CONNECTICUT — For the second year in a row, The Robb Report has named a New Haven pizzeria to its list of the Top 50 in the country, in new rankings released last week.
It’s just not the New Haven pizzeria you’re thinking of.
Zeneli Pizzeria e Cucina Napoletana (or just “Zeneli’s”) on Wooster Street ranked No. 37 on the 2024 list of “The 50 Best Pizzerias in America,” moving up one notch from its 2023 ranking. The oft-celebrated Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana and Sally’s Apizza, Zeneli’s neighbors just up the block — or any other Connecticut pizzeria, for that matter — didn’t make the list at all.
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You might be shaking your head, but co-owner Gazmir Zeneli isn’t fazed in the least.
“To be honest with you, we are not surprised, because this is a family owned business. And we are on top of everything. My brother is a cheese maker. I’m the dough maker. And we are here every day, and try to be on top of the quality. And finally, the hard work pays off.”
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The journey’s been a long one, to be sure. Gazmir and brothers Aleko, Jetmir and Jeshar moved their business to Wooster Street from Brooklyn, NY, five years ago. The brothers were originally from Albania, and learned their trade while growing up in Naples.
“We lived in Italy for 22 years. We took the best there, and we brought it here to Wooster Street,” Gazmir said.
The two most important of those ingredients, according to the pizzaiolo, are patience and passion.
“You cannot make a pizza in 22 minutes when you have lived 22 years in Italy,” he explained.
Zeneli’s is not the only pizzeria to match or improve its standing in The Robb Report’s prestigious annual rankings. Una Pizza Napoletana in New York City has been named the best pizzeria in the United States for the third time in a row. Tony’s Pizza Napoletana in San Francisco moved up to second place, after coming in fourth last year, and Pizzeria Beddia in Philadelphia, brand new in the rankings, came in third.
Not surprisingly, The Robb Report’s pizza pundits declared New York City, with its 17 restaurants appearing on the Top 50 list, “clearly the pizza capital of America.” Chicago did well, with seven spots, and Portland, OR, followed with six restaurants.
As for New Haven, Gazmir admits he and his brothers didn’t win a lot of love at first for their eatery’s saucy catchphrase, “Finally good Pizza has arrived in New Haven.”
“You must remember,” Gazmir laughed, “five years ago, those other pizzerias were not as popular as they are today.”
Zeneli Pizzeria e Cucina Napoletana is located at 138 Wooster Street in New Haven.
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