Review: Federici's Pizza Restaurant - Freehold, NJ

Imagine a pizza restaurant that is cash-only with no delivery. How's that going to work, especially in the pandemic era?  Well, it's been working out pretty well for the first 100 years at Bruce Springsteen's favorite pizza joint, Federici's in Freehold, NJ. (It's also a favorite of sports broadcaster Jim Nantz).

We had returned east for a wedding in Freehold, and I trusted the reliable food journalist Pete Genovese to find the best pizza in the area, and Federici's was among his top choices for all of Monmouth County.

Back entrance, from parking lot

Main Street entrance (from Federicis.com)

Federici's was opened in 1921 and was first known as "Frank's Italian-American Restaurant" featuring fare like the cheese lasagna still on the menu today. In the wake of the second world war, tomato pies were added to the menu in 1946. 

From Federicis.com

While the term "tomato pie" persists in Trenton and its suburbs, the familiar "pizza" is now used here and nearly everywhere. A photo of the rear entrance in the late 1970's advertises "pizza pies," a term that was common from the 50s through the 70s. 

We stopped in for lunch on a Friday in early December, and were seated in a spacious but cozy wooden booth; the restaurant was winding down the lunch hour but still pretty busy. 

I noticed two pictures hanging on the opposite wall, both featuring a much younger Bruce Springsteen posing with restaurant staff. (For the record, there is no relation between these pizzamakers and former E-Street Band member Danny Federici).

Federici's has a full menu with salads, appetizers, sandwiches, pasta, and dinner platters, but we were here strictly for the pizza. Pies are offered in three sizes: 9" individual, 12" small, and 14" large. We boldly ordered the large (half mushroom, half sausage, $19.49), even though it was just two of us at lunchtime.

Pizzas are cooked in pans and prepared in a two-step process; they spend 6 minutes at 430 degrees in a conveyer oven, then are finished at 550 degrees in a brick oven. While Federici's shares its source for some ingredients like the cheese and the sausage topping, the dough remains a closely-held secret.

Some nice spotting underneath

As always, the crust is the foundation, the epicenter, the terra firma of every pizza. Its success or failure depends 90% or more on the crust. At Federici's, the crust is one of the thinnest anywhere. Almost cracker-thin, somewhat like a bar pie, but with a superior texture.

Interior dining room

The crust had a delightfully crisp crunch, yet still retained some chewiness and it displayed its own excellent flavor, more noticeable at the cornicione. The red sauce was applied sparingly, and it was tangy and perhaps a touch sweet. 

The cheese seemed like a pretty standard mozzarella or mozzarella mix, such that it added the right heft and creaminess while serving as a role player with the sauce.

That sauce and cheese combo would make for a pretty satisfying pizza, given the excellent crust, but the toppings we chose provided another layer of texture and flavor. The fresh mushrooms were thinly sliced and melded nicely into the cheese and sauce, lending an earthy umami. 

On the other half of the pie, the local Italian sausage was superb, properly applied raw in chunks to cook on the pie. Most pizzerias sell more pepperoni pizzas, but sausage rules here, both in sales volume and flavor.

Rear entrance, late 1970s

Like every great pizza, this one was perfectly balanced. No droop despite the wafer-thin crust; each slice was sturdy enough to eat with one hand and no need to fold it. This was a throwback style of pizza - not surprising since Federici's has been slinging pies for 75 years. 

Crisp, sturdy slices

Brilliant stuff, and I would eat it often if I lived nearby. Absolutely destination pizza; if you are anywhere close by, get over to Federici's for a true enduring classic.