OT: - Best Pizza in CT | Page 210 | The Boneyard

OT: Best Pizza in CT

Is it time to get rid of the pizza thread?

  • Yes. It's past it's useful time here.

    Votes: 10 13.5%

  • No. I can't live without it.

    Votes: 53 71.6%

  • Move it to another board.

    Votes: 11 14.9%
  • Total voters
    74
Kitaman said:
Quick story, was having my car repaired and the dealership drove me home. The driver and I started talking about pizza, and he told me the story about how Pepe's had dealt with a problem with their pizza tasting different outside of New Haven. Many New Haven lovers complained that the pizza was not Pepe's standards. Their satellite restaurants used the exact same ingredients, yet the taste was different (or not as good).

Pepe's paid for technicians, labs and other scientists to probe the reason. Apparently Pepe's agreed.

The problem was then discovered that the difference in taste was due to the water being used. New Haven area water had a content that was unmatched elsewhere (or at least in their other locations). Since the discovery they now ship water to the satellite stores along with the other ingredients.

Now that's the story from the driver, hasn't been verified but its a fun and believable story to tell.
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Pizzarias around the country have had water brought in from Brooklyn to replicate the taste and texture in their crusts.
 
Chin Diesel said:
Pizzarias around the country have had water brought in from Brooklyn to replicate the taste and texture in their crusts.
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And allegedly, satellite locations of Grimaldi’s have taken it a step further by having a machine created to change the composition of their local water to replicate the Brooklyn water.
 
Chin Diesel said:
Pizzarias around the country have had water brought in from Brooklyn to replicate the taste and texture in their crusts.
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But if I remember correctly from when I lived in Brooklyn, the borough gets its drinking water from some 19 different reservoirs and three lakes spread across a nearly 2,000-square-mile watershed. The watershed is not located in New York City... it is upstate, in portions of the Hudson Valley and Catskill Mountains that are as far as 125 miles north of the City.
 
Kitaman said:
Quick story, was having my car repaired and the dealership drove me home. The driver and I started talking about pizza, and he told me the story about how Pepe's had dealt with a problem with their pizza tasting different outside of New Haven. Many New Haven lovers complained that the pizza was not Pepe's standards. Their satellite restaurants used the exact same ingredients, yet the taste was different (or not as good).

Pepe's paid for technicians, labs and other scientists to probe the reason. Apparently Pepe's agreed.

The problem was then discovered that the difference in taste was due to the water being used. New Haven area water had a content that was unmatched elsewhere (or at least in their other locations). Since the discovery they now ship water to the satellite stores along with the other ingredients.

Now that's the story from the driver, hasn't been verified but its a fun and believable story to tell.
Expand ...
Wow! This explains it! I grew up in the valley and Pepe's was our family favorite back in the 70s. Living now in NE CT, we've been getting Pepe's from the Manchester location. It was never like New Haven and seemed like it was getting worse as time went by. For that reason and not long ago, we were one pizza away from not going there anymore... A couple of months ago, we decided to give it one more shot and noticed a BIG difference. It was soooo much more like a New Haven Pepe's pie. Not sure when the changes your driver suggested above were made, but his story seems to hold water to me!!
 
Local water can be a big deal. That's one reason Lawson's never moved Sip of Sunshine out of Stratford.
 
Did a white clam with bacon takeout pie from Pepe's the week before last and was told to pick it up at The Spot because that's where they are doing all the takeout now. It was the best clam pie I've had from Pepe's in years; *almost* made me feel guilty for elevating Zupp's. I'd call it a draw after that one. But the point is that I think there is something to both the oven and the water.

Did Bufalina last night. Special pie with pesto, speck and stracciatella cheese was fantastic; as was the Anatra again. Looking forward to leftovers of both for apps tonight.

Also of note, we did takeout from Zeneli for office lunch a few weeks ago. The combination of the insulated box and the less-crisp, more-chewy crust meant that it didn't travel well, even five minutes across town from door to door. It got steamed and spongy. Great taste, but didn't show well overall because of the crust. I'd recommend reheating if taking out; you'll make the crust more crispy than they intend, but it's better than spongy. When eating there fresh out of the oven their pies are much better imo.
 
8893 said:
Did a white clam with bacon takeout pie from Pepe's the week before last and was told to pick it up at The Spot because that's where they are doing all the takeout now. It was the best clam pie I've had from Pepe's in years; *almost* made me feel guilty for elevating Zupp's. I'd call it a draw after that one. But the point is that I think there is something to both the oven and the water.

Did Bufalina last night. Special pie with pesto, speck and stracciatella cheese was fantastic; as was the Anatra again. Looking forward to leftovers of both for apps tonight.

Also of note, we did takeout from Zeneli for office lunch a few weeks ago. The combination of the insulated box and the less-crisp, more-chewy crust meant that it didn't travel well, even five minutes across town from door to door. It got steamed and spongy. Great taste, but didn't show well overall because of the crust. I'd recommend reheating if taking out; you'll make the crust more crispy than they intend, but it's better than spongy. When eating there fresh out of the oven their pies are much better imo.
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Speaking of white clam and bacon, I had one recently from Pizza Co in Stratford. They are the food vendor for Two Roads. The pie was fantastic. New Haven style with just the right char and crust. Maybe not quite on par with the big four or five but with a few brews it was damn good!
 
superjohn said:
Star Tavern is the pie by which he judges all other pizzas, that says it all. Lol.
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As non-Colony bar pies go, Eddie's in New Hyde Park, LI is better than Star, but it might be further from West Hartford.
 
Hans Sprungfeld said:
As non-Colony bar pies go, Eddie's in New Hyde Park, LI is better than Star, but it might be further from West Hartford.
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Good to know. 11 mins from SIL's house in Westbury, next time I'm there.
 
storrsroars said:
Good to know. 11 mins from SIL's house in Westbury, next time I'm there.
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Disclaimer: I'm 15 years out of date, so check to see if it still operates the same way.

A grandma slice from Umberto's in New Hyde Park was also always reliable, and I'm generally anti-Sicilian-y (with exception of 14th East Village Artichoke Basille's, which is best thick, cheesy, full-fat flavored pizza I've ever had).
 
UconnMICK said:
Wow! This explains it! I grew up in the valley and Pepe's was our family favorite back in the 70s. Living now in NE CT, we've been getting Pepe's from the Manchester location. It was never like New Haven and seemed like it was getting worse as time went by. For that reason and not long ago, we were one pizza away from not going there anymore... A couple of months ago, we decided to give it one more shot and noticed a BIG difference. It was soooo much more like a New Haven Pepe's pie. Not sure when the changes your driver suggested above were made, but his story seems to hold water to me!!
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This summer I discovered Roseland Pizza in Derby, posted the experience before. Its up there with the New Haven pies, beats Zuppardi's to me.

 
Kitaman said:
This summer I discovered Roseland Pizza in Derby, posted the experience before. Its up there with the New Haven pies, beats Zuppardi's to me.

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My high school girlfriend lived pretty close to Roseland and it was her family’s go to place. It was very delicious!
 
Hans Sprungfeld said:
Disclaimer: I'm 15 years out of date, so check to see if it still operates the same way.

A grandma slice from Umberto's in New Hyde Park was also always reliable, and I'm generally anti-Sicilian-y (with exception of 14th East Village Artichoke Basille's, which is best thick, cheesy, full-fat flavored pizza I've ever had).
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Disagree.

Prince St Pizza's "spicy Spring" is the best sicilian'y slice you can get.
 
Roseland is very good, but not quite New Haven/West Haven top tier, in my opinion. I recently went to Ernie's in New Haven for the first time. Very good, but not quite in the same league as the Big Three. There is a lot of subjectivity in ranking various pizza places. I have hit Pepe's, Modern, Zuppardi's, Mike's, Tipsy Tomato, and Ernie's in the last 2 months. I have not hit Sally's in over a year. Sally's is next.
 
August_West said:
Disagree.

Prince St Pizza's "spicy Spring" is the best sicilian'y slice you can get.
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The two are close enough to each other that I can bike between them and do a both/and rather than an either/or.
That is, if/when biking in NYC becomes a thing again.
 
Hans Sprungfeld said:
The two are close enough to each other that I can bike between them and do a both/and rather than an either/or.
That is, if/when biking in NYC becomes a thing again.
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I always liked John's/Bleeker St., but don't know Prince St. Pizza - how do they compare?
 
j66kicker said:
I always liked John's/Bleeker St., but don't know Prince St. Pizza - how do they compare?
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Don't know. @augustwest offered Prince St as a Sicilian option.

John's, when I lived in NYC, always struck me as similar to and not as good as what I love about New Haven pizza, similar to Lombardi's but also not as good. My favorite coal oven NYC pizzas have been Grimaldi's in Brooklyn and Patsy's in East Harlem, but I'm still a CT pizza partisan.
 
Hans Sprungfeld said:
Don't know. @augustwest offered Prince St as a Sicilian option.

John's, when I lived in NYC, always struck me as similar to and not as good as what I love about New Haven pizza, similar to Lombardi's but also not as good. My favorite coal oven NYC pizzas have been Grimaldi's in Brooklyn and Patsy's in East Harlem, but I'm still a CT pizza partisan.
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Yeah it’s a Sicilian comment . Prince for a regular pie slice is really good NY pie. Johns is great but would be like 9th in new haven for that style. ( 9th in new haven Is damn good)
 
Hans Sprungfeld said:
Don't know. @augustwest offered Prince St as a Sicilian option.

John's, when I lived in NYC, always struck me as similar to and not as good as what I love about New Haven pizza, similar to Lombardi's but also not as good. My favorite coal oven NYC pizzas have been Grimaldi's in Brooklyn and Patsy's in East Harlem, but I'm still a CT pizza partisan.
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never had the harlem patsy’s, but i love squares & turtle bay 2nd ave square is fire. joe’s square is the best evah
 
Huskybass said:
Roseland is very good, but not quite New Haven/West Haven top tier, in my opinion. I recently went to Ernie's in New Haven for the first time. Very good, but not quite in the same league as the Big Three. There is a lot of subjectivity in ranking various pizza places. I have hit Pepe's, Modern, Zuppardi's, Mike's, Tipsy Tomato, and Ernie's in the last 2 months. I have not hit Sally's in over a year. Sally's is next.
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I may be biased, but I believe Roseland is better than all of them:)
 
Di Fara Pizza on Avenue J was our go-to pizza spot when I lived in Brooklyn... many, many years ago.
 
Bufalina dropping a new late fall menu.
D36C0593-E01F-40BB-A369-21CFCE36FE00.jpeg
 
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