The Original Frank Pepe Pizzeria, New Haven, CT

I first heard of Pepe’s Pizzeria while guiding food tours, as we often visit Pizzeria Locale here in Boulder. Great pizzerias from all over the US are regularly discussed, and many of my guests have visited The Original Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana in New Haven, Connecticut. When Sean told me the route we were driving on our east coast tour was bringing us to Pepe’s, I was so excited I started thinking of Pepe’s every day.

If you haven’t heard of Pepe’s, check out their website and put it on your food map for your next New England adventure. I had no idea what to expect, but everyone had raved about this place. Upon walking in to the old-old-school pizzeria, I knew I was in for a treat. As the driver that day, I had a soda- totally unlike me, as I never drink flavored sodas, but, the menu said this soda has been served at Pepe’s since 1925, the year they opened.

The menu is straightforward.

We ordered a traditional margarita pizza (because that’s a good standard upon which to judge a pizzeria) and a white pizza with spinach, mushrooms, and gorgonzola. After ordering, I had to get a closer at their oven. Their entire wall was an oven!

The oven at Pepe’s is ENORMOUS! The entire bricked wall is the exterior of their oven. Those extra-extra-long pizza peels can reach all the way to the back of the oven. I snapped a few photos with the approval of the really nice pizzaioli. It was fun watching them work.

These pizza peels must be 10-12 feet long, and they maneuver them through the open kitchen as if they were the short ones we use at home.

The oven doors are closed, apparently, and opened for each pie.

One guy was having some fun with me and flexed his muscles…

But, back to the pizza. Our very large (medium-sized) pizzas arrived sizzling hot and we had to unfortunately wait a couple minutes before we could dive in.

The crust is thin and crunchy, the toppings are perfect… It’s just good pizza, plain and simple. Pepe’s presents a classic east coast style pizza you won’t find outside of New Haven. Just writing this makes me want to go back.