Note: Jersey Bites was invited to visit Blaze Pizza and our writer received a complimentary meal.
Founded by Rick and Elise Wetzel (whose surname may ring familiar…Wetzels Pretzels, anyone?), the first Blaze Pizza opened in California in 2012. A little over a year ago, Blaze Pizza made its entrance into the Garden State and now has four locations statewide: Paramus, Newark, Clark, and Wayne. When they invited me to bring my family to the Wayne location, at the Willowbrook Mall to give it a try, I had two reactions. The first was, “Great! I’d love to check out a new pizza place!” The second was, “Good luck to them, having us there with my three- and six-year-old kids.” Blaze proved me wrong, and I’m happy to report that I have added it to the very short list of restaurants where my kids will happily stay in their seats for the duration of a meal—and ask for more!
The build-your-own design of the menu allows for as much creativity as each guest wants, and several signature options are also available. The task of deciding what to try took us far longer than the hard-to-believe, 180-seconds-per-pizza cook time. But true to Blaze’s word, these pizzas were done in three minutes flat. We tried the following varieties, all of which were super fresh and definitely worth getting again: meat eater (pepperoni, crumbled meatballs, red onion, mozzarella, red sauce), BBQ Chkn (grilled chicken, mozzarella, red onion, banana peppers, gorgonzola, bbq sauce drizzle, and yes, that’s how it’s spelled!), red vine (ovalini mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, parmesan, basil, red sauce, olive oil drizzle), veg out (zucchini, mushrooms, red onion, mozzarella, gorgonzola, red sauce dollops), and white top (white cream sauce with mozzarella, applewood bacon, chopped garlic, oregano, arugula). Aside from enjoying each variety, my husband and I couldn’t get over how reasonably priced everything was. The kids were most into the red vine and BBQ Chkn, but the show-stealer for them was dessert: the s’mores pie/cookie sandwich, which they’re still talking about.
The atmosphere is light and casual, and while the location we visited is at the far end of Willowbrook’s food court, it absolutely does not feel mall-like. The space is enclosed, and the decor is modern and smart. Huge black and white images, like the sneakers shown above, cover much of the wall space, and it totally works. Ian Appell, district manager of the AMPAL Group said, “The artwork supports the look and feel of our restaurants and varies from restaurant to restaurant. Our messaging on the artwork, such as ‘Unconventionally Wise’ and ‘Nonconformists Keep Up the Good Work’ speaks to the environment we create at Blaze.”
Also adding to the atmosphere? One of the friendliest restaurant staffs I’ve encountered. Ever. The employees were not only incredibly helpful at the counter, but also as knowledgable as could be about the pizzas themselves. Save a seat for us, Blaze Pizza—we’ll be back!
Blaze Pizza (multiple locations)
1400 Willowbrook Mall
Wayne
973-785-2483
Since there was no beer to taste (Kane is only a few minutes away so I stopped there afterwards), I had to ask what will be on tap once they open in the spring. Here’s what I learned: the focus will be on an entertaining and interesting tap room. Standards like IPAs can be expected but I’m told they make a killer Heffeweisse. There was also talk of a tart Berliner Weisse complete with homemade “mit schuss.” (That’s the sweet flavored syrup that German’s often add to that style.) I haven’t seen that in a tap room recently.
The Bendix was built by Master Diners—the masterpiece of the company’s “Enduro” line. Master, which was founded in 1940 by Arthur Schelling and his sons George and Bill, built diners al fresco at the family compound in Pequannock. When the diner manufacturing business faded in the late 1950s, the Schellings redeployed their stainless steel skills to construct Carvel ice cream stores. Arthur died in 1961 and the brothers retired eight years later. George passed away in January 2013, just six months shy of his 100th birthday. Today family descendants still reside in Pequannock and remain proud of the Master legacy.
Throughout the 1940s and 1950s the Master crew worked outdoors in the Pequannock yard, year round, building diners based on blueprints drawn up by Goethals Van Lenten, Arthur Schelling’s son-in-law. “The diner business was feast or famine,” Bill recalled. “Either we had too much work, or not enough.” Bill said he was the sheet metal guy, bending, cutting and pressing stainless steel. I think I spotted his fingerprints on one of the window frames.
A small string of Christmas lights hung in the front window, creating variations on a theme—a sweet, slightly melancholy, an ever-so-faint holiday accoutrement. At the far end of the counter, four blue-collar regulars were engaged in spirited banter, giving each other “the business.” Actually, they really were giving each other the business—tracking investment strategies, that is. One guy had his laptop computer open and announced that the market was up 131 points. “I only buy dividend stocks,” he declared. “It’s the gift that keeps on giving.” An amigo inquired to the market watcher about the status of Apple stock. “It’s up 25 cents—no wait, 31 cents,” he replied.
While Bellview initially only grew three acres of grapes, it now has 40 acres under cultivation, and sells over 20 different varieties of wine, including ones like Grüner Veltliner and Blaufränkisch, which are uncommon in New Jersey. Their biggest seller is Fiesta, a blend of cranberries and red wine. Bellview is the only winery in the state and one of only a handful in the entire country to make a dandelion wine. Quarella said the wine is based on an old family recipe, and is difficult to produce, but ages very well. The winery is also exploring the use of Marzemino, a rare Northern Italian grape that is mentioned is Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni.
