NJ Pizza Jam Fall 2024: A Celebration of Pizza, Community, and Innovation
Quick Summary ⮕ The NJ Pizza Jam Fall 2024 celebrated pizza with live demos, innovative tech, and delicious creations, uniting pizza lovers and industry leaders.
Christian Hernandez
NJ's Restaurant Equipment Expert
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NJ Pizza Jam Fall 2024 celebrated pizza-making with delicious creations, live demos, and the latest tech. It was a day for pizza lovers, pizza influencers, chefs, and industry leaders to come together and enjoy the art of pizza.
What is NJ Pizza Jam?
NJ Pizza Jam is a celebration of New Jersey’s local pizza scene, bringing together the best pizza makers from across the region, including local chefs, restaurateurs, and influential figures in the industry. Hosted by Local Pizzi and 24/7 Restaurant Equipment, the event started with the goal of showcasing and uniting pizzerias, providing them an opportunity to test out PizzaGroup USA’s Dragon oven, share best practices, and enjoy a day filled with delicious pizza.
The event also emphasizes community support, as it raises funds for David’s Dream & Believe, a local charity that assists families of cancer patients with essential needs. Through T-shirt sales and contributions, NJ Pizza Jam celebrates pizza while giving back to the community.
Tasting the Best of NJ Pizza
The highlight of NJ Pizza Jam was the incredible array of pizzas from top New Jersey pizzerias. Attendees savored a variety of unique and mouthwatering pies, featuring both classic and inventive flavors.
Some of the pizzerias that participated (though not all competed) included:
- Grumpy’s Pizza Co.
- Mangia Brick Oven Pizza
- Via Sposito
- The Columbia Inn & their pizza cybertruck
- Parsippany’s Best Pizza
- Amano Pizza
- Amore Pizza by Jack Calandra
- Cafe Bello
- Cuca Libre
- Fevolas
- Tramonto’s Pizza
- Romeo’s Pizza Italian American
- Cuzzins
- Turano’s
- Amici
Adding to the excitement, pizza influencers The Pizza Hulk, Jess Hottie, and Tracy Dimarco made special appearances. The interactive tasting experience and People’s Choice voting made NJ Pizza Jam truly unforgettable.
The NJ Best Pizza Competition: Passion and Recognition
The NJ Best Pizza Competition brought the excitement to a whole new level, with participants battling for the People’s Choice and Judges Panel Awards. While attendees voted for their top pizzas, a panel of judges critiqued each slice for its flavor and originality.
Mangia Brick Oven Pizza won the People’s Choice Award, impressing the crowd with their margherita pizza, featuring plum tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, and basil. With over 30 years in the business, this family-owned restaurant is dedicated to sharing their passion for great food and a warm dining experience.
Tramonto’s Pizza, owned by Teddy and Leanna Megaris, earned half of the Judges Panel Award. Known for their hard work and passion, they showcased two standout pizzas: the Hott Honey Roni, with crispy pepperoni cups, ricotta, hot honey, and basil, and the Tristate Granny, featuring vodka, marinara, and pesto sauces on a grandma crust.
The other half of the Judges Panel Award went to Via Sposito, led by Anthony and Vincent Esposito Jr. Their coal-fired pizza with imported cheeses and cured meats reflects their deep-rooted Italian heritage. At the event, they featured their signature margherita pizza with Pomodoro sauce, homemade mozzarella, pecorino romano, basil, and extra virgin olive oil.
This competition celebrated NJ’s pizza talent, giving local pizzerias the spotlight to showcase their culinary excellence.
Pizzagroup USA: Pioneering Pizza Technology
Pizzagroup USA stole the spotlight with their revolutionary Dragon oven, impressing attendees with its ability to cook pizzas quickly (without sacrificing) while enhancing the flavor or texture due to the refractory stone conveyor. This innovation boosts production speed while ensuring consistently delicious results.
The Power Deck oven also shined, offering versatility and high performance for experimenting with cooking techniques and handling high-volume production. It quickly became a favorite among chefs looking to elevate their pizza operations.
Linea Dori LLC: Craftsmanship on Display
One of the highlights of the event was the partnership with Linea Dori LLC, known for their beautifully designed, high-quality pizza peels. These peels were used by all of the competitors throughout the event, adding a touch of craftsmanship to each pie.
As a special prize, the winner of the NJ Best Pizza Competition walked away with a customized, engraved peel—courtesy of Linea Dori LLC. This exclusive prize was the perfect way to honor the creativity and skill demonstrated by the winning pizzaiolo.
Our Sponsors and Vendors: A Strong Support System
We extend our deepest gratitude to the incredible sponsors and vendors who made NJ Pizza Jam Fall 2024 a success. Their unwavering support elevated the experience for all attendees. A special thanks to:
- Malachy Parts & Service: For ensuring seamless equipment maintenance and support
- Slice: for showing the easiest way to order your favorite local pizza
- Toast: for showcasing their All-In-Resturant POS
- Pepsi: For keeping everyone refreshed with their iconic beverages.
- Univex: for slicing salami and cheeses on their quality slicers
- Shift 4: for displaying a POS system made for restaurants with all of the capabilities you need to be successful
- Café Bristot: For their rich, flavorful coffee that paired perfectly with our pizzas.
- Krowne: For their top-tier BAD BIRDIE bar and kitchen equipment.
- Mutti: For their premium tomatoes, which brought a fresh, authentic flavor to every pizza.
- Sanremo: For their outstanding espresso machines that gave attendees a caffeine boost.
- Molino Pasini: For their high-quality flours, the foundation of perfect pizza dough.
- Lue’s Brew: For their unique, flavorful craft beers, adding to the fun of the event.
- Polly-O: For their delicious cheeses, a classic favorite in the pizza-making process
- Hive House Honey: For adding a spicy-sweet kick to the pizzas with their hot honey.
- Caught Ya Lookin’ Photobooth LLC: For capturing memories with their fun and interactive photo booth.
- Browne: From back of house cookware to front of house tabletop we design products that are innovative, unique and that enhance the users experience
- Chefworks: an industry leader in the design, development and management of uniform and culinary apparel programs across the globe
- Ezzo Sausage Co: Top quality dry pepperoni, fresh sausage and cured meat manufacturers since 1978
Looking Forward to the Next NJ Pizza Jam
As we look back on the success of NJ Pizza Jam Fall 2024, we’re already excited for what the future holds. The event not only showcased the incredible talent in the NJ pizza community but also highlighted the role of technology and innovation in shaping the future of pizza-making. Whether you’re a chef, a pizza enthusiast, or a food service professional, NJ Pizza Jam is a reminder of why we all love pizza—and we can’t wait to do it all again at the next event.
