Ronnie Rosenbluth first opened Tov Pizza in 1984, shortly after he turned 21. He had dreamed of opening a kosher pizzeria since he was in high school, since there were no kosher restaurants serving pizza in the area at the time.
“Most people didn’t give me much of a chance in surviving in the restaurant business,” he recalled.
But in 2024, the pizzeria is celebrating its 40th anniversary and still going strong. Tov Pizza is still a popular pizza spot for Jewish and non-Jewish Baltimoreans alike, and the restaurant is holding an anniversary celebration and reunion for former employees.
This three-day event is set to celebrate the past, present and future of Tov Pizza as Rosenbluth, now 60, prepares to pass its ownership to his son, Barry.
Tov Pizza will be holding three events for its anniversary. On Monday, March 18, “A Slice of the Past” will offer an opportunity for former employees to meet and mingle. There will also be Tov Pizza-related trivia, and the restaurant’s prices will be set at the low cost they were in 1984 for those dining in.
Tuesday, March 19, will see the “Presents for the Present” event, where the pizzeria will be giving out branded merch including shirts, keychains and even yarmulkes. The Wednesday, March 20, celebration, “Celebrating Future Customers,” will be primarily focused on activities for children and will feature a performance from InKredible Kids podcast host Morah Tziri.
“As they say, children are our future,” Ronnie Rosenbluth said.
Hundreds of people have worked at Tov Pizza over the years, with many of them having been teenagers at the time. The restaurant business has a fast turnover rate for employees, so there are former Tov Pizza employees all over the world.
“Employees from all over the world have been contacting us, excited for it and sharing their Tov Pizza memories,” Ronnie Rosenbluth noted. “While I’ve kept up with a lot of former employees, it’s exciting to see where they’ve ended up. Many of them have become very successful and have families and businesses of their own.”
He estimates that over 50 current and former employees have RSVP’d to the 40th anniversary celebration, with more RSVPs coming in every day.
One former employee whose presence will be missed at the Tov Pizza reunion is Martin Schtamf, who worked there for 22 years, the longest of any Tov Pizza employee aside from Ronnie Rosenbluth himself. When he left the position, over 300 people came to his farewell party. Schtamf died shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic.
“He was a staple in the store, and everyone loved him,” Ronnie Rosenbluth said.
He added that he believes what has kept Tov Pizza going for all these years is not only its unique status as one of very few kosher pizzerias in the Baltimore area, but its community-oriented nature, its good service and, of course, the quality of its pizza.
But times are changing, and he’s preparing to leave the business in the hands of his son, Barry. Barry Rosenbluth started working at Tov Pizza during the COVID-19 pandemic and helped bring the restaurant into the 2020s by forming partnerships with third-party electronic businesses like online pizza delivery app SliceLife.
“The pandemic was really hard for restaurants everywhere, but with every curveball thrown our way, we had to adjust,” Barry Rosenbluth said. “We were one of the first 100 pizza shops to join the [SliceLife] team, and the first kosher shop. Now, they have over 10,000 pizza shops teamed up with them. Pushing our online ordering through SliceLife during the pandemic helped us a lot.”
Still, the recipe for Tov Pizza’s signature dish has not changed since the business first opened, which Barry Rosenbluth believes is part of what has helped the restaurant survive for so long. Tov Pizza is an integral part of the local Jewish community and a staple of Baltimore’s kosher food scene.
“My goal [when I take over the business] is to make it to our 100-year anniversary, and keep providing our community with the same great Tov Pizza taste they have come to love and enjoy,” he said. “We have an ever-evolving menu bringing new and exciting foods to Baltimore.”
