Of course we did get the requisite Pepperoni Pie ($11.50 and it was as glorious as ever, along with a White Clam Pie ($12.50) (theirs are made with plenty of garlic, and a clam-flavored bechamel-like sauce with just a few chunks of real clam—like no other clam pie I've had, but delicious in its own way), but this time I also opted for one of their specialty pie. Something about the high-low dichotomy of portobello, sun dried tomatoes, and pinenuts on a decidedly non fancy-pants bar-style crust seemed interesting to me. More

Star Tavern makes an amazingly great thin-crust pizza. I'm craving the stuff as I type this, and not just because I haven't had breakfast yet. If you don't already live in Orange, or in Essex County (because if you do, you already know this), Star is worth a detour — and even a trip. More

Reaching in to the Slice mailbag, we've got ... At Orange, New Jersey's Star Tavern, try a plain pie first, says Jason Perlow of Off the Broiler. [Photograph: Off the Broiler] I saw your post on Colony Grill in Stamford. Looks pretty good, and I definitely share your enthusiasm for the old-school. But I think sometime soon you really should consider making a trip to Star Tavern in Orange, New Jersey.From the photos alone, I think we have Colony beat. Very similar style, but the upskirt from Colony does not seem to compare!"Star," as we call it, is an institution... More