pizzeria
A pizzeria is a restaurant focusing on pizza. As well as pizza, dishes at pizzerias can include kebab, salads and pasta.
Many pizzerias offer take-away, where the customer orders their food either in advance or at the restaurant and then take ...
that sells
Trenton tomato pie
Trenton tomato pie or New Jersey tomato pie is a type of circular, thin-crust Italian tomato pie created in Trenton, New Jersey, United States around the early 20th century in which cheese and other toppings are added on first, then the sauce.
P ...
s in
Robbinsville, New Jersey
Robbinsville Township is a township in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. The township is part of the New York Metropolitan area as defined by the United States Census Bureau, but directly borders the Philadelphia metropolitan area and ...
. It was founded in 1936 by Alexander "Chick" De Lorenzo and officially established in 1947 in
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.Robbinsville and has closed its original location in Trenton. It is the third oldest
pizzeria
A pizzeria is a restaurant focusing on pizza. As well as pizza, dishes at pizzerias can include kebab, salads and pasta.
Many pizzerias offer take-away, where the customer orders their food either in advance or at the restaurant and then take ...
Papa's Tomato Pies
Papa's Tomato Pies is a historic pizzeria selling Trenton tomato pies in New Jersey. It was founded by Giuseppe "Joe" Papa in 1912 on South Clinton Avenue in Trenton, New Jersey. Papa's is the oldest family owned and longest continuously operati ...
and Joe's Tomato Pies.
History
Alexander "Chick" De Lorenzo established De Lorenzo's Tomato Pies in 1947.
Zagat Survey
The ''Zagat Survey'', commonly referred to as Zagat (stylized in all caps; , ) and established by Tim and Nina Zagat in 1979, is an organization which collects and correlates the ratings of restaurants by diners. For their first guide, covering ...
reviews give it high marks for quality and taste, it is a top pick on review site
Roadfood
''Roadfood'' is a series of books by Jane and Michael Stern originally published in 1977. The term Roadfood was coined by the Sterns to describe the regional cuisine they discovered when they began driving around America in the early 1970s. Their ...
.com, and is now considered a landmark in New Jersey. De Lorenzo's Tomato Pies opens at 4:00 pm and primarily serves dinner. Tomato pies are the only options on the menu. Lines can grow to over 50 people before the restaurant opens. F. Scott and Zelda New Jersey Restaurant and Wine Critics described De Lorenzo's as a never disappointing meal. Sam Amico, Alexander's grandson, has taken over the company after the passing of Alexander. F. Scott and Zelda praises the new ownership as "a world class establishment".
The restaurant was frequented by
Supreme Court Justice
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest-ranking judicial body in the United States. Its membership, as set by the Judiciary Act of 1869, consists of the chief justice of the United States and eight Associate Justice of the Supreme ...
Samuel Alito
Samuel Anthony Alito Jr. ( ; born April 1, 1950) is an American lawyer and jurist who serves as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated by President George W. Bush on October 31, 2005, and has served ...
in his student days. Alito considered De Lorenzo's a favorite restaurant. Other past patrons include Frank Sinatra, Luciano Pavarotti, and Joe DiMaggio.
New York Times food critic, Karla Cook, gave the restaurant a "Very Good", citing the excellent quality of the clam pie, canned whole baby clams, and the pepperoni and mushroom as a classic. She was, however, critical of the atmosphere citing that it was too crowded.
In December 2011, the restaurant's ownership announced the impending closing of its original Trenton 530 Hudson Street location on January 15, 2012, as reported on NJ.com.
In 2018, De Lorenzo's opened a second location in
Yardley, Pennsylvania
Yardley is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Yardley borders the Delaware River and Ewing, New Jersey to its east and Lower Makefield Township to its north, west, and south. The United States Post Office assigns many addresses in Lower Mak ...