Twenty years ago, Gino Lenti nearly closed his Morrisville restaurant.
La Villa Pizza, which he opened in 1998, had yet to take off and the bills that had piled up seemed insurmountable.
“We were over a million dollars in the hole. I was ready to give up,” Lenti said of those early years struggling to put his Italian family restaurant on the map. But he had one more trick up his sleeve — a pizza that would ultimately become his comeback.
In 2006, La Villa Pizza launched its Trenton tomato pie thanks to a recipe inspired by the one his mother used to make when he was growing up in Italy.
“Once a month, my mother would bake bread and she would also do tomato pies for us, for the whole family, and we’d go crazy. We used to love that day and couldn’t
wait. It would bring everyone together,” he said.
With the new pie on the menu, combined with a complete makeover of his dining room, not only saved the restaurant, but made an overnight success.
“The tomato pie made my life pretty much. Everybody would come here just to try it,” he said.
‘One Bite’ review of La Villa’s tomato pie
Two decades later, that very pizza brought on a visit from Barstool Sports and One Bite Pizza founder David "El Presidente" Portnoy, who posted his “One Bite” review of La Villa Pizza’s Trenton tomato pie on Oct. 14.
As he sampled the square-shaped pizza, he gave it a 7.8 rating, while noting it was different from the tomato pies he’s tried in the past.
“This is not what I think of with a Trenton tomato . . . I mean I really do like this, but it’s not what I was expecting,” Portnoy said, while complimenting the flavor and light and fluffy crust.
What’s on La Villa Pizza’s tomato pie?
According to La Villa’s menu, the Trenton tomato pie comes topped with light mozzarella, chunky tomato, garlic, extra virgin olive oil and oregano, and is available a number of ways.
Customers can choose between square and round and as a 12-inch or 16-inch. There is also the option of a whole wheat personal square pizza or a gluten-free personal round pizza. And for those looking for a little more flavor, they offer the Rustica, which comes topped with fresh mushrooms and their very own sausage, which is made in-house from scratch.
Davie Portnoy visits two more Bucks County shops in October
While in the neighborhood, “El Presidente” made two other stops around Bucks County.
Mama Russo’s in Trevose shared photos on its Facebook page Oct. 9, showing Portnoy posing with the shop’s owners, Vito and Phil Russo, and some of their staff.
“What a honor to have the man himself,” the Facebook post read.
The same day, Portnoy swung over to Abruzzi Ristorante in Langhorne, a visit that was touted on through restaurant’s Facebook page along with photos.
“When we opened, I dreamed for the day this guy would walk through our doors and give us a try. Today that dream come TRUE! Dave walked in, and I was speechless. I didn’t even know what to do or say, I was honestly in a state of shock,” the post said in part, while noting Portnoy had tried the Chambersburg, which is another name for the Trenton-style tomato pie.
“With this attention, things might get a little crazy but we are committed to ensuring our quality doesn’t change and that we still can serve the community and folks that have been supporting us from day 1,” the post later added.
The videos of Mama Russo’s and Abruzzi’s visits have not yet appeared on Portnoy’s “One Bite Pizza Reviews” YouTube channel as of Oct. 15.
Reporter Michele Haddon covers local news, small business, food and drink, economic revitalization, art and culture for The Intelligencer and Bucks County Courier Times at PhillyBurbs.com. Please consider supporting local journalism with a subscription.
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: David Portnoy visits three Bucks County shops for 'One Bite' reviews
