Someone I know once had a Wolfgang Puck pizza. They said it was disgusting. This was not someone who doesn’t like things just because they’re not the “traditional” style.
California-style pizza can be a wonderful thing. But a New York pie it ain’t. The closest place I can find something that is in the ballpark is Las Vegas, where Grimaldi’s imports NYC water for it’s dough. Luckily, there is one right across from the Wynn in the Fashion Show Mall. Just the place for a late-night snack.
I tried mother bears when I lived in Bloomington and wasn’t really that impressed by it. Maybe I got the wrong kind, because other people seem to love it.
I think the best pizza (or at the very least, the most filling pizza) is giordanos in Chicago. I can eat 1.5 large pizzas from pizza hut by myself, but I can only eat 2-3 slices of Chicago deep dish.
In all honesty, Wal Mart sells good pizza. If you go to the deli they sell pre-cooked slices for $1.50. The whole pizzas are only about $8 each, but when I cook them at home they don’t come out as good as they do at the deli.
I’ve never been to NYC so I have no idea how good NY pizza is. However, the mall kiosks that sell NY style pizza are pretty good. I don’t know about best though. I’m pathetic. Wal mart pizza and strip mall pizza.
Grimaldi’s in Brooklyn, under the bridge, is my favorite - a great New York style pizza but with fresh mozzarella, a slightly chunky tomato sauce, and basil.
It can be divine. Had a slice of pizza in Rome that had potatoes, rosemary, salt and olive oil on it - that’s it. Very very good.
We visited Serious Pie when we were in Seattle in February. So, so good.
We also visited Palace Kitchen. Wish we’d had time to go to all his restaurants!
You see, food critics often distain the norm, no matter how well prepared. They desire the weird, unusual, outre.
If they say the restaurant is dirty or the service is slow- listen to them.
But honestly, food critics often complain the portions are too big! :eek: Which for those who eat out 6 days a week may be right but for most of us, we want large portions.
We need an applaud emoticon. Well done, sir.
Damiano’s in Los Angeles was the best in California.
The best in Ohio is Angelo’s in Lakewood.
Pizza Luce in the Twin Cities has two darn good pizzas with potatoes as ingredients - Baked Potato and Garlic Mashed.
Best style: Detroit/Sicilian. Thick (not as thick as Chicago) square crust, burnt edges with chewy insides, heavy brick cheese, sauce on top. Best Detroit pizza: Buddy’s.
Re: Potatoes on a pizza. I was skeptical too at first, but I went to Joe Squared in Baltimore, which features an Irish Pizza. White sauce, corned beef, potato, caramelized onion, mozzarella and Swiss cheeses. I went with a bunch of people, and we ordered a handful of pizza, one of which was the Irish, so I got to try it without the full-on commitment of ordering one alone. The potato, if I recall correctly, was like shredded hash browns, browned very nicely from the oven. Quite delicious.
Made a pitstop there on the way to Montreal last week. Love that pizza. Locally, Pequod’s (and Burt’s) serves something that looks to me to be a cross between a Detroit-style and Chicago-style pizza. It’s saucier than the Detroit style, but it’s about as thick, and it also has the charred cheese crust. I never thought I would become a fan of the thicker styles of pizza, but I am smitten by Buddy’s. The crust is thick and bit with a greasy/fried type of texture on the outside (I assume the pan is generously oiled), but it’s also airy, soft, and flavorful.
You nailed it. A bit greasy, crunchy and fluffy all at once. I lived in Chicago for a number of years, and as far as Chicago style goes, my choice was Giordano’s, but it was a rare occurrence. I much preferred the thin and crispy, square-cut round pies of Godfather’s.
I subscribe to the sex theory of pizza. Even when its bad its good.
Wow, you told me. California style pizza is so widely reviled among your sample of one, that it obviously could never spawn a chain of 230 restaurants in 12 countries.
I don’t doubt that someone, somewhere had a pizza of a particular type and found it “gross.” For whatever specific reason - it was not cooked properly, the toppings were of low quality, or whatever. But there isn’t anything inherently gross about the pizza described by the OP. His major complaint was that it had no sauce and thus “didn’t taste like pizza.” It just wasn’t what he assumed it would be. That’s dissapointing for sure. But it doesn’t make the pizza “bad.”
Speaking of starch piled on starch, here in NYC, a fairly popular pizza you’ll find at many neighborhood joints has penne pasta tossed in pink vodka sauce on it. It’s heavy as hell, but tasty.
Giordano’s is not a typical Chicago style. Or, rather, it’s a sub-category of deep dish pizza that is called “stuffed pizza.” Plain-ol’ Chicago style deep dish is exemplified by joints like Uno’s and Malnati’s. There is only one layer of dough. Places like Giordano’s and Edwardo’s have stuffed pizzas, which has an additional layer of thin dough on top. They tend to be a bit thicker than regular deep dish. I prefer the regular deep dish. (I personally don’t get the love for Giordano’s. For me, Edwardo’s is better, and Art of Pizza is the best when it comes to stuffed style, but, I admit, I’m not a huge fan of the style in general.)
[Stock comment about the ubiquity of McDonald’s]
Hey, someone was going to say it. I ate at a CPK in Virgina once upon a time. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t anything exceptional either. It was pizza.
Was it “disgusting,” as the poster I responded to alleged all California style pizza was, based on one friend who didn’t like something he ate at a Wolfgang Puck restaurant?
As you say, “its pizza.” I never said it was an exceptional product, or something that every able-bodied pizza lover should seek out, stat. It’s just a different style, one capable of being tasty. There’s nothing wrong with there being different styles of pizza. The poster I respondent to can’t grok that.
The important thing is the sauce. It’s got to be acidic, with strong tomato flavor nicely balanced with basil and only the gentlest hint of oregano.
But if I think about it, I suppose the cheese is really the key - fresh, tender mozzarella gently mixed with a salty smattering of Romano.
Obviously, the toppings are paramount. They have to be fresh crisp vegetables with smoky pepperoni or other meats, assertively spicy but not aggressive. Nothing more disgusting than gummy half heated meats hidden under the cheese on a pizza.
In the end though, it’s all in the oven. I’ve never had a really fine pizza that didn’t require a chimney. The bottom of the crust and the top of the meat/cheese/veggies should be nicely crisped and brown, but not burnt, and while still heating it through and thoroughly melting all the cheese.
I’m not arguing. I just commented since it came up. Personally, I didn’t think it was even worth this much conversation, as far as pizza goes.