Sally Boy’s opened in Red Bank in early 2023, but the roots of the restaurant, our flavors, and our hospitality go back much further than that. In fact, the Sally Boy’s name comes from the childhood nickname of our founder, pizza master Sal Basile, and so much of what’s important to us has its foundations in Sal’s early life. This is the story of the path that led to Sally Boy’s and the things that have inspired us to achieve pizza greatness.
Sal comes from a family where cooking amazing food and sharing it with good company is everything. “I am a strong believer in the tight family unit I grew up in,” Sal says. “I wanted Sally Boy’s customers to not only feel like they are eating with family, but that they are bonding around the table eating some great food, like I did.”
When Sal set out on this new restaurant venture after years of making his name in the world of pizza, he knew Red Bank was the right place to start. As Sal tells it, “We chose Red Bank as our flagship location because of how eclectic the restaurant scene is here. We found this iconic spot on the corner of Broad Street and Front Street, and we knew that the quality of pizza that we are serving was something this amazing town needed. And Red Bank and its residents have been so welcoming to us. It’s a small town with a great sense of community and pride.”
Because so much of our inspiration comes from Sal’s Italian-American background, authenticity is the name of the game here at Sally Boy’s – Sal is careful that everything we make fits with the spirit of Italian cuisine. And since Italian-American meals so often mean the whole family coming over, we carry that same spirit in our crowd-pleasing catering and event hosting.
“We took our time choosing ingredients very carefully,” says Sal. “This meant a lot of taste testing and finding out what works best for Sally Boy’s. All of our ingredients for our pizza and sauces are procured from Italy, but our secret ingredient is love.”
That special care is how we’re able to craft our incredible menu using the highest grade of imported cheeses, tomatoes, and more, and a Castelli electric pizza oven straight from Rome.
And oh, that oven! “My favorite memory prior to launch was watching the pizza ovens come through the doors to be set up,” Sal recalls. “As someone whose life is pizza, these ovens make me feel like a kid in a candy store. They are nothing short of spectacular.”
Sal believes that the future is “limitless” for Sally Boy’s, but no matter what, we’ll always be guided by the same philosophy of togetherness through amazing food, and we think Sal puts it best: “Personally, when I prepare food, I prepare it as if I were cooking a meal for my entire family. Anyone can follow a recipe, but I want our guests to sit down and feel like they are eating something special, made just for them, and I think we have managed to accomplish that.”
