What makes a roadfood place? To me it is a place off the beaten track in a small town somewhere that has something different about it. Here is a review of a bar/pizza place that has a unique way of serving pizza, with a hot sauce on the side, that is spread on top of the pie before eating.
We are in the small coal town of Girardville PA on a hot sultry Saturday night July 29th 2006. Girardville is a "barely hanging on" old time dying Antracite coal town in Schuylkill county Pennsylvania. The bar/tavern/pizza joint is Marrone’s in business on Main Street since the end of prohibition in 1933. The local beer on tap is Yuengling Lagar or "Pottsville Punch" as it is known in this area.

Entering through the dining room door to the coolness inside, my girlfriend and I are greeted by booths and tables decked out in 1970’s decor. Seating ourselves the bartender comes over to take our order (the waitress is on break). Already knowing what we want, we order a large pizza half plain and half anchovies and pepperoni along with an iced tea and a pitcher of "Lagar" for me (Yuengling of course, America’s oldest brewery since 1829 brewed down the mountain 15 miles away in Pottsville PA)
The dining area is about half full and the adjoining bar area has some locals, who by the look of things have been drinking all afternoon. After enjoying some people watching, including a six toed woman seated nearby, and getting used to being transported back in time to the early 1970’s, our pizza arrives.

Wow, a beautiful cheesy sight with half the pie packed with pepperoni and anchovies. The pizza is a sicilian type with a crispy outer crust and chewy dough. The chesse is slightly salty and gooey and piled on. Ordering extra cheese would not be needed as they really give you a lot!
Now as a pizza lover who likes a thin crispy crust, and who has not had a sicilian in years, I was sceptical until I tasted my first slice. On the side was the real difference: the hot sauce known as Girardville style.

Sorry not a good photo! The sauce consists of crushed hot peppers (cherry and red hot) with seeds and all and some tomatoe sauce mixed in. The verdict? Out of this world! Spicy, but not too hot with a lovely tomato taste. Slathering this red goodness and eating the pepperoni and anchovie slice was heavenly! A perfect balance of cheesy pizza and a spicy sauce.

Note in the back of photo is the pitcher of "Pottsville Punch"
The pizza itself is above average (not great to me, but I am picky), but the sauce puts it into the catagory of greatness. We had leftovers and I asked them to give me some more sauce to go. The kindly waitress did not charge any extra for sauce. They do over quarts of sauce to go. The bill was $20 and I left a $5 tip. Great value for a large pizza, a pitcher of beer, another glass of beer and iced tea. Girardille sure has a diamond in the rough here.

I asked the waitress is Girardville is the only place in the area that serves hot sauce, and she said that while a few places in nearby towns might try and duplicate their recipe, Marrone’s is the original and best and the only place to get the true hot pizza sauce experience. She was kindly and efficient and looked as if she has worked there since the early 1970’s just like the interior decorating.
A truely memorable find in the old antracite coal fields of northeastern Pennsylvania!