Tomatoes, mozzarella and basil are all amazing—and when combined and delicately placed on handmade dough and slid into a hot oven—the various mouth-watering dimensions create a palate-pleasing explosion for the gastronomic senses. Now, let’s expand on that.

When the dough is topped with the juiciest, reddest imported San Marzano tomatoes, the creamiest mozzarella di bufala, along with salty, crumbly Parmigiano Reggiano, the most gorgeous, garden-fresh basil and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil…and then cooked in a 100% wood-heated oven at 900+ degrees, you have a real special creation.

I’m not talking about an ordinary oven either, this one was crafted with stone and soil from Mount Vesuvio. Ninety seconds is all it takes to melt everything together into a warm blend of deliciousness, while simultaneously crisping the crust to perfection. I’m getting hungry again just thinking about all this. This is a pizza prepared with knowledge, love and passion—done exactly right. It’s so simple, yet so artful and elegant. I know you’re dying to know where to go for this super-satisfying treat, but I’m not done building up the suspense. The intoxicating scent when that first bite is brought up to your mouth, and then the combination of each flavor layer when you do finally sink your teeth in blend together in absolute culinary harmony. I’m not exaggerating.

Last week, I talked about my trip to Italy and highlighted all of my favorite things about that gorgeous country—especially the food—and the pizza. I included a photo of one I devoured in Napoli, take a peek at it again, and then look at the picture above. The latter was taken here in America, in Jersey, at my favorite new spot—OK, here it is—Ah’Pizz in Montclair, the home of the aforementioned wood-heated oven which produces that awesome Bufala Di Pomodorini creation. I love, love, love a good pizza. To me, it is one of the finest eats on earth. This aint just good, we’re talking unbelievable here!

I’ve had pizza from all across the boot, and all around New Jersey and New York—to me, these are the three places on the planet that set the standard for what REAL pizza really is. (I know I’m gonna get heat for that one from folks in New Haven, Philly, Boston, Chicago and wherever else one claims has “the best.”) It’s all a matter of taste—and you must get a taste of this joint in Essex County. Authentic Neopolitan, that’s as real as it gets, people. Seriously.

Ah’Pizz—pronounced ah-peetz or ah-beetz in the American-Napolidan’ (Napolitano or Neopolitan) dialect—is best enjoyed when made with the finest ingredients, and of course amongst the company of fine friends and family. And growing up, that was how we enjoyed it and pronounced it. I interpret the amalgamation of the word to go like this…

One day, a long time ago in Brooklyn (or maybe Montclair, who really knows), Josephine asked her husband Vinny what he’d like for dinner...Vinny says, “I’d like a peetz!” (with the ‘a’ dropped, similar to how prosciutto is also slang-ified into pro-shoot.) The ‘a’ morphed into an ‘ah’ when starving Vinny was served the piping hot pie.

“Ahhhhhhh!!!!!! Peetz,” he shouted with delight.

So there you have ah’pizz. The ‘p’ somehow sounding like a ‘b’ at times I don’t have an explanation for. I don’t think Vinny asked for some beetz. Hmm…

Anyway, my paisan Anthony always brings me to someplace unique when we go out to eat. Sometimes, it’s a swanky joint that’s well-known, other times it may be a hidden gem hole-in-the-wall. We may go local or travel miles away. No matter what, it’s always topnotch. Seeking out these gems is his passion. He showed me that it doesn’t matter what a place looks like from the outside or where it is located—the best treasures are found where you’d least expect them. Anthony is an exceptional chef in his own right, and the ultimate foodie. I had the pleasure of dining on a delectable lunch he cooked at The Bergen Room last month, which was featured on the front page of The Record’s Better Living section on April 11th. I always trust his judgments.

#7 North Willow Street in Montclair is my choice for the #1 pie around, and I would never know about it if it wasn’t for him. Anthony had been tantalizing me with facebook pictures and status updates (“OFF TO AH’PIZZ AGAIN!”) every other day since this restaurant opened. He finally took me for the first time with our pal Vito last week. From the moment I walked in and smelled the aromas, I knew it was going to be another scrumptious meal.

Ah’Pizz is magnificant from the outside, in its impressive structure and it’s real cozy and comfortable inside, too. This isn’t a clichéd red and white checkered tablecloth atmosphere, but it is not at all stuffy, either. Between the marble and brickwork throughout the room (which sits about fifty), and the oven—wow the oven—with its ever-present roaring fire keeping the place nice and toasty, you are guaranteed to feel right at home. You can watch the master pizzaiolo at work, doing his thing like a magician, making sure that every single piece of food he prepares is handled with precision.

When we arrived, we each started with San Benedetto iced teas and a sandwich which came served with salad. But again, we need to expand on that. This was not your basic sandwich, this was bread that came right out of the oven and then hollowed out and filled with prosciutto di Parma or salami. The salad was the greenest arugula around, with fig-encrusted pieces of goat cheese and sweet balsamic glaze.


Then, we shared the Bufala Di Pomodorini pizza, which had both crushed tomatoes and ripe cherry tomatoes. (There are other varieties such as the Salsiccia with crumbled sausage and the Carciofi, which is a white pie with artichokes and olives.) At that point, I was pretty full, but we still had our “dessert pizza” to order. The giant jar of Nutella was right in front of us and apparently calling our names, so we shared yet another pie that had the hazelnut-chocolate spread generously smeared in between the dough with a nice sprinkling of powdered sugar all over. Mmmm, what a feast it was! We washed down this decadent delight with three espressos and floated on out into the warm May sunshine.

For a moment there, I felt like I was back in Italy and was about to suggest that we take a stroll through downtown Naples to walk off our meal. But, alas, we were in Montclair, New Jersey. I may not get back to The Old Country for awhile, but I’ll be back in Montclair real soon. You don’t have to take that long flight across the globe to experience Authentic Neopolitan pizza. Ah’Pizz has it right here.

Get up. Go there. Now!!!

HISTORY OF PIZZA NAPOLETANA (From the Ah’Pizz menu and website)
There are many different versions of the evolution of Pizza Napoletana. We believe the “True Pizza Napoletana” was first made after the discovery of America in 1492 by Cristoforo Colombo. It was this Genoan who carried the tomato plant back to Europe. In 1596, it was exported from Spain to Naples where it was first used on top of a disc of dough. This was the birth of the “Pizza Napoletana.” In 1889, Chef Rafaele Esposito used red tomato sauce, white mozzarella cheese and green basil on pizza dough to represent the Italian flag for King Umberto I. Queen Margherita loved this pizza so much, it became the “Pizza Margherita” in her honor.

This Thursday, May 20th, be sure to check out Ah’Pizz on Alicia Vitarelli’s new segment, “Best Kept Secrets of NJ”—airing all day on News 12 – NJ!