U.S. ​“Pizza Capital” Declared; MTG Dodges Question

“Nothing ah-beetz New Haven apizza!” Mayor Justin Elicker led the chants of 100 assembled New Haven pizza-makers and boosters on the steps of the U.S. Capitol as the delegation that had traveled to Washington, D.C. for the day reached its destination — to witness U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro enter a statement into the Congressional record declaring New Haven the ​“Pizza Capital of the United States.”

On the Capitol’s steps, DeLauro read from the declaration she had entered into the Congressional record Wednesday. She spoke about her family’s connection to New Haven pizza: ​“Frank and Filomena Pepe were at my parents’ wedding,” she said, and ​“my mom and Sal Consiglio played baseball together on Wooster Street.” 

She reiterated the importance of the declaration as the rest of Connecticut’s congressional delegation joined her on the steps. ​“There are some naysayers from Chicago,” DeLauro said. ​“Really? No contest. Connecticut has the most pizzerias of any state per capita.”

Meanwhile, the other joints staked their claims to authenticity. 

Bill Pustari of Modern Apizza said, ​“I’m the last OG. The one who hasn’t gone corporate.” For him, the restaurant game is about ​“effort in, effort out.” If it had just been about money, Pustari said, “[he] would’ve gone to Wall Street.”

Kadir Çatalbaşoğlu, a Turkish immigrant and the owner of Pizza at the Brick Oven, said, ​“My son grew up in New Haven, at the Brick Oven. We’re the real immigrant story. Pepe’s and Sally’s, they just sell the name.” 

Gazmir Zeneli, an Albanian immigrant who came to New Haven after 22 years in Italy, took pride in his Wooster Square location, which opened in 2019: ​“They thought we’d be gone in a few months. We’re still going.”

Several other members of Congress were reached by the pizza delegation. DeLauro’s staff coordinated a Pepe’s delivery to House Minority Leader and U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, as well as to the remainder of Connecticut’s representatives. 

When asked if she had ever tried New Haven-style pizza, U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia only responded, ​“I like pizza.” 

U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde of Georgia, who wore a rifle pin on his tie, said he had never tried New Haven pizza, though he had visited the city to visit the headquarters of O.F. Mossberg & Sons, a firearms manufacturer headquartered in North Haven.

The pizza delegation has not received any funding from the city, Mayor Justin Elicker confirmed. Colin Caplan of Taste of New Haven, who organized the delegation, told the Independent that community members and private sponsors raised over $40,000 in in-kind or cash donations to make the trip possible. 

New Haven’s A1 Toyota dealership alone gave $15,000 to ensure that the group of veterans from VFW could make the trip. Food, care, and veterans have a long, interlinked history in New Haven, according to Caplan: ​“The Culinary Institute of America was started in New Haven in 1946 by two women to train returning veterans,” he said. 

After a brief stop for water, the delegation is now taking the bus to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the last stop of the afternoon.

See below for previous versions of this article.

Pepe's Pizza Is Served ... In Virginia

(Updated 1:30 p.m.) First stop, Pepe’s! Wait, what?

At around 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, buses full of a delegation of New Haven pizza-makers bound for Washington, D.C. to witness U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro enter a statement into the Congressional record declaring New Haven the ​“Pizza Capital of the United States” pulled into the Alexandria Commons strip mall in Alexandria, Virginia, for lunch at a Pepe’s franchise location.

An array of classic pizzas, salads, and Foxon Park soft drinks greeted the delegation inside.

Louise Joseph of Dough Girls, a pizza truck in Greenwich, Conn., said the pizza was ​“awesome, fantastic.” Joseph, one of the 103 people to join the trip, said she wasn’t ​“really sure” how she got into pizza-making. She went to culinary school, and ​“did some corporate cooking, which [she] did not enjoy,” before coming up with the idea for a food truck. Pizza was the natural choice for the New Haven native.

Over lunch, filmmaker Gorman Bechard explained his new TV show, Slice of America. ​“It’s a fish-out-of-water take on ​‘Pizza, A Love Story,’” he said, referencing his 2019 documentary about New Haven pizza. The first episode of Slice of America follows Jimmy Fantin, a former dishwasher and pizza maker at Pepe’s who moved to Florida and opened his own pizza joint: Fantini’s. Most pizza in Florida, according to Bechard, is ​“inedible crap. Bad ketchup on cardboard.” But not Fantini’s: that’s a good slice.

Bechard sat with Faith Marek, a film editor, and producer/composer Dean Falcone, who collaborated with Bechard on Pizza, A Love Story. Falcone proclaimed the Alexandria Pepe’s ​“not that far off from the actual Pepe’s,” though he was met with a glare from Bechard, who was less bullish than most about the quality of the pizza. 

Christopher Joyce, currently a firefighter in New Haven, came as part of a contingent of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) of the United States. He was excited to be ​“coming down here with everybody,” he said. Every year for the last five or six years, the New Haven VFW members have gotten together to ride the Elm City Party Bike. On those days, “[they] always, always stop at Pepe’s,” Joyce said. 

American Legion member and fellow veteran Thania Rivera said she was ​“happy to be part of history.”

Jimmy Suleski, the Avelo pilot who flew the crew down to D.C., told the Independent that this was the first time he’d ever had New Haven-style pizza. ​“I moved here from Australia and this is better than Australian pizza,” he said.

A press release sent out by Caplan in advance of Wednesday’s trip listed the outing’s sponsors as A1 Toyota, Connecticut Office of Tourism, Avelo Airlines, LAZ Parking, Yale University, Taste of New Haven, Market New Haven, the Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce, and other local pizzerias and business boosters.

Pizza Plane Lands: "It's Pizza Time!"

(Updated 11:15 a.m.) High spirits and the dank smell of beer filled the plane as Taste of New Haven tour guide Colin Caplan spoke to a delegation of New Haven pizza-makers bound for Washington, D.C. to witness U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro enter a statement into the Congressional record declaring New Haven the ​“Pizza Capital of the United States.”

He thanked the mother-daughter PR firm Coursey & Co for helping organize the trip before announcing the flight plan: smooth, with ​“a little hot air over New York and New Jersey.”

Wednesday’s flight made history, Caplan said, as the first Avelo flight to serve alcohol. The New England Brewing Company provided Sea Hag IPAs and NEBCo Lagers for any interested delegates.

“It’s 9:30 somewhere,” Caplan announced.

On the plane ride from Tweed to D.C., Caplan called pizza a ​“legacy food” and noted its importance to the Italian-Americans of Connecticut and New Haven. 

He was followed by Big Green Truck and Next Door pizza founder Doug Coffin, who asked for a more expansive Mediterranean vision of pizza heritage. ​“Let’s hear it for the Greeks,” Coffin said, ​“and I don’t think there are any Albanians aboard, but they have a great pizza tradition.” 

Cheers, applause, and a shout of ​“and the Turks!” erupted from the crowd.

Upon landing in Dulles International Airport in Virginia at around 10:10 a.m., DeLauro staffer Lou Mangini yelled, ​“It’s pizza time!” After deplaning, the delegation boarded two Lansdowne Coach buses, paid for by LAZ Parking, carrying dozens of custom-designed pizza boxes reading ​“Connecticut: The Pizza State™️.” The delegation is now en route to the Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana location in Arlington, Virginia.

Pizza Plane Departs For D.C.

All aboard the Pizza Express!

That is, a Wednesday morning chartered Avelo flight from Tweed New Haven Airport to Washington D.C.‘s Dulles International Airport full of more than 100 people, including New Haven’s pizza makers.

Their mission? To witness U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro enter a statement into the Congressional record declaring New Haven the ​“Pizza Capital of the United States.”

The trip, which was co-organized by Taste of New Haven’s Colin Caplan, invited pizza chefs, journalists, publicists, military veterans, legislators, and local leaders.

Wednesday’s delegation will visit the Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana in Arlington, Virg., en route to the U.S. Capitol building, where DeLauro will enter her statement celebrating New Haven pizza. (New Haven-style apizza has been receiving national euphoric attention lately, in outlets like the Washington Post and the New Yorker.)

After the crew’s visit to the hallowed halls of the federal government, they will visit several sites, including the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, before flying home at 6 p.m. tonight. 

Twenty five pizza establishments — including Frank Pepe’s, Sally’s, Modern, Brick Oven, Next Door, BAR, Est Est Est Pizza, and more — are represented in the delegation.

Sally’s Apizza provided ​“panuozzo” sandwiches to feed the delegation before the 9 a.m. flight from the Morris Cove regional airport. 

Senior Marketing Manager Erik Mazurick set up the sandwich boxes in front of an Avelo banner at Tweed’s Gate 2, while Executive Chef Bret Lunsford explained the sandwiches: ​“Prosciutto, fior di latte, roasted pepper, a little salami,” he said, adding that the dough is made from the Sally’s pizza dough, cooked until it resembles an ​“Italian pita.” 

Three generations of Pepe’s came together to the airport. Jennifer Kelly and Christina Bimonte drank G Café coffees (Bimonte’s black; Kelly’s with cream) as Sophia Bimonte, Christina’s daughter, sat to the side.

“I’m so proud of my family,” said Kelly, Frank Pepe’s granddaughter and co-owner of Pepe’s. There’s little in the way of competitive sentiment. ​“My grandfather would always say, ​‘There’s enough to go around.’ Honest to God, it’s a family, these pizza restaurants.”

As the delegation lined up for pictures in front of the plane before boarding, Est Est Est Pizza owner Sabri Gebril said this was a ​“very historical moment.” ​“New York and New Jersey have good pizza,” he said, ​“but when it comes to ah-beetz, we know it’s Connecticut.” 

Just before takeoff, the pilot announced to plane-wide cheers that New Haven’s pizza compares only to the margherita pizza at the oldest pizza restaurant in Naples, Italy.