Armenti’s Pizzeria in Olyphant is Consistently Among the Very Best in NEPA and Beyond
Armenti’s Pizzeria is a small pizzeria in Olyphant, near the Mid Valley Schools in the industrial park. There is a small strip mall, and the restaurant is in the center of it. During a previous visit the owner and his wife treated us very well, and they had no idea that we were pizza critics. Now when we returned, we were again treated like royalty just like all of the rest of their customers. I truly believe there’s something to be said about receiving excellent service and being treated like family. You can just feel that these people enjoy preparing food for their customers, greeting them with a warm smile, and sending them home happy.
On this visit, I wanted to try the the Grandma Pizza. This style of pizza is really gaining popularity in Northeastern Pennsylvania. A short while after placing the order Grandma was on her way to the table. She looked stunning with a vibrant red sauce, deep green basil, lovely white mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, and a golden brown crust. This pizza just looked like Italy to me. I’m not sure if it was just the colors of the Italian flag, or the twinkle in the owner’s eye knowing that he just served up a great pie to us. This was one of those pizzas that I probably didn’t even have to taste to know that it was delicious, that’s how good it looked.
What is Grandma Pizza?
So what is a grandma pizza? Slice the Pizza Blog defines Grandma Pizza as “essentially a thin crust Sicilian pizza” which to me is a simple, yet perfect description. Grandma Pizza is not Old Forge Pizza, although it is square or rectangular in shape. So this pizza started out with a very thin crust about the thickness of a New York Style Pizza and was made fresh on-site. At Armenti’s The dough is pressed into a pan coated with oil, and baked.
After the crust cooks in the oven for a bit, it is pulled out of the oven and the real fun begins. The owner adds one of his three special tomato sauces, Parmesan cheese mozzarella cheese, and a few other special ingredients that he couldn’t mention. When the pie comes out of the oven, some fresh chopped basil is sprinkled on top, and this creates the dramatic effect that you see in the photos.
Reviewing Armenti’s Grandma Pizza
How does it taste? In my first bite, I was overcome by the succulent and decadent sweetness of the highest quality tomatoes, and fell in love with this sauce immediately. I literally could have just eaten a bowl of this sauce it was so good. If you like a hearty sauce with a lot of flavor, this is for you.
The crust was so thin, so crunchy, and so flavorful that it was the perfect complement to the tasty sauce. On top was a wonderful combination of mozzarella cheese, which held it all together, and Parmesan cheese which really brought the flavor and served as a nice contrast to the naturally sweet tomatoes. Fresh basil was added to garnish which completed the look of the pizza.
After eating way more slices of the Grandma Pizza than I should have, the owner came out to see how our pizzas were, and of course I shared my thoughts, but I asked what his motivation for making such a wonderful pizza was. The two words that I heard repeatedly were “family” and “homey.”
The grandma style pizza is something that he recalls fondly from home where is grandmother and mother used to make it. He really tries to emulate their family style in his pizza while adding his own twist to kick it up a notch. His family made everything homemade from scratch, so he uses that approach in his restaurant and it shows. It is for these reasons that Armenti’s Pizzeria again receives the NEPA Pizza Review’s highest recommendation.
Grandma Pizza Review Scores
Restaurant: Armenti’s Pizzeria
Location: 1454 E Lackawanna Ave, Olyphant, PA 18447
Date: October 2013
Pizza Ordered: Grandma Pizza
Eat In/Take Out: Eat In
| Rating Category | Rating Score |
|---|---|
| Crust | 9.1 |
| Sauce | 9.2 |
| Cheese | 8.6 |
| Taste | 9.2 |
| Crispy/Cooked Properly | 9.1 |
| Value | 7.5 |
| Overall Rating | 9.0 |
Armenti’s Review From May 2013
I first heard about Armenti’s Pizzeria when its owner sent me a message on the NEPA Pizza Review Facebook page, inviting me to try his pizza and review it. As a result, I was intrigued because this told me that the owner had confidence in his product if he wanted to put it to the test! Now, you all know that I work anonymously so that I don’t receive special treatment, so I waited about 2 months before taking him up on his invitation. Since my first lady was already down in the Mid Valley area, she decided to team up with me yet again for a review.
When we approached the building, which is a brand new plaza, we couldn’t help but notice how new, modern, and open the storefront was. Then we walked in, and observed about 8 comfortable tables to sit at, so we picked one, and our friendly waitress greeted us. Of course I didn’t need to look at a menu, because I new what I was going to order, so I spent my time watching the pizza guy do his thing in the open kitchen.
Later, I found out that the pizza guy is actually the owner, and he’s a good guy that really cares about his customers. After noticing that this was our first visit to Armenti’s, he sent out some meatballs for us to try while we waited for our pizza. The meatballs were MASSIVE, about the size of a tennis ball, and they were delicious. I would definitley order them next time on top of a pasta dish!
New Jersey Inspired Pizza in NEPA
After watching the pizza guy pull our pizza out of the oven and put it back in for one final minute, I didn’t even have to wait for it to get to the table, I already could tell this pie was going to be cooked perfectly, and upon arrival, this was confirmed! It was a beautiful sight, a wonderfully constructed pie with a medium thickness crust crafted masterfully. Next, the cheese and sauce were spread evenly and right up to the edge of the crust, which is a prerequisite to any great New York Style pizza in my opinion.
The cheese is a high quality, flavorful, stretchy, moist, mozzarella that is savory and delicious. The sauce is more zesty than it is sweet, but I would consider the flavor to be more neutral – the type of sauce that seems to be more popular with everyone. The sauce and cheese combination worked together very well, and there was a nice separation between the two, creating a nice body for the whole pizza. As I said above, the crust is of medium thickness and it too is pretty good.
It was crispy and relatively tender, but the thing that really made this crust was how it was formed and stretched by the pizza guy. You’ve heard mine, but you may be asking, “What was the first lady’s opinion of the pizza?” Well, she didn’t have much to say for a change, and that tells the whole story here because she was so enamored with the pizza that she just savored it the whole time without saying a peep! So her lack of words indicated that this is her new favorite pizzeria. She also loved the wings for the record!
Pizza Review Bottom Line
Overall, this is a high quality pizza that utilizes fine ingredients. The owner is clearly a pizza expert who knows what he is doing in the kitchen. I appreciated the hospitality, clean dining room, and good food. Additionally, this is a popular lunch spot because they have gourmet pizza by the slice ready to go. This is important for the nearby industrial park and for people on the go, but don’t sell Armenti’s short, they do have a diverse menu with good prices. So stop on in, and tell them the NEPA Pizza Review sent you! Finally, congratulate the owner for “throwing down” the challenge and passing with flying colors!
Armenti’s New York Style Pizza Review Scores
Restaurant: Armenti’s Pizzeria
Location: 1454 E Lackawanna Ave, Olyphant, PA 18447
Date: March 2013
Pizza Ordered: Large New York Style
Eat In/Take Out: Eat In
| Rating Category | Rating Score |
|---|---|
| Crust | 7.8 |
| Sauce | 8.4 |
| Cheese | 8.6 |
| Taste | 8.1 |
| Crispy/Cooked Properly | 7.6 |
| Value | 7.4 |
| Overall Rating | 8.2 |
Pizza is Similar to: Rosario’s, Gio’s Pizza Co, Angelo’s Pizza Viewmont
