Hey Jigsy’s Pizza in Enola, PA-Can you Deliver to Heaven?

January 27, 2019

By Flora Posteraro

My father was one of a kind! An Italian immigrant who came to America alone when he was only 18 years old. He loved his family, adored his children and grandchildren and was all about food! But not any food, it had to be really “good” food. To Italians, food is love and “Abramo” (Italian for Abraham) savored that love as long as it tasted great. Trust me, Abraham’s palate was fine-tuned, especially when it came to pizza.

I would treat my Mom and Dad all the time when they came to Harrisburg. It was my way of showing appreciation for everything they did for me and their unconditional love and support. We went to many pizza shops. Mr. Picky Pants wasn’t always pleased. According to him, this pizza tasted like glue or another pizza tasted like there was sugar in the sauce or the cheese on the pizza wasn’t real mozzarella! Always something to say, until “Abe” tried Jigsy’s Old Forge Pizza. Like the baby bear in “Goldilocks and the Three Bears”, Abraham said Jigsy’s Pizza was “just right!” In fact, it was the only pizza my father would eat!

So what is it about Jigsy’s Old Forge Style Pizza. Migsy and Robin Ardoline moved to Central Pennsylvania from Pittston in NorthEastern, PA about 20 years ago. They opened Jigsy’s in September 1999 and brought with them the recipe for Old Forge Style Pizza they had learned from Italian immigrants who settled in Pittston. The pizza is rectangular, not round and looks like a Sicilian pizza.

“It looks like Sicilian pizza but once you bite into it, it’s light and airy where Sicilian is dense and heavy”, said Robin Ardoline.

Oh, but there’s more to it. It was the taste that always made my father salivate. Secret ingredients that Ardoline refuses to reveal!

“We make everything from scratch. We start with fresh dough made several times daily. The sauce is home-made and our cheese is hand grated in the store. We hand grate 3 different kinds of cheese and create our own blend to top the pizza. That’s what makes our Old Forge Pizza different but the cheese blend is a big secret that we learned from the Italian immigrants and to honor them, we have to keep it secret as well”, said Ardoline.

Sorry Dad, I tried.

My Dad suddenly and unexpectedly passed away on April 9, 2013. I miss him every day. I miss his wisdom. I miss his smile. I miss his big Italian personality. I even miss his absurd comments like the time he told me “he didn’t have to respect me because he made me!” Who says that!! My 84-year-old father did!

So Jigsy’s, I’m wondering could you do me a favor and make a delivery to Heaven? Gone for nearly 6 years now, I’m sure Abramo is craving your pizza and I know it would make my Daddy happy!

For more information on Jigsy’s in Enola, PA, go to https://jigsyspizza.com.