The Monte family story begins in 1906, when Angelo Montemarano opened a small restaurant in Gowanus, Brooklyn, sourcing ingredients from his family's grocery store next door. His wife Filomena cooked recipes from back home in Southern Italy, with her tomato sauce always on a simmer in a large pot-bellied stove. Over the next several decades, Monte's grew into one of Brooklyn's most beloved Italian restaurants, drawing everyone from longshoremen to Sammy Davis Jr. through its doors.

That original sauce recipe has carried through four generations ever since. Today, PJ Monte jars it in small batches using single-origin, vine-ripened California plum tomatoes, hand-selecting only the best from each harvest, and sourcing fresh produce from Hudson Valley farms whenever the season allows. Monte's is one of the only American pasta and sauce makers working in the old Italian tradition, and their commitment to real ingredients has never wavered. No paste, no fillers, no added sugars. Just tomatoes, olive oil, and fresh herbs, cooked low and slow.