Twelve New Jersey pizzerias. Three from Connecticut. One trophy. And one of those Connecticut pies comes out of a wood-fired oven on New Haven Avenue in Woodmont.
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New Haven Pizza Place is heading down the shore Monday to compete in the third annual Jersey Shore Pizza War in Seaside Park, N.J., according to CFOOD, which cited a Facebook post by event emcee Bobby J. Frazz.
It is Connecticut vs. Jersey, and Milford has a slice in the fight.
Who they’re up against
Fifteen pizzerias are in. The other two Connecticut shops are Carmine’s Pizza in Durham and Pat’s Apizza in North Haven.
The 12 from New Jersey: Lucci’s, Grumpy’s Sourdough Pizza Co., Bucky’s Pizza, O’ Sole Mio Pizzeria Ristorante, Joe’s Famous Pizza, Sally Boy’s, Capricci Pizza, Riccardo’s Pizza & Italian Restaurant, Pies on 37, Tramonto’s Pizza, Manzano’s Brick Oven Pizza and Marinella’s Italian Restaurant & Pizzeria.
Watch out for a familiar name. Tramonto’s of Ocean Township won the overall title at last year’s Pizza Wars in Seaside Park, NJ 101.5 reported. Lucci’s of Clifton and Capricci’s of Howell also took regional titles that night.
Casey Webb is judging
The celebrity judging panel includes Casey Webb, host of “Man v. Food”; Frank Zabski, owner of New Haven Pizza School, which holds classes in Milford and New Haven; Food Network “Chopped” champion Jill Falgiano; Jersey Pizza Joints founder “Big Guy” Madsen; and How U Doin Foundation founder Eddie Fischer.
The winner is crowned Pizza War champion. Past winners have taken home a traveling trophy engraved with their restaurant’s name.
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The family behind the oven
New Haven Pizza Place is family-owned and run by the Bernardo family. Their pizza story goes back to 1974, when Arsenio Bernardo’s father, Luigi, opened his first pizza shop and bakery, Gigi’s, in New Haven, according to the restaurant’s Our Story page.
Arsenio and Amanda Bernardo opened New Haven Pizza Place together, Disrupt Magazine reported. Amanda left a career in banking to carry on the family’s pizza legacy.
The shop opened in 2017 in the Woodmont Plaza shopping center near Adam’s Supermarket, the New Haven Register reported. It has since added a full-service bar next door that connects to the pizzeria.
The pies are wood-fired and New Haven-style. The family describes long nights in front of a 700-degree oven and says it’s the small moments that keep them going:
“It’s the little moments that make it all worthwhile—like the compliment from a first-time customer, or the smile on a child’s face when their pizza arrives at the table.”
Regulars already know the menu. On its website, the restaurant lists its Buffalo Chicken Pizza, Linguine and Clams, Hot Oil Wings, Stuffed Bread Sampler, Shrimp Casino Pizza and Eggplant Casserole among the dishes it’s best known for.
It won’t be the shop’s first pizza showdown, either. New Haven Pizza Place was one of the Milford challengers when West Haven’s Pizza Wars opened up to Milford pizzerias, the Register reported.
Want to go cheer?
Tickets are $45 on the event’s ticket page. Doors open at 3:30 p.m. at the Park Pavilion on the Seaside Park boardwalk. The event also has a “Taste of the Town,” where guests can sample food from local eateries.
Money raised goes to Cookin’ for the Cause, a nonprofit that puts on culinary fundraisers to help local charities and people in need. Can’t make the drive? The ticket page also takes donations.
We’ll post the result as soon as the winner is announced.
KEY FACTS
What: 3rd annual Jersey Shore Pizza War (15 pizzerias: 12 from N.J., 3 from Conn.)
When: Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. Doors open 3:30 p.m.
Where: Park Pavilion on the boardwalk, Seaside Park, N.J.
Tickets: $45 ($40 + $5 fee) at cookinforthecause.ticketspice.com
Benefits: Cookin’ for the Cause
Milford’s entry: New Haven Pizza Place, 1377 New Haven Ave., Milford. 203-693-3500. newhavenpizzaplace.net
Reader poll: Will New Haven Pizza Place win it?
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