JCReview
photo credit: Noah Devereaux
Razza
Included In
At most restaurants, asking your server to describe the evening’s butter menu is strange at best, insufferable at worst. But this is a very normal question to ask at Razza, a pizza restaurant off the Grove Street PATH stop that’s been doing the whole we-know-the-offspring-of-our-basil-supplier thing since it opened in 2012.
In its second decade, Razza is still hard to beat when it comes to sit-down dinner options in Jersey City, and it’s the very best option when it comes to Neapolitan-style pizza (though you won’t find that word anywhere on the menu). Many people agree, indicated by endless Reddit forums debating who makes North Jersey’s best pizza, two consistently packed dining rooms, and a small hungry mob that convenes nightly around the takeout counter. And while it’s hard to divorce Razza from all that buzz, the key to a memorable meal here is to ignore it. Otherwise, you'll be too busy debating if this is the best pizza you’ve ever had to appreciate the subtleties that make Razza great: sauce, toppings, plus a big space that knows how to have a good time.
photo credit: Noah Devereaux
Just about everything here is made in-house or acquired from a place you can reach via The Turnpike or The Parkway. The flour in your crust is from Clifton, and the hazelnuts on your pie are from New Brunswick. It’s possible that your server hand-selected the grapes in the pet nat you’re drinking—they were grown on a vineyard “in the South,” which in this context, means South Jersey.
But the thing is, no matter how ripe those freshly picked tomatoes are, this is not revelatory pizza. While the dough would be more than fine—great, even—in sandwich-bread form, as the base of a pie, it lacks a distinct flavor, and could benefit from more salt. Same with the cheese in pies like the Fungi, where the real punch comes from what’s on top of it.
But if you zero-in on the produce, you’ll understand why New Jersey’s "Garden State" moniker isn't just Big Agriculture propaganda immortalized on our license plates. The red sauce is made from two types of tomatoes, and is delightfully sweet with a slight acidic twang. The blistered cherry tomatoes on the Yellow Margherita are a fun spin on a white pie. And even though the Panna is draped in a blanket of cow’s cream and mozzarella, the heaping pile of arugula is the best part.
Come with a date, or a small group, and if given a choice, ask to be seated in the takeout side of the restaurant, which feels warmer and more thoughtfully designed than the other, more industrial dining room. Order the meatballs, the butter tasting, and at least one pie per person. But most importantly, treat a meal here like a wine tasting, where the end goal is to have a good time, appreciate all those ingredients, and maybe even learn a thing or two about where your grapes came from. This isn't the pizza olympics—you're just going out to dinner.
Food Rundown
Bread & Butter Tasting
photo credit: Noah Devereaux
Meatballs With Ricotta
photo credit: Noah Devereaux
Margherita
Seasonal Pie
photo credit: Noah Devereaux