On June 30, 2020, I rode to BB’s Pizzeria in Newark, NY for my Great Pizza Search (GPS) #6.
I chose BB’s because their “About Us” seemed interesting, and I needed to ride 70 miles to get 1000 miles for the month of June. Newark is a 70 mile round trip (click here to go to Strava report). BB’s touts itself as the “best in town” which is a strong claim.
BB’s has the makings to be a “joint”.
It’s a long and narrow, stand alone brick building as in my mind’s eye, but unfortunately, the brick is painted white.
Besides, the interior also disqualifies it from being a “joint” as my mind’s eye wants to see the counter at the back, and rows of tables and booths along the sides. Neither were the case in BB’s.
Oh, so close!
I truly loved the sign on front though!
Now for the pizza!
We had two ample sized squares, one was a center cut and the other was an edge cut.
The crust on both cuts was thin and soft, while the edge had a good crunch, but the center cut had no crunch. Both held their shape well when folded.
Upon first bite, a “mmmm, this is good” were muttered both by my wife and I! The sauce was tangy and rich, and in “good” amount, not dripping off, but also not wanting for more.
The cheese taste was also excellent! A strong hint of parmagian could be detected in the moozerell.
For the first time on this journey, I mentioned to the guy behind the counter that I was biking around and cataloging my Search for Great Pizza.
A few minutes after we sat down, he came out and happened to be the owner. He was curious about what I had to say. He nicely kept social distance (although no one inside the restaurant wore masks).
We talked about his pizza and discovered that he makes his own sauce and dough. That’s very important to me and likely the reason for the great taste. We also learned that he’d worked at Lombardi’s Pizza in Little Italy, NYC (the first pizzeria in the USA!) where he learned his craft. He learned it well!
Incidentally, the cost per large square was only $2.00 and a topping added only $0.25, a very good value!
Now the final verdict, “was it great?” Almost, it tastes great, but BB’s misses the charm of a “joint”. Also, “would I go here again?” YOU BET!
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