Legendary N.J. pizza family’s shop closed by state, accused of not paying taxes
It's an unfortunate latest chapter in the family's long, twisting history
www.nj.com
OT: RIP Delorenzo’s, Hamilton
- Thread starter Doteman
- Start date
Never should have left Trenton as the Hamilton spot couldn't produce sales like the original spot.
Robbinsville location better:
LOCATIONS & HOURS — De Lorenzo's Tomato Pies Est. 1947
www.delorenzostomatopies.com
Sounds like the problem was taxes more than lovation
The location wasn't carrying the same profits as Trenton. Simple math. Just $11k sounds like they shouldn't seize a place but Hamilton is different than Trenton
Robbinsville >>>>> Hamilton
Actually, I should edit this. Robbinsville>>>>>Yardley>>>>>Hamilton
Actually, I should edit this. Robbinsville>>>>>Yardley>>>>>Hamilton
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I watch people line up every day at the Robbinsville spot. Literally lined up waiting for the doors to open.
Article says state taxes, not township . Since when does the state go after anyone, let alone a business which much history in the state, for $11k??
The state has ratcheted up enforcement recently. The tax board got a new law that extended how far they can look back, and their budget got a boost too, iirc.
This is different group that moved from Trenton to Hamilton, they have been at several locations before settling on Sloan Ave in Hamilton. They are all blood relatives but are not associated with each others businesses. The Robbinsville spot is called De Lorenzo Tomato Pie not DeLorenzo Pizza.
NJ 101.5 does a better job (but not great) explaining it. There has to be more to this story why the state would seize the property for just $11k.
Landmark NJ pizza spot closed for unpaid taxes, notice says
The longtime pizza makers have been in the current Mercer County spot for over a decade, with roots in the 1930s.
nj1015.com
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They might have multiple liens and just recorded the one listed.
And the State does business seizures for not paying sales tax all the time.
Lack of business isn’t what hurt them. The place is usually packed. It’s not as packed as the Robbinsville location, I live right around the corner and that place gets insane.
My wife works for taxation department. I read online the place may become a dispensary. I also heard they are still trying to work things out with the landlord to keep it Delos.
I hope it comes back. It’s good to have the option of both Delorenzo’s and Papas all around me. They are all great
My wife works for taxation department. I read online the place may become a dispensary. I also heard they are still trying to work things out with the landlord to keep it Delos.
I hope it comes back. It’s good to have the option of both Delorenzo’s and Papas all around me. They are all great
First these are 2 completely different companies. Although the owners are related but run and make different style pizza. The one in Robbinsville is De Lorenzo's Tomato Pies. The one on Sloan Ave, Hamilton is DeLorenzo's Pizza.
The DeLorenzo's Pizza has been at several locations before settling on Slone Ave. There were other locations before in Hamilton and Trenton.
Like I said before there is more to this story that we don't know yet
I know this. I’m in a fantasy football league with one of the family members who runs the Robbinsville place.
I know there is more to the story. I heard all about it from my wife who works in taxation department
Here is some background on how these things go. When a business owes trust fund taxes like withholding or sales tax and it finally results in the filing of a COD the case goes to field staff. They visit the business and discuss the debt with the owner or their rep. They give them an opportunity to verify if the debt is accurate or there is an error. Once it is determined to be accurate they give them an opportunity to go on a payment plan to resolve it. Terms of the plan include that all current tax periods have to be paid as they become due. If they don’t do those things they could do levies or seizures of the business.
I only responded to your post as you posted as if they were associated, saying the "Robbinsville location"
Don’t care. This is just a FAKE DeLo’s. The real one is in Robbinsville with a second location in Yardley. Never accept any imitations! Look for the original sign from Trenton in the waiting area.Legendary N.J. pizza family’s shop closed by state, accused of not paying taxes
It's an unfortunate latest chapter in the family's long, twisting historywww.nj.com
It's always been my contention that this one that just got shut down, DeLorenzo's Pizza, only receives any attention at all because of the similarity/confusion between the two places, which, as you say, are completely unrelated businesses (and the familial relationship is so distant that the members of each struggle to explain it).
So, if this place were called "Joe's" and it shut down, it wouldn't be the least bit newsworthy. It's regular New York-style pizza, and it's good, but not significantly above average. It's just a place. It won't be missed other than by people in pizza forums who lament the loss of a legend, when they are clearly associating it with De Lorenzo's Tomato Pies.
I do think that it only ever occupied its previous location on Hamilton Ave. in Trenton, but just about on the Hamilton Twp. border before moving to Sloan Ave. (EDIT: I see now that they had a place in the 'Burg prior to 1961. Didn't realize that.)
I grew up going to Hamilton Avenue, the one that eventually moved to Sloan. Everyone in my area went there as the better option. I only had Robbinsville once and it was definitely my favorite. Went to Yardley a few times, most recently in January when I was back in town and I wasn’t very impressed. There’s another one in PA further south that people tell me is better. I tried going back to robbinsville this week but it was closed on Monday so I had to settle for Pete and Elda’s. Good enough but not Delo’s.
State sales tax audits are a very real and very common thing.
The auditors will work with businesses to get them straightened out, but all of the businesses that close are repeat / habitual offenders. It's very, very common and restaurants are the most egregious offenders.
Mrs4Real tossed all of her foodservice clients years ago because of the frustration related to the owners never wanting to pay sales taxes and making up stupid things to justify not doing it. The last one to go was our favorite pizza place in Manalapan, which was forced to close less than a year later.
My office is close enough to the Robbinsville location that I can do lunch from time to time (need 90 mins to make it work). Love that place! The perfect pizza for me and what I like.
9.2! Blew away that loser pizza down the street (Papa's). :)
You don’t like Papas? Both are great IMO. I’ll get Papas more because they deliver. Every once in a while I’ll get one as good as Delos.
Papa's is very good, but not special like DeLo's. As I mentioned above, DeLo's is exactly the style I like, so it is the perfect pizza for me.
And in Trenton at the corner of Broad and Ferry. Good lunch business as Trenton State workers spend more time eating than working! But nobody lived around there so it was a ghost town at night and dead on weekends.
Agree. The confusion of the name makes it way more important than it should be. Just another pizza joint.
For the old timers, wasn't the original De Lorenzo's in Chambersburg just called De Lorenzo's and they added Tomato Pies after this other group opened up?
Yea sounds to me they are repeat offenders and have not fulfilled their responsibilities of prior liens and fines associated. Something tells me there will be a tax fraud case reminiscent of a certain Philly cheese steak locations.
From 2018 to 2023, picking up a Delorenzos pie for lunch from Sloan Avenue was a Saturday tradition. Then I found Papas and that became the new Saturday tradition. Delorenzo’s Robbinsville is solid, but not as good as Papas, imo. Eat there semi-regularly, and have gone to both Yardley and Robbinsville locations.
Just ate it last night. Enjoy the taste, but the pizza is too thin. I can eat a whole Delorenzo’s pie myself, whereas it takes four Papas slices to fill me up. Also, they cut the pizza into squares, rather than slices, which is kind of weird.
For North Jersey People, Brooklyns on Hackensack Avenue is very good. It’s owned by the nephew of Patsy Grimaldi, who runs Juliana’s in Brooklyn.
Now I’m hungry for Pizza.
I was thinking of asking Papas to open a location in New Brunswick, Because they would make an absolute killing. New Brunswick pizza is awful.
Rutgers kids deserve good pizza, and it would be a competitive advantage against other universities. There isn’t any good pizza in Ann Arbor, Columbus, or State College.
Just ate it last night. Enjoy the taste, but the pizza is too thin. I can eat a whole Delorenzo’s pie myself, whereas it takes four Papas slices to fill me up. Also, they cut the pizza into squares, rather than slices, which is kind of weird.
For North Jersey People, Brooklyns on Hackensack Avenue is very good. It’s owned by the nephew of Patsy Grimaldi, who runs Juliana’s in Brooklyn.
Now I’m hungry for Pizza.
I was thinking of asking Papas to open a location in New Brunswick, Because they would make an absolute killing. New Brunswick pizza is awful.
Rutgers kids deserve good pizza, and it would be a competitive advantage against other universities. There isn’t any good pizza in Ann Arbor, Columbus, or State College.
Try Federici’s in Freehold. For crispy thin crust you can’t go wrong there. Also in between Pete and Elda’s and Robbinsville.
Exact reason MrScrew & I prefer Papa's.
If you live around the corner we must be neighbors.
Yup, we are close. I’m right off 33 in Golden Crest. Actually just ordered Papas. Sausage w/garlic well done.
I'm in town Center
My only issue with Papa's is that frequently I can't get through on the phone. Massimo's in Foxmoor is our other choice.
I know what you mean. They will take it off the hook because it gets so busy. Gotta be patient lol.
Every once in a while I'll get Marcello's (George Dye & 33) Corleone style pizza if I cant get through to Papas. They are different then Papas much thicker but pretty good.
I get it delivered a decent amount. I don’t look at it as settling I like them both. I’ll pick them up sometimes too, just depends on what I got going on. Last night had Papas delivered because we were babysitting our 4 month old niece
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