If you have made it here you are looking for more, and we aim to please.

It is 2014 and we are looking for a spot for our pizza place, based on what we really want in a pizza and a place. Not knowing what we didn’t know, we were ready to open in Portland to honor the Great Pies of the New Haven tradition: Frank Pepe’s, Sally’s and Modern, and without the stuffiness that we were seeing in contemporary pizza locally. Sure there was lots of pizza, and there would be new good and even great pizza, and then there is Pizza Jerk.

Pizza wasn’t invented in New Haven, Connecticut. It was perfected there. This is a big 18” thin crust pizza descendant from those little pies in Naples, electric (originally coal) fired with thin crust, tomato sauce, and not too much cheese. This Pizza has a distinctive thin crust, almost round, with characteristic char “leopard spots” on the bottom and charring on the crust and bubbles. This pizza is not burnt. Tell your kids; this is the truth and they need to know.

Pizza Jerk is a community place. We have remained open through the hardships of 2020 and 2021, and our customers have rewarded us with support bordering on loyalty. You supported us as we supported you. Our dining room is for dinner, for parties, for birthdays and dates and meetings and beers and slices. Our patio has served our customers when indoor dining was out of the question, and slowly we have made this a neighborhood hangout. You can come and get a pie with the kids, and they run off with old or new friends, and two beers later you may be ready for home.

Pizza is Nature’s most perfect food. We love Italy, and we love that people think pizza is Italian. But pizza belongs to America. We care more about it. We eat more of it, for dinner, for lunch and for breakfast. Pizza is the best food for sharing. Good pizza is really-really good, and Pizza Jerk aims for a perfect pizza every time.