Ravanesi Pizzeria Napoletana

790 Baltimore Pike
Glen Mills, PA 19342
(484) 840-8912
Website

The pizza scene in the Philadelphia area is a hotly debated, often contentious topic. To make the vast Philadelphia-proper scene even more confusin, let's add the great pizza of the 'burbs to the mix. Philly may have the best pizza in the country, with Pizzeria Beddia, but South Jersey, MontCo, and DelCo hold it down as well. Ravanesi is modeled after the Neapolitan pizza of Napoli, and Dave Ravanesi's obsession is apparent in the product.

Located in a small strip mall in Glen Mills for two years now, you would not notice this place as you drove by at night, until you see the line of people out the door. They have seven pizzas on the menu. That is it. BYOB, no reservations, and no take-out on the weekends. When you are this good, you make the rules.

Dave is a great guy, hand making every pie, start to finish. He puts a level of attention into them that I have only seen by my buddy Joe Beddia. Indeed, I said it, the pizza here reminded quite a bit of Joey's pies.

See for yourself below.

Dave uses a no-yeast, 38 hour dough that lends itself to the blistering perfection and ease of manipulation. He never has more than 3 pies in his custom wood-fired oven (all hardwoods, of course, with an oak preference) and he keeps them moving so there's little loss of heat and they cook consistently in a matter of minutes.

By the time I got mine, I was drooling. Not that this was an aberration from my general state of consciousness, but this time it was food related. On top is the Sopressata Piccante, topped with San Marzano tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, spicy sopressata,  Parmigiano Reggiano, chili flakes, garlic, & extra-virgin olive oil. On the bottom, a traditional Margherita, boasting San Marzano tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, Parmigiano Reggiano, fresh basil, extra-virgin olive oil & sea salt.

Look at the color on that crust. The fluffy, crunchy dough is unbelievable, with a perfectly browned hue. The sauce had the zip of the San Marzano tomatoes, and was perfect in its simplicity. The mozzarella is made in-house, and was rich and creamy with a velvety texture. Finished with basil leaves, this pie is simple perfection. Easily one of the best Margheritas I have ever tasted.

My favorite, unsurprisingly, had the extra addition of salty meat. Spicy soppressata with chili flakes made this pizza shine. Again, the crust was perfectly baked, the toppings beyond reproach, and the execution phenomenal.

Look at the spicy little grease pools on this. Pure deliciousness.

Check the bottom of the crust. You can't beat the combo of slight char, and perfect browning.

This place blew away my expectations, and I encourage you to check it out as well. The only thing I can say is, if you go early to avoid a wait, be prepared for a lot of kids. Not that it's a bad thing, but it's something to be ready for. Also, don't forget the wine.

Forno Antico Pizza Napolitana

416 E. Main Street
Collegeville, PA 19426
(610) 454-1130
Website

A new pizza place in Collegeville recently opened up and I decided to give my old stomping grounds a return trip.

They opened in what I believe was an old catholic elementary school. And if that's not what it was, they had me fooled. If you didn't know, this place is so Italian they even sell fountains. All of my Italian friends LOVE fountains.

They opened with the promise of brick oven pizza, and the freshest ingredients. And they were not lying. The oven is a thing of beauty. Ciro Nuzzolese (owner) is the man in charge of the pizza game, and he puts a whole lot of love and care into each pie.

He's got a seasoned professional resume that started in childhood, working beside his grandfather in Italy at the family's Port Alba Antica Ristorant in Napoli. It's obvious that he had to bring Italy to us with the custom igloo oven, which is a thing of beauty.

The Margherita Del Re features a perfectly charred crust, fresh buffalo mozzarella, and a sweet San Marzano tomato sauce.  It is a perfect pizza.

The 800 degree oven is evident in the even blistering of the crust, despite the pie's quite brief trip into the oven (just two minutes according to Ciro). It's due to this quick, high-fire timing that the fresh basil maintains some moisture and doesn't burn away to nothing while it's in there.

Heated with wood, the oven is also hooked up to a gas line, in order to maintain an even temperature throughout every lunch & dinner service. The beautiful char, however, is solely the result of the wood's flame.

The veal parm was a perfectly simple example of one of my favorite comfort foods. Again, the San Marzano sauce shined (tart and sweet at the same time), and the thin tender veal was breaded and fried crispy. Just how it should be.

The lobster ravioli (another comfort go-to for me) was fresh, rich, and satisfying. I could barely fit all of the food in, but somehow I overcame adversity and demolished it. The price is extremely reasonable here, and the food is top notch, It's not fancy, but it's done really well. Also, it's a BYOB, so you can afford to splurge on the food. Highly recommended if you are anywhere near the Collegeville area.

Even if you're not "in the area," I'd say it's worth the trip.

Franzone's Pizzeria

501 DeKalb St
Bridgeport, PA 19405
(610) 275-0114

If you don't like sweet sauce on your pizza, stop reading. If you like amazing thin crust, and the "swirl", then get your ass to Franzone's.

Well-known among the Norristown area and beyond, Franzone's is about as unassuming as they come.

A Caesar salad came with surprisingly crispy lettuce, and a nice peppery cream based dressing.

But I was not here to eat salad. I was here for pizza. I went with a half pepperoni, half plain in order to sample both staples. I should have just ordered a whole of each. The crust is thin, crunchy, and has a fantastic slightly nutty flavor. The cheese is quality, and spread generously, allowing it to meld with the dough. But the sauce, oh that sauce, is the star of the show. The old rumor around town is that the sauce is made out of Ragu + sugar, but I believe it is actually made of tomato paste (for richness, sweetness, and umami) and pure love.

And a ton of sugar, yes. Either way, this sweet sauce is to die for, and has me craving some pizza from them RIGHT NOW.

Fancy, this place is not. Delicious, cheap, and crave worthy, it absolutely fits the bill. Some of my favorite pizza around.

Pica's Restaurant (Pica's Pizza)

7803 W Chester Pike
Upper Darby, PA 19082
(610) 789-7770
Website

Pica's was all over the news recently due to Tina Fey bringing some pizza from her hometown of Upper Darb's to a late night talk show. As it was already one of my favorites, I figured it was high time to cash in on the sudden popularity, far after it was still relevant.

While waiting, it was difficult not to overhear EVERYONE talking about the recent TV appearance. And of course, wherever there is celebrity gossip/bottomless sodas, the Evster from every girl's favorite reality show blog "TV My Wife Watches" will also be found. I am pretty sure he stalked me and happened to show up at the same time, completely independent. Below you will see him right after he ditched his beautiful wife who was waiting for their table, and before he stole some of my pizza. It's a real who's who of DelCo.

They make it a point to say that bread and peppers doesn't come with pizza. It costs an extra $3, and is probably worth it if you are like me and don't care how many calories you eat or don't listen when your doctor tells you that if you don't stop eating so much food you are more likely to die.

The Greek Salad is a big meh, especially at $11.50. Olives, feta, tomatoes, eggs and onions served on mixed greens. I mean, it's not bad, but you aren't here for freaking salad. You know what, just get it. Whatever. God, now I sound like Evster.

The calamari was surprisingly good. It was fried crispy, and had a light breading on it. The marinara was pretty tasty.

Perfect chew on the squid and just the right amount of salt.

Now, for the real reason to go to Pica's. The pizza. Square pie, cheese on bottom, sweet garlicy sauce on top. It's not too thick, but certainly not thin crust. I can eat an unbelievable amount, as it is not heavy at all (relatively speaking). The perfect amount of buttery char makes the dough just right, and the crust has sauce baked into it.

The pepperonis are a large, thin deli style. They drape the entire pizza, like some delicious window treatments.

Look at the golden bottom of the pie. A product of the signature pans they are baked in. Perfection. You can see how airy the dough is and you can almost taste that buttery crispness.

The plain pie is also fantastic. It gets way better when it cools a bit, and the flavors really meld. These are both larges, and they are a pretty decent value for the money. I could have gotten another pie to go, just for a midnight snack.

Did I mention Pica's interior is like the shitty family restaurant you grew up going to in the 1980's-1990's? It's amazing. I love everything about this place. But mostly the ridiculously good pizza.

Cacia's Bakery & Primo Hoagies

Ritner & Mole Streets
(between 15th & 16th)
South Philadelphia

Any time I take a trip down south of Snyder, I find it hard not to hit the amazing couple of blocks on Ritner just west of Broad. Here's where you can get a slice of pizzaz, a top-notch Italian hoagie, a ham pie and a dozen cannoli's - just to name a few, all at 4-6 neighboring old-school establishments. Two of my absolute faves: Cacia's and Primo's.

I'm no stranger to Cacia's, it's like visiting your grandmother, if your grandmother lived in a bakery. They're beyond friendly and never turn down a special request - like baking a 6 foot long roll for your 6 foot hoagie party, or making a big frisbee loaf for muffaletta because the Saints are in the Super Bowl.

But I digress. There's no special order this time, just getting down and dirty with some pizzaz.

Cacia's is the authority on pizzaz pie, with its creamy American cheese bubbled and browned to perfection every time. You can buy a slice for $1.30 or cater your next party with a whole pie for $11.50 - just make sure to invite me.

The pickled banana peppers add a warming tang that lends a sort of (out-of-a-jar) brightness to each bite. The fresh tomatoes give it a smack of juiciness to make up for the omission of sauce. Look at this buttery crust. Incredible.

Something about the green on the broccoli pie called to me. It was probably the fact that I hadn't eaten vegetables in nearly 3 days.

The chopped bits of blanched broccoli definitely filled my need for vitamins & minerals. Another slice of crispy, chewy, buttery crust was the perfect vessel to deliver the firm bits of green. Who knew eating healthy could be so delicious?

As if the visit to Cacia's wasn't enough, an order from Primo Hoagies seemed like it would fulfill (almost) all of my Saturday morning, pre-Flyer's game needs.

Primo is an eastern PA-NJ franchise that just recently broke out in the FL market (thank you spring training), but this one here on Ritner, it's the O.G.

They use rolls baked specially by my favorite regional bakery, Liscio's in South Jersey, and their quality is unmatched. I read that each seeded roll is baked "using a technique that is optimal for transport... It gets baked seven-eighths of the way, and then we flash-freeze it. Each franchise has a small convection oven and when it comes out, it's like it's fresh right out of a bakery oven."

And I'm okay with that, because I can attest to that truth.

The crusty roll is by far the best part of these hoagies, but the fresh-slicing of Thumann's deli meats doesn't hurt either. This is the Sicilian with dry cured capacola, sharp prov & natural casing genoa salami. A sure bet to satisfy any hoagie-driven hunger.

So, in conclusion, head to 15th & Ritner with an open mind, an empty stomach, and about $20. You'll leave wishing you lived right around the corner and that eating like a king didn't require so much exercise.