I had been debating this. Sounds like I should go for it. Which ones did you order?

 

[8893]

Is the Rendezvous still a quality pie?

It was when I went there in October 2015:

What a classic joint. Like it's been frozen in time for 40 years.

I heard from a friend who is a big fan of LR and he said that his favorite pie from them is their plain pizza, with only sauce and grated cheese, with thin crust (they have thickness options there, from thin through double dough, and their "traditional" is not very thin).

I figured that was a high-risk proposition and that I would still be wanting to try something with more flavor as well, so I also ordered the sausage pie (thin crust).

I ate half of each, which was easily three slices too many. For some reason (hmmmm...maybe gluttony?) no matter how many times it happens, I simply don't wait long enough most of the time to let the pie cool down, so I end up singeing my mouth on the first couple slices and then I overeat because I really don't start to taste how great the pie is for a couple more slices, when it starts to cool down. And the guy even warned me that it was scorching hot. Of course, I waited; but I'm sure what I thought was five minutes was more like 30 seconds, because I was starving.

I am glad I got both pies. The plain was cool to experience and it tastes good enough, but that's not the way I like my apizza. I need more cheese than just grated, for starters. But it is a cool pie.

The sausage was very good. He said it gets it from Hartford, the same place they've been getting it for over 40 years. They crumble it, which I like.

The crust was thin and crisp, but a bit too try for my preferences. I like a slightly chewy crust, at least around the outside. They do theirs very thin and short around the outside, so you really don't even have much of a crust at all when you get to the end of a piece. Nice char though--could use a touch of olive oil imo.

Funny, there were only two other customers the whole time I was there, one of them who looked like he, too, was frozen in time for the last 40 years. He may have been wearing a Chess King jacket. He asked if they were the only coal or wood-fired pizza place left in Meriden (yes); and then he asked about--yep, you guessed it @mauconnfan --Verdolini's. I think what I heard the LR guy say was that they got closed down several years ago (early 90s?) because they had no insurance so they lost their lease, or something like that. He said that LR is closest in style to Verdolini's.

Of course, I had to ask him about the Spooker then. He had never heard of it, but he said that the guy from whom he bought LR probably did, because he was around when Verdolini's was in its heyday. He said that the signature, old school Meriden-style pie from places like LR and Verdolini's is the plain, like my buddy told me to get.

Glad I checked it out. Would stop again.

 

[CTBasketball]

Is the Rendezvous still a quality pie?

I would like to know , too. Haven't had theirs in 10 years.

Tried Grand Apizza in downton Madison Friday night. Place was jamming but the pies were okay. Their 4 Cheese has American cheese in the mix. It doesn't work. Adds a creaminess that makes this pie too rich.

And then there is Brickside Pizza in Ivoryton. Picked up a pie after work two weeks ago. Got home and popped it in the oven for 5 minutes and it was fantastic. Very thin crust with tasty toppings. A hidden gem.

It tailed off when Paul sold it to his family back in 2008 (I think at least...) but since then they moved to Florida and sold to another person more recently, either last year or the year before. The pies are great again, just like when Paul was cranking them out in the 90s.

 

[8893]

Tried Grand Apizza in downton Madison Friday night. Place was jamming but the pies were okay. Their 4 Cheese has American cheese in the mix. It doesn't work. Adds a creaminess that makes this pie too rich.

Grand, Amato's, Red Tomato and Bradley & Wall are all pretty much on par with each other imo. Grand delivers--including delivering to the beach if you want--which is a bonus. Stick with the basics; none of the "4 cheese" nonsense. Red Tomato doesn't travel as well as the others for some reason, but they will do a "half-baked" pie if you ask, and you can finish it off in your own oven at home.

 

[upstater]

I had been debating this. Sounds like I should go for it. Which ones did you order?

Sausage and mushroom

 

[mauconnfan]

It tailed off when Paul sold it to his family back in 2008 (I think at least...) but since then they moved to Florida and sold to another person more recently, either last year or the year before. The pies are great again, just like when Paul was cranking them out in the 90s.

Thanks good to hear. Paul was great!

 

[CTMike]

Had the pizza at 5 Church’s yesterday. Honestly it’s the best I’ve had outside of New Haven and Little Rendezvous.

They really do make a tasty little pie.

 

[Balker]

Grand, Amato's, Red Tomato and Bradley & Wall are all pretty much on par with each other imo. Grand delivers--including delivering to the beach if you want--which is a bonus. Stick with the basics; none of the "4 cheese" nonsense. Red Tomato doesn't travel as well as the others for some reason, but they will do a "half-baked" pie if you ask, and you can finish it off in your own oven at home.

I think that’s exactly right. There are several serviceable options on the shoreline, they are all decent. Carpanzano’s in Guilford is similarly good, but has better pasta dishes. Centro on the Guilford green is bad. Bradley and Wall’s pizza is ok, terrible after refrigerated. It does have the best chicken cutlets in town, though, imo. If you’re hankering for a chicken parm grinder you’d be hard pressed to find a better one.

But as we both know, these places all exist for one reason: to get pizza when Bufalina is closed, or you are trying to save money. Otherwise, you will just be sad thinking about what could have been.

Bufalina’s winter menu’s potato pie is terrific by the way.

 

[methodology]

I think that’s exactly right. There are several serviceable options on the shoreline, they are all decent. Carpanzano’s in Guilford is similarly good, but has better pasta dishes. Centro on the Guilford green is bad. Bradley and Wall’s pizza is ok, terrible after refrigerated. It does have the best chicken cutlets in town, though, imo. If you’re hankering for a chicken parm grinder you’d be hard pressed to find a better one.

But as we both know, these places all exist for one reason: to get pizza when Bufalina is closed, or you are trying to save money. Otherwise, you will just be sad thinking about what could have been.

Bufalina’s winter menu’s potato pie is terrific by the way.

Roccos off Wooster is better then carpanzonos imo

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

Does anyone know who the owner was of Dino's Pizza in Bishops Corner in the late 70's and 80's? Not the Dino's in WH now. Completely different owners. I want to know the answer to this question before the "fat lady sings".

In all seriousness wish I could even give a prize for the correct answer. I spent some of my most memorable moments there as a kid.

Thank You & Sincerely Always,
BDH

Possibly/maybe.

I grew up walking distance from Bishop's Corner, so I know Dino's well. However, my time frame is mid-60s-to-early-70s.

Dino's love has a presence on a "You Know You Grew Up in West Hartford..." Facebook page. I seem to recall a childhood neighbor once saying that his uncle was the owner of Dino's AND Goldstein's Delicatessen, both located in the lower rear of Crossroads Plaza. If you think we're talking about about the same place, I can inquire further. The guy I mentioned was in my first grade class, and we're FB friends.

 

[8893]

I think that’s exactly right. There are several serviceable options on the shoreline, they are all decent. Carpanzano’s in Guilford is similarly good, but has better pasta dishes. Centro on the Guilford green is bad. Bradley and Wall’s pizza is ok, terrible after refrigerated. It does have the best chicken cutlets in town, though, imo. If you’re hankering for a chicken parm grinder you’d be hard pressed to find a better one.

But as we both know, these places all exist for one reason: to get pizza when Bufalina is closed, or you are trying to save money. Otherwise, you will just be sad thinking about what could have been.

Bufalina’s winter menu’s potato pie is terrific by the way.

Agree re Carpanzano's. That's @David 76 's local go-to iirc. Also agree Centro no bueno. We don't do pizza from BWall very often, but when we get it I note that their sauce is sweet, like San Marzano sweet, not sugar sweet, and I like that difference; but yeah it's probably a touch below the others overall. My kids love the sandwiches there but I usually get the hot table stuff like the cajun broiled salmon, green beans and broccoli.

Thanks for the heads up re the Bufalina potato pie from the new menu. We haven't been there since they switched to the winter menu and tbh none of the new pies sounded particularly great to me, but I know they almost always surprise me once I try them. The Arrabbiata sounds interesting, but I wonder if the ricotta makes it richer than I'd like.

 

[HuskyHawk]

So, I did the unfathomable and ordered pizza from Zuppardi's by mail. 6 personal pies came for $60. They were a little bigger than personals actually, somewhere between personal and small. Since we pay $20 for 1 cruddy pizza up here, it was well worth it. I didn't tell the kids what they were eating, and they knew immediately that it was quality.

Sad that pizza by mail (sent overnight) is better than fresh local pizza.

So do these come frozen? How does that work?

 

[Steelerone]

Just finished a Sicilian Chicken Bar-B-Que from Naples in Farmington. Thick crust, great sauce, lots of cheese in the topping to go along with the chicken. Finished it off with a Shocktop. Does life get any better?

 

[Steelerone]

Joeys garlic in farmington is not bad

I think thats the place thats Mama Luca now. Food was great but service was c-.

 

[Steelerone]

Has anyone had Papa Johns? How good is it compared to Pizza Hut/Dominos?

Ctbasketball -we are discussing real Pizza.

 

[Huskybass]

I think that’s exactly right. There are several serviceable options on the shoreline, they are all decent. Carpanzano’s in Guilford is similarly good, but has better pasta dishes. Centro on the Guilford green is bad. Bradley and Wall’s pizza is ok, terrible after refrigerated. It does have the best chicken cutlets in town, though, imo. If you’re hankering for a chicken parm grinder you’d be hard pressed to find a better one.

But as we both know, these places all exist for one reason: to get pizza when Bufalina is closed, or you are trying to save money. Otherwise, you will just be sad thinking about what could have been.

Bufalina’s winter menu’s potato pie is terrific by the way.

On the topic of shoreline pizza, I had dinner at La Scarpetta in Old Lyme the other night. The entrees were delicious, I had chicken and shrimp fra diavolo and my date had linguine with clam sauce. Everything was great from the salads and bread through the entrees. Portions were quite large so we had leftovers and certainly no room for dessert.

While we were waiting for our entrees they brought small slices to everyone to try the pizza. It was bacon and mushroom and it was quite good. A nice surprise. Looking forward to getting a whole pizza there at some point. The owners are cousins who grew up outside of Naples, Italy, FWIW.

 

[upstater]

So do these come frozen? How does that work?

Not thoroughly. They are packed with dry ice so they come cooled, but not frozen. If you have a 3rd middle drawer in your fridge (where I keep meat and beer) it's about the same temperature. In between. (Don't grab the dry ice even if it has plastic around it.)

 

[Balker]

Roccos off Wooster is better then carpanzonos imo

To be honest, I haven’t tried Rocco’s. It’s a bit of a drive down RT 1 and I hadn’t heard any compelling evidence that it’s worth it. Next time Bufalina is closed I’ll give it a try.

 

[Balker]

Agree re Carpanzano's. That's @David 76 's local go-to iirc. Also agree Centro no bueno. We don't do pizza from BWall very often, but when we get it I note that their sauce is sweet, like San Marzano sweet, not sugar sweet, and I like that difference; but yeah it's probably a touch below the others overall. My kids love the sandwiches there but I usually get the hot table stuff like the cajun broiled salmon, green beans and broccoli.

Thanks for the heads up re the Bufalina potato pie from the new menu. We haven't been there since they switched to the winter menu and tbh none of the new pies sounded particularly great to me, but I know they almost always surprise me once I try them. The Arrabbiata sounds interesting, but I wonder if the ricotta makes it richer than I'd like.

Agreed on arrabbiata. Never been a big ricotta fan myself. Though I saw one come out of the oven last weekend and I think it may be worth a shot, it looked amazing. I do really enjoy the fontina on the potato and that’s a new one for me on pizza.

the winter menu overall is not my favorite. And they’ve been phoning in the specials for a few weeks, probably because of their family vacation. But I feel a good one coming on this weekend!

 

[ClifSpliffy]

how about home recipes for dough? anyone have an insight on the subject of incorporating corn meal/corn flower into the mix? ratio?

 

[August_West]

how about home recipes for dough? anyone have an insight on the subject of incorporating corn meal/corn flower into the mix? ratio?

Go to seriouseats.com

Learn. Experiment . Absorb

 

[August_West]

Ctbasketball -we are discussing real Pizza.

That post would hold more credibility if you didn’t just post about how delightful BBQ chicken thick crust is


What are your thoughts on little Caesar’s pretzel crust stuffed with cheese?