Pizzerias offer variety of styles

Four restaurants in Manville may serve pizza, but that does not mean they are all the same.

By: Eileen Oldfield
   Any way you slice it, pizza is a staple of American food — in any town in the country, it seems there’s at least one pizza place.
   Or, if you’re walking along Main Street, you have your choice of four restaurants — Frank’s Pizza, Manville Pizza, Pizza and Pasta, and opening soon, Pizza Brothers.
   But just because they all serve pizza, doesn’t mean they’re the same — each restaurant has its specialty and kitchen secrets.
   Frank’s Pizza, at 140 North Main St., came to Manville in 1999, and is part of a larger franchise that has 48 locations in New Jersey.
   According to manager Maria Bruzzese, each Frank’s location is independently managed, allowing them to add anything and everything to their pizza. Frank’s serves other Italian dishes in its 150-seat restaurant in addition to pizza.
   "Our pizza is out of this world," said Ms. Bruzzese. "It gets busy in here when the new movies come out."
   Frank’s features a thin crust pizza, Sicilian crust pizza, and toppings that range from pepperoni and peppers to baked ziti and tortellini Alfredo. Though these toppings are unique, Ms. Bruzzese says the most interesting pizza they made didn’t have any traditional pizza toppings.
   "This little kid once wanted a peanut butter and jelly pizza," said Ms. Bruzzese. "We went to the store and got the peanut butter and jelly and made it for him, of course."
   While some youths might look for a peanut butter and jelly pizza, older residents might head to Manville Pizza, recently moved to 42 South Main St., for a slice and a cup of grape juice — the grape juice machine has been a staple since the restaurant opened in 1969.
   As owners of the oldest pizzeria in town, Vincent D’Aniello and his son, Anthony, say the secret to their 40 years of success is their vigilant eye.
   "It’s got its own style," said Anthony D’Aniello. "We use our own sauce and dough recipe, so it’s the freshest of the fresh. People appreciate that."
   In addition to serving Manville longest, the D’Aniellos said they’ve built the world’s largest pizza, a 150-foot pie, and donated the first American pizza place to Russia after the Cold War’s end.
   Traditional "Manville style" pizza has a thin crust; a thicker, Sicilian crust is available, as is pan pizza. Diners can choose any combination of toppings, or opt for gourmet pizzas, such as Hawaiian pizza, BLT pizza, and chicken vodka sauce pizza. The restaurant also offers pasta, subs, Italian favorites, and catering.
   In their 40 years of serving Manville, the D’Aniellos contribute to many local organizations, included the Manville Youth Athletic League, the fire department, and local carnivals. The D’Aniellos said they’ve even shipped a pizza to a former Manville resident who moved to California.
   Though 40 years of business could bring some interesting topping combinations, the D’Aniellos take it all in stride.
   "I’ve see it all," said Anthony D’Aniello. "There are millions of different combinations. I’m sure the first time we put pineapple on pizza, it was odd. Now, it’s commonplace."
   A third pizzeria, Pizza Brothers, hopes to open next week on North Main street, following building and health inspections said franchise owner Chris Ryden. According to Mr. Ryden, the first Pizza Brothers restaurant opened in 1991, but the locations did not have the same name until around 2000. Green Brook, Hillsborough, Bedminster, Martinsville, Raritan and Scotch Plains also have Pizza Brothers restaurants.
   "We try to make a pizza that is pleasing to a majority of people," said Mr. Ryden. "It’ s a tomato flavored sauce with more cheese than you’d normally find on a pizza. The crust is not too thick and not too thin."
   While all Pizza Brothers locations attempt to have the same type of pizza, variations in local water and in oven temperatures can cause slight differences at each location, said Mr. Ryden. Pizza Brothers also sells Cluck-U chicken wings at its restaurants.
   Bring an appetite to Pizza and Pasta at 930 South Main St. — pizza isn’t sold by the slice, but rather as small, personal pie or a larger, eight-slice pie.
   Located next to Central Jersey Airport, the restaurant allows both outdoor dining and indoor dining; the facility seats 200 people throughout. Owners Mark and Gina Levash pride themselves on the quality of their pizza, which they cook in a wood-burning oven.
   "It’s the home of the thin crust pizza, as far as New Jersey goes," said Mr. Levash. "It’s thin and crusty from being cooked in the wood-burning oven."
   While the adventurous diners can select shrimp pesto pizza with mozzarella, shrimp and pesto sauce, or Crabby Mark’s pizza with fresh crab spread, mozzarella, and optional sauce, traditional cheese pizza and create-your-own pizzas are available. According to Mr. Levash, the most interesting pizza the restaurant’s made isn’t on the regular menu.
   "We have a gentleman who asks for a cheese pizza with and egg cracked over the top," said Mr. Levash. "We cook the egg right on the pizza in the oven."
   In addition to pizza, the restaurant offers stromboli, calzones, pasta, and traditional Italian foods on their dine-in menu; many of these dishes are also available for takeout. Their catering menu includes half-pan and whole-pan servings of many pasta dishes, including chicken Marsala, eggplant rollatini, fried calamari, and lasagna.
   Whether it’s thin crust, Sicilian crust, topped with exotic ingredients, or even peanut butter and jelly, you can find in any of the pizzerias on Main Street. And what happens if you add the strangest topping combination to your pizza?
   "There’s no wrong way to eat a pizza," said Anthony D’Aniello. "Variety is the spice of life. There will always be a person in need of a slice of pizza."