My first Jersey pizza: Frank & Son, Parsippany

Frank & Son Pizzeria, 355 Parsippany Rd, Parsippany, NJ, 973.887.2181

Taking a left where I'd ordinarily take a right between my company HQ and the hotel, I hoped to randomly run into a place I'd read about on Chowhound that I couldn't remember the name of.

This wasn't it, but it was a nice diversion. (Looking back I should have sought out Reservoir Tavern, but I was a good mile or so off).

Frank & Son had that nice native NJ rustic look: an old house turned into a restaurant. Ultra casual: a counter where you order with coolers behind, and a bunch of fast-food booths.

Pizza comes in one size: waay too big for one dinner, and the slices looked a little stale. So I ordered a calzone ($6.95) and fried calamari ($5.95).

The calamari were probably prepackaged: the uniformity of slices, lack of tentacles and breadcrumb coating made me think I'd gotten onion rings instead. My initial fears were overcome, though: The calamari rings were excellently prepared: just enough time in the fry-o-lator to keep the breading together without vulcanizing the squiddy flesh; in fact they were extremely tender. Accompanied by a decent marinara with a nice sheen of oil.

The calzone was a mixed bag: great crust: crisp edged, golden brown and a bit caramelized on the bottom, yet chewy and stretchy. The filling was waaay too bland, though: mozz and ricotta with a pepperoni that has a lot less red pepper than I'm used to and kind of a hammy flavor. The leftover marinara from the calamari helped, but could have used a little more zip, some herbs in the filling.

JoelF wrote:Looking back I should have sought out Reservoir Tavern

You were so close, yet so far.

The Reservoir is a place I really wish I could go back to, to document food that I assumed was everywhere, until it wasn't. I'm sorry you stumbled upon a mediocre place, when you were so close to a real gem.

Reservoir Tavern
90 Parsippany Blvd
Parsippany, NJ 07054
973-334-5708
I-287 Northbound Exit 43, 1st exit North of I-80, turn right, go 1/4 mile