I grew up eating slices of "extra cheese" pies from what we called "Rosie's" but was actually "Rose's" in Riverside, NJ. It was a classic Trenton-style tomato pie. A thin, crisp-yet-chewy crust that set up the pie for success no matter the choice of toppings. The pie that most resembles Rose's is Patsy's, in East Harlem, NY. That pie comes from a coal oven, whereas Rosa's was made in a conventional gas oven.
We also ate a lot of "New York style" pie from nearby Angelo's in Riverside. Their pie is more like today's typical storefront pizza joint - soft doughy crust, sweet sauce, and cheese that oozed an orange oil you could mop up with your napkin. Greasy, salty, tasty, but much inferior to the Trenton-style pie. Angelo's is still there, decades later!
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After
Rose's folded, mid 70s, I spent a decade in pizza purgatory. I gave up on ever
eating transcendental pie again. DeLorenzo's in Trenton held me over until I
began to explore further. Now there is plenty of great pizza (yet still
boatloads of bad pizza). Thanks to Rose's, I know the difference.
A
while back, the Rose's location re-opened as "Arnieri's" pizza. Some
locals say it tastes like the old Rose's. It remains on my Jersey pizza to-do list is go back and see if I can re-capture the magic of the place that sparked my pizza obsession.
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| From Foursquare; looks good! |
My family started Rose's Pizza in Riverside in the 1950's, or maybe even earlier. I was feeling nostalgic and googled "Rose's Pizza Riverside NJ" and saw your blog from almost 10 years ago. It was named after my grandmother Rose Mango. From what I remember being told, it started out as "Rose's Sweet Shop" and then changed to the pizza place. I was born in Riverside, and I agree, I have not had pizza that compares to it ever since we left. The business was last owned by my uncle and he sold it and moved to Florida in 1960ish. The rest of the family followed suit, and we eventually all ended up in the Miami area. I have no idea if you will even see this comment, as this post is so old, but reading it brought me great memories and happiness. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteRose's ! Best pizza ever !
DeleteWow, this is great information! I was never certain if it was Rosa's or Rose's or Rosie's. There is great pizza in FL - you must have had Anthony's coal-fired by now. No, not quite Riverside circa 1965, but still pretty good. Also Oceano Kitchen in Lantana is spectacular as well as Scuola Vecchia in Delray Beach. But what I'd pay for a slice of Rose's pizza!
ReplyDeleteI have not tried the FL pizza you mentioned, as I moved from FL in my early 20s. Curious, did you grow up in Riverside?
DeleteI grew up in Delanco and went to Riverside High School. Walked to school the first three years, went right past Rose's twice each day.
DeleteI grew up in Beverly NJ, went to Holy Cross High. Me and my girlfriend (Jacqui) went to Roses all the time in the mid 70’s. It was awesome!
ReplyDelete