What shall we get? A pizza expert’s guide to Connecticut’s primo pies
New Haven native Colin Caplan is an authority on pizza. He leads five pizza tours, including a famed six-hour Pizza Lovers Tour of New Haven, created a 2019 documentary,
[translate:“Pizza: A Love Story”], and holds the Guinness World Record for the Largest Pizza Party with 4,525 guests.
We asked Caplan to share his favorite orders from the top five pizzerias in Connecticut, as ranked by the Connecticut Pizza Trail and his own list. The selections below have been edited for clarity and brevity.
Modern Apizza
Mozzarella pizza at Modern Apizza is exceptional, blending an ideal balance of flavors, textures, and gooey delight. For meat lovers, the Italian Bomb combines three meats and four vegetables with sauce and cheese, all balanced in a thin yet flavorful crust.
Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana
The classic choice is the original sauce and grated cheese pie with garlic. This is the authentic Neapolitan tomato pie, perfected in Pepe’s iconic coal-fired ovens. For a true local experience, try Pepe’s white clam pizza, which links the Native Quinnipiac shoreline staple to the immigrant flatbread loved by many.
Sally’s Apizza
The favorite at Sally’s is the original sauce pie with added garlic, as favored by founder Salvatore Consiglio.
Author’s summary: Colin Caplan highlights Connecticut’s top pizzerias with iconic pies that capture the state’s rich pizza heritage through exceptional ingredients and unique local flavors.
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