Try High Temp, Flash-Baked, Charred Edge Pizza

Pizza, in all its forms, may be the most popular food invention in modern history, at least in the west, and especially in the U.S. So no wonder a new chain, Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza, a sensational success in South Florida where it originated, is attracting crowds of pizza lovers to its  slightly over 1-year-old franchise outlet in the Horsham Gate Shopping Center on Welsh Road.  

I first encountered Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza when I was down in Boca Raton, Fla., recently, and could not help but notice the small crowd waiting outside its doors every night of the week. I decided to give it a try at its Horsham outlet once I returned home.

I first went on a weekend night, and here too, the crowd waiting to get a table was enormous, and the noise as well; so as is always best with popular hot-spot restaurants. I returned on a quieter, early midweek night, and was seated promptly.

At first, seeing the words “coal fired” might conjure up images of black soot and unpleasant combustion products tainting the pizza – but you would be wrong.

Anthony’s clean-burns the more expensive and pure “anthracite” coal, which brings their ovens to higher temperatures – 800 degrees – than standard pizza ovens, with lower combustion byproducts than woodburning ovens. The result (in four minutes) is pizza with the chain’s trademark thinner, crisper, more well-done crust, indeed charred around the edges. A large sign on high over the oven reads, “Warning! Our pizza is ‘WELL DONE.’”

The 12-inch “traditional” pie with mozzarella, Italian plum tomatoes, Romano cheese, basil, and olive oil ($11.75), plus toppings of Italian sausage and mushrooms ($1.50/topping additional) was truly excellent, even after reheating leftover pieces at home the following day. The freshness and quality of the ingredients were outstanding.

The choice of toppings also includes Kalamata olives, prosciutto ham, long hot pepper fingers, onions, anchovies, pepperoni, and cheese, eggplant, broccoli rabe, and arugula beckon. You can have a Philly Cheesesteak pizza, combining two Italian immortal culinary greats in one; and even a Mexican-style frittata pizza with peppers, onions and eggs.

There is more to enjoy at Anthony’s than just the excellent, crispy pizza. For example, we ordered Anthony’s original Coal Oven-Roasted Chicken wings ($8.95/10 pieces, $14.95/20 pieces). The wings are not breaded, and are served with caramelized onions and wedges of foccacia bread.

The small order was delicious. The meaty wings, slightly burnt at the edges, with a great roast peppery taste, were more than enough to have half to take home. The dish was a bit oily, which the wedges of bread only partially helped to reduce.

The one-page menu offers a few salads, sandwiches, calzones, and shareable “Italian Soul Food” platters, e.g., spare ribs, meatballs, eggplant, and broccoli rabe with sausage, all for under $10. A singular dessert, New York style cheesecake, is also listed.

On a lunchtime visit, we ordered two sandwiches, an “Anthony's Favorite,” prosciutto, mozzarella, and arugula ($5.95), and the “Coal Oven Roasted beef Sandwich” ($6.95), both served on foccacia bread, and both enjoyable, but for the skimpy amount of prosciutto in the former. 

We also had a small side of Anthony's Italian Soul Meatballs ($4.95), which are hand rolled and slow-cooked in fresh tomato sauce. Any Italian nonna would be proud to serve. 

Raised in a traditional Italian family in the restaurant business in Brooklyn, later moving to South Florida, founder Anthony Bruno opened “Anthony’s Runway 84,” a full-service, classic Italian restaurant near the Ft. Lauderdale airport, back in 1982. It soon became a mainstay of the South Florida restaurant scene. Then, in 2002, Bruno opened his first Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza just a few miles away. His goal was to bring the pizza he remembered from his boyhood in Brooklyn to South Florida. The rest, as they say, is history.

This very reasonably priced, yet upscale pizza-parlor-with-bar venue earns an Overall rating mmm 1/2 (out of 5 m’s).

Location:  100 Welsh Road (Rt. 63), Horsham           

Phone:  215-657-1113

Web site: www.anthonyscoalfiredpizza.com                        

Cuisine: Pizza, sandwiches, wings, Italian specialties

Hours: Sunday through Thursday 11:30 a.m. - 10 p.m.;  Friday, Saturday 10:30 a.m. - 11 p.m.

Prices: Appetizers, Salads, Pasta, Entrées $6.50 - $8.95; Pizzas $11.75 - $19.25;

plates, sides $4.95 - $14.95

Ambiance:  Single, big-box dining room can be noisy, walls hung with framed large photos of Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack, etc.

Reservations: No                       

Credit Cards: Visa and Mastercard

Alcoholic Beverages: Full service bar, beer and wines

Wheelchair Access: Yes

To contact Mitch Davis, you can e-mail him.