Bread and Salt, Jersey City, NJ: A Restaurant Review

Bread and Salt is an Italian bakery/restaurant  featuring high quality, well executed Roman style pizza

Bread and Salt though is more than a quality pizza place with salads. It also serves a variety of high quality , breads, sandwiches, meatballs, and stews.

Bread and Salt is co - owned by Rick Easton and restaurateur Marc Magliozzi, with Rick Easton being the operator and chef.  Rick Easton has famed credentials as a baker and pizza maker, having received a James Beard Award semifinalist nomination for his rectangular shaped Roman-style pizza, while at his former Pittsburgh restaurant.

Chef Easton's pizza features a lightly charred, crunchy crust, honeycombed with air pockets. The Roman style crust is strong enough to support a heavy variety of toppings without bending or collapsing. The ingredients are of high quality, many of which are imported from Italy. The sauce contains DOP San Marzano tomatoes imported from the Puglia Region in Italy. It has a slightly acidic bit with a meaty, velvety finish. An unusual, creative twist is the application of fresh domestic cheese curd on the pizza immediately after it's removed from the oven, giving it an extra flavory taste.

Their Roman-style pizza slices are priced by the toppings, differing from pizzas slices sold in Rome that are priced by weight.

The slices available at any time change every few minutes, so your choice of toppings is entirely dependent on whatever recently came out of the oven. Usually there are three to six pizzas cut in rectangular slices sitting on the counter.

They serve a frequently changing menu with a large variety of pizza options, some sandwiches, a veggie stew, and meatballs..The menu is written on a chalk board near the counter where your order is placed, listing both pizza and non-pizza specials. Your order is then delivered to you seat.

The ambiance at Bread and Salt is plain, with a rustic feel to it. The decor features a variety of Italian bottles of olive oil, tomato sauce, and packages of pasta mounter on shelves along the walls. There is seating for 25 with tables comfortably spaced apart. In warm weather, the front garage type wall is rolled up, for an airy atmosphere.

Bread and Salt is open three days/ week days/week. Friday, Saturday & Sunday.

A word of caution: The opening and closing hours are very casual with openings often delayed by 15 minutes to and hour and closings often extended until patrons have been served.

(updated; September 2024)