I extracted other things on sale at "Maggio's Specials" in the newspaper ad above in order to show this very interesting listing of tomato pie places in the city of Trenton in 1937. Not listed is the original site of Rick and Pat DeLorenzo who had a tomato pie restaurant on South Broad and Ferry Street in Trenton in the late 1930's.
Tommy
ReplyDeletemy paternal grandfather had a grocery store 3 doors down at 412 Hudson Street. Dilorenzo's was the corner hangout fot the boys of the "burg".watching the girls go by.As I remember pies were 35 cents.When you reach 82 years old memories fade.
Lee
C'mon, Lee. We're 82 and those memories would persist even if we all got Alzheimers. They were very unforgettable. Stay well and stay in touch.
ReplyDelete"Tommie"
Our personal favorite is on the list: La Roma was wonderful. The maestro behind the counter was Salvatore "Sammy" Delia. We go way back when pies were wrapped in newspaper - smalls in the Trentonian and large pies in the Times. Take out a few sheets of paper, arrange them properly by fanning them out radially, roll them up and staple. "Now run home kid, and keep the pies hot." No steamed cardboard box smell - you got a whiff of newsprint and ink. Ambrosia!
ReplyDeleteSam's pies were very good, and didn't realize it at the time that he used ingredients that most of the other good places used. I do remember that he used Maggio mozzarella, and don't recall him using Scamorza.
The big difference was the oven. Sam and the guy that bought the place after Sam used a very old oven fired with industrial coke like from a steel mill. Pica's (later Schuster's) used coal or coke. Frank's on S. Broad used a gas oven, and I recall that Papa's changed over to gas fired maybe in the late 50s or so.
Bill:
ReplyDeleteGreat articulation of "LaRoma's technique. I too remember the delisious smell and taste of his pies. Funny how the cheese never stuck to the newspaper either.
Mike Kuzma
Hi Guys: DeLorenzo's is the best pie ever. We had one a few years ago when we visited friends in Trenton. When I was a teen, my friends and I went to Whitey's on Olden Avenue and when my family wanted a pie on the weekend, we bought it on Hermitage Avenue in West Trenton. We cannot get anything near any of these Trenton gems in NH. It's pizza here but the difference is more than just a name. Enjoy -- you pie eaters. I envy you all.
ReplyDeleteTom - As far as I know, Papa's Tomato Pie on Chambers Street is the oldest continuous family run tomato pie place in the country, or so they claim. It began in 1912 in Chambersburg, and recently moved to Robbinsville. Our favorite! My first pie experience was at Papa's when I was 10 and I had no idea what a tomato pie was!
ReplyDeleteLakeside Girl