ToquiNotes: From Twin Oaks and Oliverio's to Smitty's and Vito's, a Tale of the Greatest Slice of Pizza Ever
By Jeff Toquinto on March 02, 2024
Until you’ve actually been away, or until you’ve talked to someone that’s been away, you may not appreciate just how good the food is here in Bridgeport, Harrison County and North Central West Virginia. In particular, you’d be hard pressed to find an area with the same type of population figures that house the number of high quality Italian eateries you can find within a few miles driving distance in just about any direction.
Not that there isn’t incredible eateries offering different ethnic offerings around as well, but for purposes of this blog, it’s about Italian food. Actually, it’s about a specific Italian food.
After hitting a Smitty's Pizza for the first time in a while, I talked with those eating with me about just how good we have it here locally. During that converstation, I talked about an old blog of mine regarding one specific Italian food item and if it was still the best I have ever had.
As we talked about so many places we hit in the past, we eventually went head first into a discussion about pizza and who has the best pizza in the area. Due to my North View roots, I will always be partial to Smitty's.
Since the last time I talked about this was nine years ago and we are still talking about it nine years later, I figured it was time to revisit it once again and share with my fine readers. As we did in the past, our group decided on an immediate elimination of restaurant chains that either offer pizza exclusively or as one of their main choice.
Not surprisingly, the same places that came up years ago, came up again with a few new additions. Of course, you can’t mention pizza in Bridgeport without a pie from Twin Oaks. As I have mentioned already you can’t mention pizza in the North View section of Clarksburg without talking about Smitty’s Pizza. There was a place in Summit Park, Lucente’s Pizza that was one of the area’s true hidden gems.
There are more; many more. You can get a good slice at Oliverio’s, at Vito’s and – before fire closed its doors – Roberto’s had a nice pizza pie. King’s Pizza in Clarksburg isn’t too shabby either and Mia Margherita, Original Italian Pizza, and Mountain State Brewing hit the spot just fine for non-national chains.
Yet, the greatest slice of pizza I’ve ever had was a one shot deal. Here's the thing, the best slice ever came back before I had a driver’s license and before delivery was a standard pizza option. Although the business is still in operation today, it was under a different name.jpg)
and I never saw the offer that led me to this moment in culinary nirvana again.
and I never saw the offer that led me to this moment in culinary nirvana again.
It was likely the mid to early 1980s and I happened to spy a coupon for a “Buy One, Get One Free” pizza at Sonny’s Restaurant. For those who have been around, they know that Sonny’s today is Oliverio’s Ristorante. It really didn’t matter what the name of the restaurant was because we had a coupon and myself and three of my friends were able to scrape together enough money to fund not only the cost of the two pies, but also to provide a couple of dollars in gas.
You see, this was back in the days when parents didn’t freely give out $20 bills. Money amongst all of my friends was a scarce commodity so to have the finances in order was a big deal. With that hurdle cleared, we piled into the small car and headed out onto Route 50 East toward Sonny’s.
We placed the order when we got there. I still remember ordering “extra cheese” and my brother Tim telling them to “make sure there’s a lot of cheese on there,” that drew a smile from the lady taking our order. After playing around outside for 20 minutes, the pizzas were ready and since I was the youngest in the group, I went after the pizzas and after picking them up immediately noticed they weighed quite a bit.
I didn’t think anything else of it as I piled into the car and we headed further out on Route 50 East to the picnic shelter that’s still in place just past the Alfred Complex and just before the Reep Graphics building alongside the roadway. As we exited out of the car and got ready to eat, I opened the box.
It was as if we had stumbled on buried treasure.
There inside the pizza box was nothing but wall to wall cheese. There was so much cheese that you couldn’t clearly delineate where the pizza had been cut into slices; not that it stopped us.
The thing that makes this, though, is that the pizza was cooked perfectly. The crust was crisp and the pepperoni under the cheese flavored the cheese perfectly. I’ve had multiple double and even triple cheese pizzas since that day decades ago and I’m always left
underwhelmed; usually because the pizza is undercooked for whatever reason and because it can’t top the bar set for extra cheese pizza that day from my youth.
underwhelmed; usually because the pizza is undercooked for whatever reason and because it can’t top the bar set for extra cheese pizza that day from my youth.
That was more than 40 years ago. I’ve had hundreds, if not a few thousand, slices of pizza since then. And many have been excellent and memorable. Yet, I’m still searching for something to once again meet that moment of pizza perfection provided courtesy of Sonny Oliverio.
As for afar, the closest thing I've found to my "out-of-state Pizza nirvana" is still relatively new. It's in the Strip District in Pittsburgh and is called Bella Notte. My wife and I get the pizza with pepperoni, which is ironically both sliced and shaved and literally covering the whole pie, and roasted red peppers. And unlike many places that give you just a few toppings, the Bella Notte Pie is covered from crust to center with the peppers. Trust me when I tell you it's worth a visit.
Of course, I’ve had many great pizzas since. And as my stomach shows, I’ll likely continue eating them. But I’m curious to know, what’s the best pizza you’ve had? Or, perhaps do like I did here, and even tell me what’s the best slice you’ve ever had either locally or afar.
I’d be curious to find out. Part of it is because I truly want your feedback. Part of it is because I want to try it.
Editor's Note: The man smiling on the far right in the top photo is Sonny Oliverio and he's not shown at the restaurant he owned "Sonny's" that is now Oliverio's Ristorante. Instead, he's shown here working at Minard's, another legendary Italian restaurant that sits in Clarksburg. If anyone knows who the other two men are, please comment in the comment secition below. Second photo is a pizza photo showing a slice covered in cheese similar to what we ate decades ago, bwhile the bottom slice is from Bella Notte in Pittsburgh.
I would like to cast a vote for my favorite area pizza, Alvaro's Pizza in Bridgeport. It was located on Virginia Avenue between the railroad tracks and Simpson Creek in the Main Street Station's current location. Outstanding hand-tossed pizza with the option for Italian sauce peppers as a topping. A close second is from Fazio's Pizza, a little neighborhood pizza joint in the Lawrenceville section of Pittsburgh.
Posted by Jon Griffith
Mar. 02, 2024 at 11:38 AM EST
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