2011 Fall Dining Guide
By Tom Sietsema
Sunday, October 16, 2011

Pete's has been overlooked in the past few years, as seemingly every month saw a fresh pizza parlor swell the scene. Only recently did I check back on the New Haven-style "apizza" specialist - now grown to three friendly, cream-colored dining rooms - to discover what I had been missing: puffed rims, nice char, snappy crust. There are nearly 20 toppings to mull; I'm partial to the 18-inch white pizza strewn with tender clams, pecorino, oregano and a lashing of olive oil, although I've been known to stray with a combination of fennel sausage, broccoli rabe and zesty tomato sauce. Don't want pie? Pete's serves pasta as well. And the seasonal antipasti (juicy peaches drizzled with balsamic vinegar and zucchini ribbons dappled with romesco over summer) make a great opening act. One of the tests of really good pizza is its appeal the day after, straight out of the refrigerator. Pete's passes with pizzazz.