Friday Food and Drink Post: Pizza Fixin’ Edition

 

Thank heavens for Bill de Blasio. In just a few short years as New York’s Mayor, he has turned its underwater finances around, eliminated racism, sexism, religious intolerance, and violent crime, and he has spearheaded a jobs-and-revenue initiative, the crown jewel of which was bringing Amazon’s second corporate HQ “home” to the city. Along the way, he’s divested the city pension funds from fossil fuels (I suspect this is code for “taxpayer bailout coming soon”), banned single-use plastic items in the food-service industry (are condoms next–what a complicated and ‘intersexional’ discussion that would be), and pledged to “divert” 90% of waste from landfills (“to where,” I ask myself–in years’ past the answer to a question like that has too often been: to my neighboring state of West Virginia) by 2030.

Best of all, he’s even met Greta Thunberg. (I remember this specifically, because it happened on my birthday, the day that de Blasio’s Department of Education allowed hundreds of thousands of city school children to skip school and “throw a wobbly” in the streets. As we all know, “climate change” was fixed as a result of this brave action, and we are all. Much. Better. Off. as a result.)

So, now all the easy and less important stuff is under control, and now he’s got all this spare time because even the 31% or so of the population that self-identifies with a (D) after their name (no word on their pronouns) wasn’t dumb enough to support his presidential effort, de Blasio can turn his laser-like sights to a more pressing and difficult issue: New Year’s Eve pizza scalping.

You see, it seems that Domino’s in Times Square brought out whole pizzas to people who ordered them and charged them–wait for it–thirty dollars for the privilege! Normally, these pizzas cost about $15 at the store, plus whatever tip a person is willing to cough up for the hard-working staff, or to the driver if they’re delivered.

Would I ever spend $30 for a Domino’s pizza? Prolly not. But then I wouldn’t be in Times Square on New Year’s Eve, either. (Full disclosure: I have been in Times Square during the Christmas season. But not on one of “The Days.” Spending my holidays in unfamiliar places with millions of strangers, many of whom are drunk, isn’t my bag.)

But, would I expect to pay more for something like a pizza, at a festive celebration, for the convenience and the fun of it? I totally would. And, in any case, I routinely buy a slice of pizza as a treat, from one of my favorite places, when I’m in the vicinity around lunchtime. It’s $4 a slice. There are 8 slices in a pizza. So, they’re getting, what, $32 each time they sell out the whole pie, right? And that’s not even at an airport, notorious for their sky-high prices. But no-one says a peep about any of that.

Just don’t try to sell pizza at slightly under that price, in New York, on New Year’s Eve, in Times Square, otherwise, you’ll have Hizzoner on your case!

All this got me to thinking about food (doesn’t take much), and pizza, which is one of my favorite things (you know, along with “raindrops on roses, warm woolen mittens” and my current well-behaved and continent set of whiskered kittys [it was not always thus]).

When you need a “pizza fix” (and not in the pricing sense), where do you go? Do you have a favorite chain? A delightful local pizzeria? Do you make your own? What are your favorite toppings? Thin crust? Thick crust? Deep dish? Square or round? Any particular regional style?

Recipes, suggestions, or unusual recommendations (just about pizza, I mean) are welcome.

Have at it, please.

PS: Don’t tell me if I made a teensy-weensy mistake in any of my statements in this post. I’m pretty sure everything I said is accurate, but you never know. Anyway, it’s “my truth.” Show it the respect it’s due, please.

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  1. She Member
    She
    @She

    RushBabe49 (View Comment):

    Here’s another vote for Costco pizza. I live within 6 blocks of the local store, and on bachelorette nights when Ray goes to workout after work, I stop there on the way home and get a slice. Not a bad dinner for $2.16 or so, since the slices are so big. I sometimes make a take-and-bake one, but they are too big for our oven, so I have to cook them 1/2 at a time.

    When we get pizza together, we order from Silver Lake Pizza near our house-they make sort of a Greek-style pizza, with Ray’s favorite topping, fresh tomatoes (and pepperoni, sausage, green peppers, and onions).

    However, the best pizza I ever had was the ones my first husband and I used to make ourselves. He made the crust from a mix, and I made the sauce. One of our pizzas had about a pound of whole-milk mozzarella and 1/2 pound of Cascioppo Brothers pepperoni (made in Seattle, about a mile from our house). He liked black olives, so that was his responsibility.

    I think whole-milk mozzarella is a requirement.  None of this low-fat-cheesy low-fat stuff.  It’s just not the same.

    • #31
  2. She Member
    She
    @She

    I think the best restaurant pizza Mr. She and I ever ate was from a little place on Rt. 51 South of Pittsburgh.  It’s been closed for decades.  It was a nice Italian family restaurant with quite a good menu, and never too crowded.

    The pizza was thin crust, perfectly browned and crispy, but not overdone, so it didn’t splinter into a thousand tiny pieces in your mouth.  The sauce was homemade, and it was delicious.

    That was where I developed my taste for my “go-to” pizza which has mushrooms (fresh, not canned or out of a jar) and anchovies.  They’re still my preferred toppings when I make my own, but I’ve never found anywhere that makes it like this little place did.

    Funny, I just did a search on the name to see if anyone else had similar fond memories, and found this page, which consists of recipes and requests from readers of the Post-Gazette.  Almost at the end is this letter to the editors:

    Many years ago when my parents would take us to Pittsburgh we’d go to a wonderful pizza place. It was called Pinchera’s and was on Route 51 between Brentwood and Pleasant Hills. They had the greatest pizza, and I’ve never tasted anything like it since. I don’t think the restaurant is open anymore [it isn’t]. Do you think someone from the Pinchera family would give up the recipe for the dough and sauce, or might one of your readers already have it?

    It doesn’t say whether the person who wrote the letter was successful in their quest.

    • #32
  3. Scott Wilmot Member
    Scott Wilmot
    @ScottWilmot

    She (View Comment):
    Those look delicious. Is the honey-habanero drizzle simply honey with finely chopped habaneros? That’s what it looks like in the photo.

    Yes, just honey and finely chopped habaneros. I also use burrata on this pizza instead of mozzarella.

    • #33
  4. She Member
    She
    @She

    Scott Wilmot (View Comment):

    She (View Comment):
    Those look delicious. Is the honey-habanero drizzle simply honey with finely chopped habaneros? That’s what it looks like in the photo.

    Yes, just honey and finely chopped habaneros. I also use burrata on this pizza instead of mozzarella.

    Not familiar with burrata, but just looked it up.  Sounds scrumptious.

    And, just like that, here I go on the “word” trail.  Scrumptious.  Why is the age-old behavior of children stealing apples from the neighborhood farmer’s orchard referred to as “scrumping,” in the UK?  And then, of course, there’s the cider called “scrumpy,” made from fallen apples, and mixed varieties.  Obviously there’s a connection there, but what is it?

    What’s with “scrump?” A quick look around on the Internet doesn’t help much.  Points to scrump/scrimp as, perhaps, nineteenth-century words for a miserly person, but no information as to how the word came to its current meaning.  So, get out the big guns: Dad’s copy of the Compact OED.

    Surprisingly little joy there either.  “Scrump” (no origin given) means “anything wrinkled,” (fallen apples, maybe?) and scrumptious is defined as mean or miserly, with a few half-hearted attempts to indicate that it meant “handsome” in some American writings of the nineteenth century.

    So, really no idea, still.

    Anyway, burrata looks scrumptious.  And not mean or wrinkled at all.

    • #34
  5. Al French, poor excuse for a p… Moderator
    Al French, poor excuse for a p…
    @AlFrench

    She (View Comment):

    Scott Wilmot (View Comment):

    She (View Comment):
    Those look delicious. Is the honey-habanero drizzle simply honey with finely chopped habaneros? That’s what it looks like in the photo.

    Yes, just honey and finely chopped habaneros. I also use burrata on this pizza instead of mozzarella.

    Not familiar with burrata, but just looked it up. Sounds scrumptious.

    And, just like that, here I go on the “word” trail. Scrumptious. Why is the age-old behavior of children stealing apples from the neighborhood farmer’s orchard referred to as “scrumping,” in the UK? And then, of course, there’s the cider called “scrumpy,” made from fallen apples, and mixed varieties. Obviously there’s a connection there, but what is it?

    What’s with “scrump?” A quick look around on the Internet doesn’t help much. Points to scrump/scrimp as, perhaps, nineteenth-century words for a miserly person, but no information as to how the word came to its current meaning. So, get out the big guns: Dad’s copy of the Compact OED.

    Surprisingly little joy there either. “Scrump” (no origin given) means “anything wrinkled,” (fallen apples, maybe?) and scrumptious is defined as mean or miserly, with a few half-hearted attempts to indicate that it meant “handsome” in some American writings of the nineteenth century.

    So, really no idea, still.

    Anyway, burrata looks scrumptious. And not mean or wrinkled at all.

     

    @arahant?

     

     

     

    • #35
  6. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    Are you calling me mean and wrinkled and miserly, Al? 😉

    • #36
  7. Al French, poor excuse for a p… Moderator
    Al French, poor excuse for a p…
    @AlFrench

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Are you calling me mean and wrinkled and miserly, Al? 😉

    From your self description, I think of you more round and plump rather than wrinkled.

    You don’t have more on the derivation of “scrumptious”?

    • #37
  8. Samuel Block Support
    Samuel Block
    @SamuelBlock

    I worked at a great Italian restaurant in New Orleans, one of John Besh’s, Domenica. 

    I didn’t make any pies, but they had one interesting pizza that I’d recommend people try. It was a mushroom pizza, with bacon and an egg right in the center that was cooked with the rest in a fire brick oven. 

    Typically though, I just do an American cheese pizza when I order one myself. I like my crust thin and crispy, and always well done.

    Now I’m hungry.

    • #38
  9. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    Al French, poor excuse for a p… (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Are you calling me mean and wrinkled and miserly, Al? 😉

    From your self description, I think of you more round and plump rather than wrinkled.

    You don’t have more on the derivation of “scrumptious”?

    One dictionary I have says it came into the language around 1820-1830, and may be an alteration of “sumptuous.” The others all basically say the same.

    • #39
  10. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    Samuel Block (View Comment):
    Typically though, I just do an American cheese pizza when I order one myself.

    And people complain about spinach? American cheese? Oy!

    • #40
  11. Samuel Block Support
    Samuel Block
    @SamuelBlock

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Samuel Block (View Comment):
    Typically though, I just do an American cheese pizza when I order one myself.

    And people complain about spinach? American cheese? Oy!

    I have to distinguish American-style because sometimes people think it means I want icky basil leaves on my pizza — I do not ever want icky basil on my pizza! 

    • #41
  12. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    Samuel Block (View Comment):
    I have to distinguish American-style because sometimes people think it means I want icky basil leaves on my pizza — I do not ever want icky basil on my pizza! 

    Hopefully, your palate will improve and be refined with age.

    How are you on pesto sauce?

    • #42
  13. Samuel Block Support
    Samuel Block
    @SamuelBlock

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Samuel Block (View Comment):
    I have to distinguish American-style because sometimes people think it means I want icky basil leaves on my pizza — I do not ever want icky basil on my pizza!

    Hopefully, your palate will improve and be refined with age.

    How are you on pesto sauce?

    I don’t recall ever trying it. But I’d guess that I wouldn’t like it.

    • #43
  14. Doctor Robert Member
    Doctor Robert
    @DoctorRobert

    In 2016 my very worldly second son, then a resident of Brooklyn (later, of the upper East Side, then of Washington Heights, now of Astoria) wrote us to say he had found the best pizza in America.  Independent Ale House in Rapid City, South Dakota.

    Having grown up near New Haven, eating Sally’s, Pepe’s and sometimes Modern Pizza, I scoffed.

    A year later, in South Dakota for the first time to see the eclipse, we checked the place out.

    Outstanding.  Not to be missed.  Better than pizzas I ate in New Haven, or Rome, or Orvieto, or Milano.

    We spent five nights in Rapid City.  We ate at the Independent Ale House three of those nights.  I dunno if it is the best pizza in America, but it’s the best pizza I’ve ever had.  Three nights running!

    Good things can be in unexpected places.

    • #44
  15. She Member
    She
    @She

    The most expensive pizza I’ve ever eaten was in Venice.  It wasn’t very good.  But I like to be able to say I’ve eaten pizza in Venice.  (Italy, I mean, not CA or FL, or IL, or LA, or NY, or UT. Just want to make that clear.)

    • #45
  16. Randy Weivoda Moderator
    Randy Weivoda
    @RandyWeivoda

    OmegaPaladin (View Comment):
    I love Chicago style deep dish pizza.

    Hmm, maybe we ought to have the Chicago Meetup at a pizzeria.  Giordano’s, perhaps?

    • #46
  17. Randy Weivoda Moderator
    Randy Weivoda
    @RandyWeivoda

    Doctor Robert (View Comment):

    In 2016 my very worldly second son, then a resident of Brooklyn (later, of the upper East Side, then of Washington Heights, now of Astoria) wrote us to say he had found the best pizza in America. Independent Ale House in Rapid City, South Dakota.

    Having grown up near New Haven, eating Sally’s, Pepe’s and sometimes Modern Pizza, I scoffed.

    A year later, in South Dakota for the first time to see the eclipse, we checked the place out.

    Outstanding. Not to be missed. Better than pizzas I ate in New Haven, or Rome, or Orvieto, or Milano.

    We spent five nights in Rapid City. We ate at the Independent Ale House three of those nights. I dunno if it is the best pizza in America, but it’s the best pizza I’ve ever had. Three nights running!

    Good things can be in unexpected places.

    Rapid City, you say?  Where we are having a big weekend Ricochet Meetup next fall?  No kidding.

    If only I got paid for promotion of Ricochet meetups, I’d find a way to drop them into nearly every thread.

     

     

    • #47
  18. OmegaPaladin Moderator
    OmegaPaladin
    @OmegaPaladin

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    OmegaPaladin (View Comment):
    I love Chicago style deep dish pizza.

    Hmm, maybe we ought to have the Chicago Meetup at a pizzeria. Giordano’s, perhaps?

    There are quite a few choices.  Giordano’s is good, but not sure if it is the best.

    • #48
  19. She Member
    She
    @She

    OmegaPaladin (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    OmegaPaladin (View Comment):
    I love Chicago style deep dish pizza.

    Hmm, maybe we ought to have the Chicago Meetup at a pizzeria. Giordano’s, perhaps?

    There are quite a few choices. Giordano’s is good, but not sure if it is the best.

    Ok.  In terms of the rhetorical technique known as “begging the question,” in the way it’s come to be (mis)used today . . . .

    Please don’t leave us hanging.  ???

    Also, on a similar, but different subject, Qassem Soleimani didn’t kill himself.

     

     

    • #49
  20. Randy Weivoda Moderator
    Randy Weivoda
    @RandyWeivoda

    OmegaPaladin (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    OmegaPaladin (View Comment):
    I love Chicago style deep dish pizza.

    Hmm, maybe we ought to have the Chicago Meetup at a pizzeria. Giordano’s, perhaps?

    There are quite a few choices. Giordano’s is good, but not sure if it is the best.

    I naturally defer to your local expertise.

    • #50
  21. Mark Camp Member
    Mark Camp
    @MarkCamp

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    OmegaPaladin (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    OmegaPaladin (View Comment):
    I love Chicago style deep dish pizza.

    Hmm, maybe we ought to have the Chicago Meetup at a pizzeria. Giordano’s, perhaps?

    There are quite a few choices. Giordano’s is good, but not sure if it is the best.

    I naturally defer to your local expertise.

    And I defer, too.  I erroneously wrote that our preference extended from the 70s on.  In fact, we have no experience of Chicago-made pizza since that long-ago decade.

    • #51
  22. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    She (View Comment):
    Please don’t leave us hanging. ???

    The original Uno’s or Due’s.

    • #52
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