Pete B.
Yelp
Where's the six star button???
We finally got to head over to Elizabeth to try Santillo's famous Pizza. I read a lot of reviews on this place. My mind is getting ready for what we're about to eat. This can not possibly live up to the hype.
We make a right into S. Broad and there it is. The iconic sign we see on social media. Now let me paint this picture for you....
There's a church to the left with a parking lot and a parking lot to the right. We parked in the church being that it appeared that we're not active at the moment. We ordered online via Santillo's website. If you go in person, it's cash only but if you order online, you can pay with your card.
You walk down a little alley and there's a door leading into the kitchen. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, we didn't get a view of the historic brick oven but I still be back plenty of times and I'm looking forward to seeing this in action.
Before I even get into what we had, the owner, Al greeted us at the door. This guy is one of the most personable human beings I have met. First of all, the pride he has in the food he makes and the history of his establishment is bar none. Before he even gave us our pizza, he had no doubt we were going to be blown away. Now at this point, I'm still skeptical. How can it be this good??? Then we start talking about life in general. We went from talking pizza to talking about what's better... The Godfather film or the book. Al says the book, so now I have to read it.
What did we order? We got the 2020 (you order the pie based on the year it was popular. ) He'll make you a 1957 which is a tomato pie, 1962, 1967. Check out the menu. You'll get the picture. The 2020 is fresh mozz and San Marzano tomatoes. Then you tell him how many minutes you want it cooked. We went with 8 minutes which is golden brown crust. Plus we got half with meatball after hearing the meatballs are made from scratch along with the eggplant
While there, we're eyeing up the sausage bread, so yes, we had to get that as well. To wash it down, this establishment has a soda brand that they get exclusively. Like old style sarsaparilla? Creamy birch? Great way to wash it down.
Al, I'm calling him like he's family because that's how he makes you feel, hands us the box and tells us to open it and look while he gets the sausage bread. Oh my God. This pie looked phenomenal. We then grabbed the sausage bread and I had to get a quick picture with this pizza legend.
We get back to the car and grab the first slice. Fuhgedaboudit. This is hands down, the best pizza I've ever had. The ingredients are out of this world. I challenge you to match it. The meatballs were absolutely delicious. I'm now dying to go back to get a meatball sandwich.
We haven't even gotten to the sausage bread. I believe he gets the sausage fresh from a local butcher. The bread is made consistently from the family recipe that brought the Santillo name to where it is. I usually avoid end pieces because it's mostly bread and little sausage... This bread is so good, you'll want to just eat the bread.
Take the drive. His hours are tight. Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We went straight from work. I promise you, you will not be sorry!