Maxwell’s East Coast Eatery in Park City, Utah offers The West some of the best eats of The East which is often hard to find in these parts. Oh how I have longed for an authentic New York style pizza that every pizzeria claims to have, but never really delivers (pun intended). We have tried several pizza places over the years that have come really close to NY style. The best one was Atlantic Pizza which I loved, but they packed it up and moved somewhere unknown – they didn’t even tell me they were leaving 🙁 . There are two other pizzerias in Park City that have nearly New York style pizza – Red Banjo Pizza Parlour on Main Street and Davanza’s with two locations – one downtown on Park Ave. and one at Kimball Junction in the Walmart shopping area. I can’t hold it against them that they are not authentic because they are not even claiming to have New York style pizza, but it’s pretty good. There are other pizza places in town like the Park City Pizza Company and Main Street Pizza and Noodle which I cannot vouch for since I have not eaten pizza at either. Anyway, I digress…
Maxwell’s is located in the Redstone Plaza at Kimball Junction next to the Swaner EcoCenter. We arrived just before 5pm on a Friday. We were quickly greeted and offered a table. We asked if we could sit in one of the booths by the bar instead and the host said no one is serving those tables until 5pm, but after we told him we just wanted to order pizza he said that’s fine and will get someone to take our order. He was very nice and accommodating. I believe Maxwell’s have 19 HD flat-screen TVs throughout the restaurant, so basically wherever you sit, you won’t miss out on any game action. As I have mentioned, there is a bar with stool seating and several big booths. The atmosphere was definitely sports bar-like and jovial.
We ordered the 20″ Fat Kid Cheese Pizza with no toppings. We enjoy the New York style without any accessories because it doesn’t need it and only gets in the way of savoring the unique combination of a flavorful thin crust, high quality mozzarella and homemade tomato sauce. My friend ordered a Guinness on tap which was so smooth and much better than the Guinness in the can with the air bladder thingy.
The restaurant was about half full so it didn’t take long for the pizza to arrive swiftly at our table. It’s so big they put it up on a metal stand in order to still have room on the table to eat! Instead of plates, they give you wax paper-like sheets to put your pizza on. The pizza was perfect, just like I remember when I used to live near the Jersey Shore (no teasing) in my younger years. The slices were huge, like they should be, so that you need to fold it at the start when taking your first few bites. Which brings me to a second observation – the thin crust is pliable – not like a crunchy cracker which some pizzerias think is New York style. The cheese and sauce combination was perfecto. What is even more amazing to me, especially for a Park City Restaurant, is all this divinity only set me back $15 (for the pizza, $5 for the beer)! I need not say more – just look at the photo. My apologies for not having a photo of the complete pizza when it came to our table. My guest and I were so excited to dig-in, I was halfway through my second slice before I remembered to take a photo!
Now Maxwell’s has other things on their menu besides pizza like sandwiches, homemade pasta dishes, chef specialties, etc. and I’m guessing they would be good based on how great the pizza was, but you’ll have to test them out yourselves. And it is possible that you may not like their pizza because you prefer a thicker crust, but I’m just saying if I can’t get to Ray’s pizza in New York or my old local pizzeria in Jersey, then Maxwell’s is the next best thing.
I also ordered the Cannoli, “Just like Mom made it!”, with sweet ricotta cheese and chocolate chips. I’ve missed being able to go down to the local Italian bakery and get a few dozen of these sweet treats. Those in the Godfather knew it best, “…Leave the gun, take the cannoli.” My only complaint is that it wasn’t enough, especially since I had to share. I wish for $4 they would give either two small cannolis or one giant one.
Have you eaten at Maxwell’s or have had better pizza elsewhere in Park City? Let us know by commenting below!
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