Located in the Forum in Fort Myers east of 1-75 is a new pizza joint, Tony’s NY Pizza. It is located where Starbucks was originally located as well as the Maverick Grill. They opened in mid-July and have been busy ever since. It is in a great location because in that area of Fort Myers there are not many dining choices, let alone good ones.
We recently visited Buddyz Chicago Pizzeria also located in the Forum. So now if you want to know which is better NY or Chicago…all you have to do is head out to the Forum and give them both a try.
Tony’s offers pizza, appetizers, pasta dishes, soups, salads, calzones, subs, and several more traditional entrees like lasagna, chicken/eggplant parm and baked ziti. Their pizza’s come in 3 sizes 14” medium, 18” large and Sicilian. The do have Gluten free options as well as vegan pizza options. For dessert they have several options; Cannoli, Tiramisu and Zeppoli.
The atmosphere is not really anything special but what is unique is they have a counter with many pizza options for pizza by the slice, all on display. They play some interesting Italian music that brought back many childhood memories. It seems the have a limited selection and play the music sporadically.
The food, mainly the pizzas are the real stars here. We started with the Fried Mozzarella ($7.95). We prefer the half-moon shaped rather than the sticks. It was decent but could have been a bit hotter, so the cheese melted a bit more. We the tried different pizzas. A medium 5th Avenue Mushroom ($16.95) Buffalo mozzarella, mushrooms, garlic, tomato, fresh basil and balsamic reduction. A Garlic Sicilian ($16.95 plus $1.99 for the garlic topping). We also tried their Calzone ($9.95 plus .99 a topping) Mozzarella, Ricotta, Romano, garlic, and fresh herbs with pepperoni and yellow banana peppers.
The 5th Avenue Mushroom was cooked perfectly, crispy when you went to fold it and a slight flop at the end. It was delish. The flavors just danced in your mouth. It was so enjoyable. You can tell they use quality ingredients, but it could have used more mushrooms. The Garlic Sicilian was outstanding and was cooked perfectly, golden on the bottom and sides. It was loaded with cheese and the right amount of garlic (minced). It was so good we could not stop eating it. The calzone was huge and full of plenty of toppings and cheese mainly in the middle. It was cooked perfectly. The sauce was ok. Not our favorite and could have used more flavor.
We just had to try the Zeppoli as they are not easy to find in the Fort Myers area. The portion is huge and is enough for at least 4 people all for $4.95. They are just excellent and perfection. They are covered in powder sugar!!! If you like zeppoli (fried dough balls) then you will want to try theirs.
Service is friendly and causal. It is a seat yourself restaurant. Our server Jennifer was very attentive without being intrusive. She answered all our questions. They also do a brisk take out business that seems to be very organized. Our meals did take a while to be served but it is worth the wait.
We do need to mention that they do not serve coffee or hot tea. So, if you like either after your meal you will be a bit disappointed. We were told the reason was because pizzerias do not serve coffee/tea, but we were also told they are considering it and may offer sometime in the future.
So, if you are out east of I-75 looking for some good pizza then stop by Tony’s.
Overall rating: Most Yummy
Tony’s NY Pizza
3398 Forum Blvd unit 101,
Fort Myers, FL 33905
