In another thread about state mottos I suggested Hawaii: the pizza state. Fern Forest (a Waikiki alum) asked what inside knowledge I had. Well none -
Now on movies American pizza always looks pretty bland but surely it has names.
If you want The Godfather Mozzarella cheese, fresh & sun-dried tomato, pepperoni, bacon, capsicum, olives, oregano, garlic; or maybe the El Scorcho Mozzarella cheese, beef, onion, fresh tomato, jalapenos, pepperoni, chilli flakes; or the Roast Garlic and Olive Supreme Mozzarella cheese, olive tapenade, beef, pepperoni, bacon, capsicum, onion, mushroom, olives, fresh garlic or even the Vegorama Mozzarella cheese, capsicum, mushroom, onion, fresh & sun-dried tomato, garlic, oregano what do you guys order?
Can I take this opportunity to ask again “what is it about American pizzas that makes them taste so damn good?”
Having recently returned from Rome, I concede that the Italians make equally fantastic pizzas, but they’re totally different from the American ones. There is a je ne sais quoi about American pizza that is just amazing, and I’ve never tasted this outside the US. Any ideas?
BTW my fave toppings are anchovy, Italian sausage, ground beef, pepperoni. Artichoke is groovy, too.
Names? I always order my pizzas by ingredients. Mozzarella cheese is pretty much a given on all American pizzas (unless you’re in some gourmet-type place.) Italian sausage, green peppers, and onions is my normal order.
If you’re in an honest-to-goodness Italian joint, you may be able to find the classics: Pizza Quattro Stagioni, Margherita, Marinara, Napoletana, etc. But in your average place, you’ll get blank stares if you try ordering any of these.
“Large pizza with anchovy, Italian sausage, ground beef, and pepperoni” usually does it. You can usually even make pizzas half one set of ingredients, half another.
Yup - I order a “plain” (marguerita) “with the following toppings… bla bla.”
Domino’s recently introduced a “Tuscan vegetable” pizza with courgette, mushrooms, peppers and onions on it. Quite the most disgusting thing I’ve ever tasted.
That’s really interesting. I used to eat pizza back in the 70s when all you could get was Pizza Quattro Stagioni, Margherita, Marinara, Napoletana cooked on massive rectangular trays and served by the slice. They were only available (to my knowledge) in one little area of Sydney.
Then the first Pizza Hut came, followed by little family run suburban businesses everywhere and then the rest of the chains. I wonder how the Australian method of ordering came about and how they knew we’d like it.
Here other than “hold the olives” and “hold the anchovies” everyone just orders by the name of the combination even at the snotty gourmet places. Fascinating, eh?
Well, except for New York Pizzas, and a couple of thin-crust joints in Chicago, I’d say Italian pizza is far tastier. I can’t stand Domino’s, Pizza Hut or Papa John’s. As for differences, American pizza tends to be thicker than Italian pizza. Also, the tomato sauce is usually much more flavored and much more generously applied than its Italian counterpart. I suspect this is why you like it better.
don’t ask, every pizza shop might have their specials named, but there is no guarentee that there is crossover between them.
The local place I frequent has
Vegetarian Special (onion, broccoli, eggplant, mushroom, green pepper)
Meat Special (sausage, ham, canadian bacon, hamburger, pepperoni)
Greek (black olives, feta, sliced tomatoes, oregano)
White (pesto sauce instead of tomato, chicken breast)
and so on, but probably 90% of the time people order from the toppings menu by saying things like “gimme a large with extra cheese, onion, meatball and mushroom.”
Here’s a related question: in Italy, can you order by toppings, or would they look at you funny? I know they have all those set pizzas like Pizza Quattro Formaggio, and the one with four quadrants (one of which is artichoke).
Or in St. Louis. A lot of local places/chains use a cheese product called provel. When melted, it is quite runny, and has a unique flavor. Many people hate it, I’ve always loved it.
Yeah, don’t ask, while individual chains may have names for their particular styles of pie, it’s not standardized in the US. A “Brand Y” pizza at Pizza Hut may be unheard-of at Papa John’s or Domino’s.
When we order pizza, usually we just specify the size and then list the toppings we want.
By the way, does anyone eat frozen pizza just as it comes? Well, not still frozen; I mean, does anyone just take a frozen pizza out of the box and pop it in the oven? I always have to add sauce, spices, maybe extra toppings . . . Can’t imagine just eating a frozen pizza as-is.
A few things. A Hawaiian is generally known to be ham and pineapple in the United States in my experience, but I would still just order it as ham and pineapple. As far as I know, that’s the only truly universal named pizza. Different joints have different names for certain pizzas, but generally you order by size, type (thin crust, pan, etc.) and topping.
I’m going to have to get pizza for lunch now. Mmm. This place by my work has the best pepperoni pizza in the world. The crust is all soft, and the mozzarella is all melty and delicious.
I won’t eat a frozen pizza unless I’m starving and have no way to receive a delivery. It’s just wrong. I will, however, eat a Boboli Pizza. I had a Boboli party once. Everyone thought it was fun and tasty.
We have a great pizza joint by us…we just love them. Everyone else pales by comparison. Unfortunately, their a one-shop operation, so if we venture from home, we’re SOL.
Husband likes The Special, which is Onion, Greenpepper, Mushroom, Sausage, Peperoni.
I like mushroom, fresh tomato and fresh basil, if I can get it.
We’re having our least favorite pizza (Rosati’s) tonight at the in-laws. But at least I don’t have to cook!
