Chester County pizza: one parlor open since 1959
A square pie from a 1941 Delco recipe, a pickle-and-prosciutto pie, and a High Street shop open until 3 a.m.
Chester County has more pizza counters than any one town can claim, and the interesting ones are not all on the same street. One parlor has been hand-tossing dough since 1959, one square pie traces back to a Delco shop opened in 1941, and a High Street kitchen stays open until 3 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The rest of this list is the concrete stuff: a heated tent that runs all winter, a weekday slice deal, and a Detroit-style pie that started in a food truck.
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Benny's calls itself West Chester's first pizza parlor, hand-tossing dough over homemade sauce since 1959, and it takes Tuesdays off. "The first time I ever came here as a kid, I only had enough money in my pocket for a single slice," J L says on Google.
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Pica's is the second location of the Delco shop Frank Pica Sr. started at 62nd and Race in 1941, still built around the square pizza, now on West Chester Pike and closed Mondays and Tuesdays.
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Family-owned since 1974 in the Gay Street Plaza, rolling fresh dough daily for NYC-style rounds and a grandma pie, with sfogliatelle after. WCU students get $2.50 off with an ID, just never on Friday.
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The South Street pizza family, now on High Street, with pies the shop itself just calls huge. Friday and Saturday it stays open until 3 a.m.
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A BYOB pizzeria whose patio runs through winter under a big heated tent, with locally delivered Richman's ice cream for after. They don't deliver, so the wine comes with you.
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On Route 340 across from Layton Park, the Bada Bing Beast turns the house Italian sub into a pizza. Weekday lunch brings a slice deal, and carryout pizza is happy hour from 4 to 6. "Tried the pickle and prosciutto and wow it did not disappoint," Kelly says on Google.
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Neapolitan thin pies, a no-cheese tomato pie, and 18-inch stuffed specialty pizzas. Pasta runs on a weekly schedule: gnocchi Tuesdays, baked ziti Wednesdays, stuffed shells Fridays.
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On East South Street, open Wednesday through Saturday only, 11:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. most of those days and until 8 on Friday. "They sprinkle some extra cheese on the top, which was unique," Steve says on Google.
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On South Mill Road, closed Mondays and Sundays, Tuesday through Saturday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. The Detroit-style pie is the one people drive for. "First fell in love with their pizza when they were still a food truck," Steve says on Google.
More field notes
- Montgomery County pizza, one shop open since 1946
- Chester County date night: eleven tables, one from 1830
- Bring your own bottle to seven tables in Chester County
- Doylestown pizza, one kitchen open until 3 a.m.
- Kettle-boiled since 1993: eight bagels in Bucks County
- Ten bookshops out here, one of them open since 1788
- Every field note
