Local restaurant serves New York-style pizza

ZANESVILLE – People in Zanesville don't have to travel far for New York pizza. Not with Picnic Pizza Italian Eatery just off Maple Avenue.

"We go with the traditional style of New York hand-tossed style pizza," Vinny Buzzetta Jr. said.

Buzzetta's father, originally from Sicily, brought the style to Zanesville after moving here from New York more than 30 years ago.

"It's a nice town," said Vincenzo Buzzetta, Vinny Jr.'s father and owner of Picnic Pizza.

Even people in Zanesville and the rest of Muskingum County, hundreds of miles away from the East Coast, enjoy this kind of pizza, he said.

"I make fresh pizza dough every day," he said.

About 1.4 pounds of dough goes into each pizza, Vinny Jr. said. He estimated that they probably go through about 90 pounds of dough each day and sell about 70 to 90 pizzas every day. On weekend days, they can sell 200 a day.

Vinny Jr. hand-tosses the pizza behind the counter but in full view of the dining room so customers, if they want, can watch their pizza being made.

The pizza is cooked in a brick oven, which is rare nowadays, Vinny Jr. said. Most restaurants use a pizza press and a conveyor belt, but that process doesn't give the pizzas the kind of authentic crispiness that Picnic Pizza strives to serve its customers.

And people notice, he said. Customers come from across the state as well as the Midwest, and they've said "this is the best pizza we've had outside of New York."

ksnyder2@zanesvilletimesrecorder.com

740-450-6752

Twitter: @KL_Snyder

About the series

The Times Recorder will feature a local eatery and what fare makes it unique each week. If you have a suggestion or are a restaurant owner who would like to be featured, let us know at trnews@zanesvilletimesrecorder.com.

Picnic Pizza Hours and Location

Sunday through Thursday: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Friday and Saturday: 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.

1250 Maple Ave., Zanesville