Highschool Memories

For a brief period of time (of about three of my highschool years) I lived in Randolph, New Jersey. It is a small, small town of about 25,000 people in northern Jersey with little else but a diner, a strip mall, and a couple of Italian restaurants.

I don't have much "home pride" when it comes to Randolph, except for when it comes to pizza. My absolute favorite slice of pizza comes from the ovens of Pizza Palace:

Pizza Palace, when I was in highschool, was a constant haunt- for meeting up, before and after football games, on lazy Sundays, dates..."Palace" was always the no-fail place. We ordered up a slice or two and slipped into the seats and felt like maybe the highschool years were the best of our lives.

I will admit that, in reference to the aformentioned trip down memory lane, some of my love of Palace may be rooted in love of nostalgia. But, I still maintain that in the oft-unknown and strange community of Randolph, New Jersey you can find some pretty fantastic pizza.

The thickness of the crust is perfectly inbetween thin-crust and standard pizza crust, which is hard to find. Pizza crust is often either too thin, tough and/or crispy, or much too thick and doughy. Pizza palace always wins in the dough breadth category. The sauce is simple, and tastes mostly of zesty tomato paste then it does herbs, another plus in my pizza critique. And no pizza critique is complete without a comment on the cheese. When I am looking for a good, greasy, parlor-type pie, the volume and quality of the cheese is tantamount. Pizza Palace excels in this cheese inquiry as well. There is enough cheese to make the top of the pie oozy and a little heavy, but not too much that the crust is soggy, the slice sags, or that you almost choke on each bite because you can't possibly chew all the cheese. 

So, if you ever find yourself on the road in New Jersey, and you happen to pass a sign reading "Township of Randolph" make sure you stop in to Pizza Palace, grab a slice and relive some highschool glory days.

Pizza Palace
1161 Sussex Turnpike
Randolph, NJ
973-895-3344

Comments

[stefanie]

you know, I don't think I ever went to Pizza Palace. That is a bummer.

[Karen]

I love, love, love Pizza Palace! I lived in Randolph from 1980-1981, and again from 1983-1990 and we were faithful customers!

[Mike Buteau]

I lived in Randolph, NJ from 1981-1994. Pizza Palace is an institution unto itself. I recently was back in the area on a business trip and drove an hour out of my way to get a couple slices. I live in Atlanta now... you cant even find a place around here that will serve a single "slice." Long live Vito!

[Eric Norris]

Wow,
I haven't thought about the Pizza Palace in years. I guess the next time I am in NJ I might have to make a trip over and get a couple of slices.

[mommak]

We've been here for 16 years...it's still the best.