And the winner of the all-around best pizza joint in Princeton is . . . yet to be determined.
Although no best in show could be chosen in good conscience, the three pizza restaurants surveyed — Old World Pizza at 242 Nassau St., Pizza Star at 301 North Harrison St. and Tri Colore Pizza (formerly known as Pizza Colore) at 124 Nassau St. — each won awards of distinction in different subcategories.
Old World earned points for high-quality ingredients and a unique flavor, Pizza Star was given high marks for its extensive menu and for being the only one of the three restaurants large enough to accommodate more than six people sitting down at one time and Tri Colore won for convenience and a basic, tasty slice.
Choosing a pizza joint is a simple matter. There are choices to be made and priorities to be established: style of pizza desired; price range; location of the restaurant; delivery, carryout or eating out; eating with a big group, just a few friends or alone; etc.
Of course when it comes down to it, all most people really care about in a pizza restaurant is the pizza. People craving basic, greasy, cheesy pizza would be best off looking for it at either Pizza Star or Tri Colore.
Both deliver highly satisfactory slices, particularly when it comes to the basic cheese pizza with a regular crust. Those craving a unique taste can find it at Old World, which offers the best quality slice, made with homemade ingredients and baked in their brick oven. Old World's pizza is prepared in the authentic Italian style, with small patches of fresh mozzarella cheese and a flavor all its own. Old World's pizza is best enjoyed in the restaurant, to avoid the risk of delivery time making soggy its perfect, pleasantly crunchy crust.
When it comes down to a basic slice of cheese pizza, Pizza Star and Tri Colore are fairly comparable, although Pizza Star's slices tend to have a crisper crust. All three restaurants offer a variety of toppings and sauces, and Tri Colore and Pizza Star offer both regular and Sicilian crusts.
Although Pizza Star's basic pizza slices are what keep customers coming back, their menu offers the most impressive array of options of the three restaurants, including three different sauces, a stuffed crust Chicago-style pizza, dozens of hot and cold sandwiches, a variety of side dishes, nine different salads and desserts.
The quality of many of the menu items, aside from the basic pizza, may be somewhat hit or miss. The breadsticks were found to be unimpressive (and burnt on the bottom), the spaghetti and marinara mediocre and the cannoli bland. Sticking to the pizza is probably the safest bet with all three restaurants: with the exception of Old World's scrumptious garlic bread, non-pizza items as a general rule proved to be unimpressive.
When it comes to convenience, Tri Colore wins hands down. Located on Nassau Street, across from the Joseph Henry House at the center of the north edge of campus, Tri Colore can be a quick meal option for students and faculty. Old World is a more significant walk, located next to George's Roasters and Ribs on Nassau St. Walking to Pizza Star, in Princeton Shopping Center, is only for those who truly enjoy walking and/or have no access to a car. All three of these restaurants deliver as well: Pizza Star for $1 per pizza and 60 cents per sandwich, Old World and Tri Colore at no extra charge.
The prices of all three restaurants are in the same ballpark, at $2.10, $2.11 and $2.45 for a one-topping slice at Pizza Star, Tri Colore and Old World. For a medium one-topping pie (12 inches in diameter), Old World and Tri Colore both charge $10, while Pizza Star charges $11.25, but Pizza Star's large one-topping pizza was the cheapest of the three restaurants, at $11.75.
Although service may not be most people's top priority in a pizza joint, it should be noted that both Tri Colore and Old World employees were courteous, and the pizza was prepared promptly. Pizza Star, on the other hand, loses a few points for the poor service behind the counter. The Pizza Star employees couldn't speak or understand much English, and orders took a surprisingly long time to be received and paid for, especially considering that the restaurant was nearly empty that evening.
So which restaurant wins for the all-around best pizza in Princeton? The title is still up for grabs.
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