Ledo Pizza, one of the pioneers of “Maryland Style Pizza”, opened at 243 W 38th St in Manhattan a little over two years ago and has been fully embraced by NYC since its arrival.
As we discussed in our inaugural podcast back in 2014 due to our very own Mr. MoCo’s enthusiasm for this type of pizza, Maryland-style pizza is characterized by its rectangular shape, biscuity crust, sweet tomato sauce, and smoked provolone cheese. We’ll delve into its origins shortly, but we refer to this specific style due to the pizza offered at popular local restaurants.
While we use the term “Maryland Style Pizza,” it mainly pertains to areas in Maryland that are suburbs of Washington, D.C., with this style predominantly found in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties. This pizza style tends to spark debate, as many people have strong opinions about its unique components– whether it’s the sauce, the crust, the cheese, or a combination of all three. That’s a trend with most pizza in general.
It all started in 1955 when Ledo Pizza, originally known as Ledo Restaurant, opened its first location in Adelphi, Maryland (Prince George’s County, as shown below). At the time, circular pizza pans were still relatively new, so they opted for rectangular pans instead—and they decided to stick with what was working. More on the history of Maryland Style Pizza can be found here.
Ledo Pizza has since grown to over 100 locations along the East Coast, bringing Maryland-style pizza to regions that may not have been as familiar with it. Expanding into New York was a bold move, given that New Yorkers are known for their strong opinions on pizza. However, the venture has proven to be a great success, with Ledo Pizza achieving a 4.8/5 rating from over 500 Google reviews since opening. The restaurant also boasts a 4.5/5 rating on Yelp, with more than 60 reviews.
Recently Bob’s Pizza Tour, a popular social media account highlighting pizza primarily in NYC and Baltimore, shared a reel of “Maryland Style Pizza in NYC” that has regenerated interest in our older pieces about the style. The reel can be seen below:
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