This pizza place was highly rated by Portnoy. I also heard good things from friends about this place. I decided to give a shot with a take out cheese pie. The place itself is designed more for takeout as it has very small dining area. You enter the restaurant then walk down this corridor to the counter. Definitely a mom and pop place with the pizza maker and a couple of helpers. They are definitely focused on making quality pies not dining ambience. You have to call way in advance for a pie as the waitlist builds quickly. My cheese pizza was thin crust and well done. I did not specify how I wanted pie cooked. So that seems to be the standard pizza. I personally would have preferred a little less char. But the pizza taste was very good. I will try again with toppings.

Amazing pizza. Fantastic! Very busy and the dinning experience is lacking - it's a take out place. But the pizza is best around.

After trying Sally's in New Haven and driving to Ted's Restaurant in Meriden for steamed cheeseburgers, we decided to try this place as well, which was only 5 minutes away. It was also on Dave Portnoy's one bite pizza review where he rated them a 9.1 :) I called in my order for a pie with half plain cheese and half pepperoni. They quoted me 1 hour and it was completed right on time as promised. Since it's located in a residential part, there was plenty of street parking. The pizza takes so long bc there's only 1 guy (owner?) making the pizzas I believe, and they have a lot of orders (expect to wait 1 to 3+ hours), but the taste is well worth the wait. The pizza was thin, cheesy, and had an extra crunchy crust with a unique sauce that's hard to describe. One small complaint was that the pizza was very greasy- more grease than we liked, but that was it. HOT: don't get burnt. Everything else reminded us of the New Haven style, which we agree that Connecticut does have the best pizza. Rendezvous (raan-day-voo) is definitely worth trying if you're in the area. FYI: cash only and call ahead (as early as possible) to place your order.

Real hole-in-the-wall, no-frills, cash-only pizza joint where there are no food options other than pizza Have a few barebones tables, but there is negative atmosphere to the place The oven they use to bake their pizza is over 130 years old Call in your pizza ahead of time, especially on the weekends, as the place has gotten incredibly busy since they got a good review from Dave Portnoy of Barstool Sports The pizza here is very unique as it has a hard but chewy bottom/underbelly that holds everything, but crunchy crust on top. The sauce has a great flavor to it, but overall this is not may favorite style of pizza.

This 136 year old pizza joint was quite the spot! It's a cash only, old-school restaurant that I've never even heard of. A friend had mentioned its background story to me, and we were determined to try this 9.1 rated pie! We were told you had to call to pre-order. I tried to call a few times, but busy signals were popular around lunchtime. When I finally reached someone, we were told the pizza would not be ready until 715pm! I was shocked but intrigued. After waiting all day, the time had come to pick up our pizzas. The name of the restaurant sure lives up to its hype. It literally is a small meeting place to pick up your food. We walked into a long hallway, and at the end, there were 3 men working hard, making all the pizzas, hand stretching, sauce scooping, and pizza topping all the orders. People were coming in and out, grabbing their pies. They had a few tables open and we actually decided to eat there. We ordered 3 pizzas. One cheese,one double cheese, and one pepperoni. They all came out on time, piping hot from the coal fired oven and cooked well on top. Surprisingly, the bottom of the pizza was not charred, which i thought was almost magical. The crust was still crispy, and the flavor was delicious. I enjoyed each one, but my favorite was the double cheese. The guys cooking were cool and answered all the questions I had about the history of the establishment. Even though they kept a few secrets, I had a good time chatting it up and enjoyed the nostalgic environment. They offered bottled sodas and had an old fake tattoo machine that still took quarters. I even liked the welcome sign that was handwritten by the "grumpy pizza maker." The pizza rating for me was only about an 8, but the experience was well over a 10!

The crown jewel of The Little Rendezvous undoubtedly lies in its delicious brick oven pizza. The heritage of Oven Number 312, dating back to 1888, has paved the way for a culinary tradition that has stood the test of time. The brick oven imparts a distinctive flavor and texture to the pizzas, creating a delightful crispy crust and perfectly melted cheese. Whether it's the classic recipes from the past or innovative creations of the present, each pizza reflects the expertise and commitment of the owners over the years. Under the skillful hands of Steve Chehotsky, who has been part of the establishment since his youth, the brick oven pizzas continue to be a highlight. The enduring tradition of crafting mouthwatering pizzas in this historic oven adds an extra layer of authenticity to the dining experience at The Little Rendezvous.

After all the hype, a lot of it generated by "Dave" of Barstool Sports, it made it's way to my food bucket list. I recently went w Demanding Dan. The pizzeria is located in a nondescript, ramshackle type of building that's seen better days. Coal-fired oven over 120 years old. Some of the best pizza I've ever inhaled has come out of places like this. But, not from The Little Rendezvous. DD agreed. Good, not great. Opens at 1, five days per week. Cash only. No slices. Expect long wait times, sometimes as much as two hours. None of this factored into my rating. Yes, we waited almost an hour. The phone rang often. Two employees. The owner and capable assistant. The owner is extremely hardworking, and seems to take great pride in creating each pie. In my opinion, the wait time would be shortened if he allowed another person to create pies. He's kind of a bottleneck in the production line. Again, my rating doesn't reflect that. The pizza itself (small w sausage and peppers) was almost burnt (although the undercarriage was clean). The cheese was overcooked, as were most of the pies we saw come out of the oven. Additionally, I didn't see nor taste any sausage. When I spoke to the assistant, he said they use "crumbled sausage". Again, didn't see or taste it, but wasn't going to argue. Small seating area. Reasonable prices. Disagree w all the hype. 3.5 stars.