Entries tagged with 'U.S.'
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 25, 2007 at 2:00 PM
This just in from the Slice mailbag, with the subject line "pizza in CT."
Dear Slice,
So, I’m a devoted pizza addict and enjoy your website. I feel compelled to write because everyone loves an underdog and I keep seeing emails posted from people recommending Modern Apizza. Make no mistake, these are people who want to root for the underdog for the sake that they can one day say “I was a fan before they were famous”. There is no comparison to Sally’s (or Pepe’s Clam). Modern produces a nice, fresh, relatively non-distinctive wood-fired pizza. All you can say is it is good, fresh and in any other city would be fantastic. But not in New Haven.
I don’t think you’ve reached there yet and let me tell you, this is not the hidden gem that you’re being promised. It’s good, you’ll eat, but you’ll be left wanting. You’d be better hitting Luna or Harry’s in W. Hartford which is even further than NYC but at least somewhat distinctive.
You are forewarned! J
John
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 23, 2007 at 1:00 PM
I can has pitza?
Just called the joint and got word that it's open again after its health department–enforced hiatus.
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 22, 2007 at 4:45 PM
Di Fara Watch is to Pizza as iPhone is to Gadgets.
I know. You're getting sick of it. But many Slicesters want to know. The latest update, as of 20 minutes ago, thanks to Slice reader "Ropa Vieja," is that Dom & Co. are set for tomorrow.
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 21, 2007 at 2:54 PM
Dean's Pizzeria & Restaurant, a new Nick Angelis–affiliated joint is opening on the Upper West Side, as reported by the New York Times yesterday. Angelis is the man behind Nick's (locations in Forest Hills and on the Upper East Side) and Adrienne's Pizzabar (Financial District), and he's helping his sister, Mirene, with this venture.
Located in a former hotel ballroom with Greek columns and elaborate crown molding, Dean’s, along with its full Italian menu and full bar, is offering both an “old school round pizza” ($13 and $15, plus toppings) and an “old-fashioned square pizza,” ($16, plus toppings). The latter is especially thin, without the unappetizing gooey layer of dough above the crust that grandma pies usually have. The sauce on all the pies is uncooked, milled tomatoes; the squares have a garlic and oregano kick. The round pies use all fresh mozzarella, the grandmas half fresh and a high-quality chewier variety seen in some of the better slice joints.
I know you're all tired of hearing about Dom. Sorry I didn't blog this one for you homeslices yesterday.
Dean’s Pizzeria & Restaurant
Address: 215 West 85th Street
Phone: 212-875-1100
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 20, 2007 at 11:22 AM
In what has become an almost daily ritual, my call to Di Fara this morning yielded the response that the joint should be open tomorrow (Thursday, June 21).
See you tomorrow.
Signed,
Your Daily Di Fara Correspondent
Photograph from Gothamist.com
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 19, 2007 at 6:07 PM
Over on Serious Eats, Slice's parent site, one of our readers, Lou, asked:
By the way, Adam, you know so much about pizza; what's the best pizza place in the central mountains of Puerto Rico? All we have is the disgusting Pizza Hut. Que lastima.
While I've learned more than a little about pizza in the years I've been Slicing, I'm stumped. So I promised Lou I'd open this question up to all you Homeslices out there. Any tips for Lou?
Note to Lou: Apologies for taking so long to punt this query to the Slicesters!
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 15, 2007 at 5:08 PM
By "workingman's pizzerias," I think they mean "typical slice joints," the kind of places we Brooklynites all take for granted. Check out the list.
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 15, 2007 at 3:06 PM
A comment we just received on Slice:
stay outta our neighborhood you tourists! we want our pizza back! we were the first to give di fara its props before you ppl, now we can't even get a slice
di fara local anonymous | 06.15.07 - 1:31 pm
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 15, 2007 at 2:19 PM
I just got off the phone with Dom DeMarco, proprietor of Di Fara, looking for an update on the reopening.
The Dominator confirms that the joint is not open as of today—they're still waiting on an inspector to come out and give them the go-ahead. If that happens today, they'll reopen on Monday.
But Dom's take was that the city would be more likely to send someone out Monday, slating the pizzeria for a Tuesday reopening.
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 13, 2007 at 2:50 PM
But it might be as late as Monday. More at Eater
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 7, 2007 at 10:09 AM
Tune into WNYC NOW! In New York City: 93.9 FM
They're talking about Di Fara. Right now!
Outside Gotham (if you care): http://www.wnyc.org/
Update
It's over. Was only a short 10-minute segment at 10 a.m. EDT. New York State Senator Jeff Klein was a guest on the show, and he had some more info on the situation at Di Fara.
Klein: "The Department of Health right now may be overreacting. Because of the Taco Bell incident, they're going out and giving violation after violation."
Senator Klein said he had been studying California's system as an example, in which a grading system is used to identify cleanliness levels at restaurants.
Klein: "They have seen in California a substantial decline in food-borne illness. And business has increased. Restaurants that get an A or B have increased business by 15 to 20 percent."
So would a Cali-style DOH grading system help Di Fara?
No, Klein said. Di Fara is "somewhat of a special case" because of the multiple inspection failures (five of six failures in the past 18 months).
"If you fail two in a row," Klein said, "You go on an accelerated program—inspections every six months, every three months—and you have to pass two inspections in a row to get out of the [accelerated] program.
"They went on the program, and they didn't do it."
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 7, 2007 at 1:34 AM
Di Fara, taken in better days just a couple weeks ago.
The New York Times has its take on the most recent Di Fara DOH closing, with a bit more on possible duration of the shuttering:
Ms. DeMarco, 30, said her family was scheduled to appear at a city tribunal on June 14 to produce the paperwork and to determine any fines and the next steps. Until then, she said, “we sit around and wait; nothing we can do about it.”
And while we're talking about Di Fara, let me mention something that has made me almost as sad as this latest run-in with the DOH...
Burnt pies.
There, I said it. And I hate to say it, but with readers calling me out on this in the comments, I've gotta say something.
I first noticed it about a month ago: a pie that Adam "The Amateur Gourmet" Roberts received looked a little too blackened:
April 26, 2007. Photograph from the Amateur Gourmet
I hoped it was just a fluke, but when I visited on May 20, here's what I got:
May 20, 2007
And then, on Memorial Day Weekend:
May 26, 2007
Maybe this break will give Di Fara some time to adjust the oven and fix whatever needs it.
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 6, 2007 at 7:00 PM
does anyone know Jenny Walsh - m4w - 21: She's a really cool pizza girl I meet her at Kings Canyon National park. I went back there and they told me she left. if anyone knows her please reply back.
Adorable Parsons student I met at Trader Joe's just now - 25 (Union Square): you - tired but beautiful Korean-Vietnamese from Maryland. I loved talking to you and would like to do that again! Let's go out to that pizza place on Spring, have a desert at Rice-to-Riches and see how it goes! What do you say?
Amber, you ate my pizza and walked away! - m4w - 26 (Lower East Side): It was nice you stopped to speak (and share a late nite snack)! Such beautiful eyes you had! Wish we could have had a halfway decent conversation. I had a few drinks and it was late! Maybe we can get together. I feel we had chemistry. I'm sure we will see each other again!
re: jen - m4w: re: jen - m4w
hi i told u that i like the show and u need to come back.u had a salad ur friend who didnt leave the car had something i made u wait for.call me u know the #. p.s. we had talk before wednesday i belive it was sunday night and someone at the house ask the drivier my name. this is nuts doing this but i liked you
call me or come in...... Location: pizza place
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 6, 2007 at 3:02 PM
Dear, DOH:
What if we sign a personal-injury waiver to eat at Di Fara? Would you let Dom open his place back up? Slice has taken the liberty of preparing one:
Download PDF: Liability-Waiver-DiFara-Pizza.pdf
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 5, 2007 at 4:27 PM
Holy crap, pizza freaks! Di Fara has been closed for an indeterminate period by the New York City Department of Health. Says Eater, which broke the story:
In a stunning and shocking turn of events, we're now able to confirm with 100% certainty that Di Fara has again been shut down by the Department of Health. Furthermore, with the pizzeria having failed five of their last six inspections, Dom DeMarco's pride and joy will remain closed until further notice. Here is the statement just issued to us by the Heath Department.
The statement says that the department came in to inspect and found evidence of rodent infestation and other violations that were in excess of standards. The DOH concluded that, having failed five of six inspections in the last 18 months, Dom DeMarco and crew showed an unwillingness to comply with code requirements.
Dom's closed until he can straighten the mess out with the scary sounding Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH.
Word is that if Dom loses his case before OATH, he will be sent to Guantanamo as an unlawful combatant.
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 5, 2007 at 10:42 AM
From the always-on-it Eater, which received a message from a tipster:
Was just waiting for my pie at ave. J's di fara and watched a doh official tape a yellow "closed" sign on the window. One reason was that the window was open. De Marco himself was so distracted he wasn't hand cutting basil and grating cheese atop the pies. Even without the added ingredients, pizza was still great.
First the problems in March, now this? And because he had the pass-through window open? That seems ridiculous. How many restaurants have whole façades that open up?
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 4, 2007 at 10:51 AM
Remember that rave review Village Voice food critic Robert Sietsema gave Il Brigante the other week?
New York Times food critic Frank Bruni says, "huh," slamming the new pizzeria and, by extension, Sietsema.
If his point is that Neapolitan pizza is unduly romanticized, and that your standard pizza pie in Naples is not necessarily some gastronomically wondrous epiphany, then O.K., there’s some merit to what he’s saying.
But his point seems to be that he loved this pie. My lunch companion and I found nothing lovable about it.
I haven't been yet, but now I'm even more curious...
Posted by Adam Kuban, May 22, 2007 at 6:27 PM
Beatles pizzas, from a series of celebrity tribute pies at Angelina's Pizzeria in Cambridge, Vermont. [via Friend of Slice Kristan K., via Urban Honking]
Posted by Adam Kuban, May 17, 2007 at 1:48 PM
The Village Voice's Robert Sietsema thinks he's found it at Il Brigante:
At its heart, Il Brigante is a pizzeria, and a damn good one. The rear wall is dominated by a flickering wood-burning hearth inside a limestone proscenium, where a sweating and grunting pizzaiolo is the star of his own small repertory theater. In the style of southern Italy, the 10-inch pies are intended for individual consumption. In fact, the margherita ($10) is the city's most perfect evocation of the true Naples style (even surpassing top spots like Una Pizza Napoletana and La Pizza Fresca). Starting with an irregular round of glove-soft dough with no yeasty taste, the margherita is dampened with plain tomato sauce and excellent cheese, bravely wearing a pair of fragrant basil leaves on its bosom. Eat it with a knife and fork—this is no New York pie.
Il Brigante
Address: 214 Front Street, New York NY 10038 [South Street Seaport area; map]
Phone: 212-285-0222
Posted by Adam Kuban, May 9, 2007 at 9:47 AM
The New York Times heads west and checks out the pizza at Mozza, the Mario Batali–Nancy Silverton upscale pizza joint in Los Angeles.
Ms. Silverton, who started her career as a pastry chef and is an accomplished baker, makes crusts with extraordinary character: softly chewy in spots, crisply charred in others, ever so faintly sweet, even more faintly sour. There’s some rye flour in her dough and some malt, and she lets it sit for 36 hours before she uses it....
Although not conventionally thick, her crusts are denser and weightier than the Neapolitan ideal, reflecting her stated love of the pizza bianca sold by several bakeries around Campo de’ Fiori in Rome. Instead of an actual topping, pizza bianca has perhaps a gloss of oil and maybe a dusting of herbs, forcing you to focus on what has become of the dough. It’s spongy, like focaccia, but with less air inside and more crunch outside....
Although Ms. Silverton is fixated on dough, she doesn’t ignore the balance of the pizza. The toppings for each of roughly 15 kinds of pies have well-chosen, well-balanced ingredients: meaty fennel sausage, creamy buffalo milk mozzarella, expertly cured meats....
It's an overwhelmingly positive review, and the only complaint Mr. Bruni had about the pizza was that the crusts of a few pies were too broad, as you can see in this photo.
FURTHER READING
Slice's overlord, Ed Levine tried the pizza at Mozza ages ago. Here's his take.
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 25, 2007 at 4:32 PM
It's been awhile since Slice has waded into the plaintive muck of Craigslist's Missed Connections section. So come with me, my loves, to the swamp of love that spawns That's Amore. —The Mgmt.
At New Park Pizza on CrossBay Blvd today with your friend - m4w: If this work's I'll not only be really happy but amazed! At New Park Pizza on Cross Bay Blvd in Howard Beach Queens this afternoon. You are light skinned and you were sitting with your girlfriend who was darker. You were wearing what I think I remember was a pink Tee shirt with something written on it. You had a small white box in front of you on the table that you were sitting at and you were looking at the content and smiling. You are beautiful with an amazing smile and although I should have talked to you I was in kind of a rush and didn't want to embarrass you in front of your friend and I still regret it. Tell me what you had in the box and I'll know it's you. I hope this work's because I would hate to think I will never see you again.
pizza parlor- waverly place - m4w (West Village): you were sitting at the table adjacent to me. I commented to you about the oily pizza. You had an incredible smile. Please contact me.
To My Dream "ozzie"...The One of Three - m4w - 29 (East Village): As the bar was closing, we shared a simple kiss...I said "see you at the pizza place" yet you weren't there...If you're out there, I wouldn't mind a quick snog before you head back to Oz...And yes, there will be power ballad singing...
How was that Lombardi's pizza? Saturday night on the 6. - m4w (Murray Hill): Saturday night: you bought a pizza at Lombardi's, then headed back uptown on the IRT [that's the 6] from Spring to 33rd, clad in brown boots and other earth tones, and carrying a tote with three initials. 'bout 10:00 PM or so. My route was the same. Sans pizza and boots, tho -- white cords, cutoff linen shirt, black glasses, unshaven. Coulda shoulda. But didn't! So write me a note and we can correspond while I'm away in France for a week or two.
Bella Napoli Madison Ave - 30: Tall Asian women in Chloe jeans ordering pizza in front of me. Really hot. Would like to meet you.
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 25, 2007 at 1:16 PM
My Serious Eats colleague Lia just sent this via cellphone picture-messaging.
Russo's, new pizzeria on Ave B between 3rd and 4th, opening in two weeks-ish. Nice huge interior, brick oven. There's another place opening between 2nd and 3rd called Solo Pizza, regular oven.
Thanks, Lia! If you have a tip you want to send Slice, email me at adam@sliceny.com.
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 23, 2007 at 10:48 PM
Hey,
Just thought you should know: Went for dinner at Dom's place tonight. Looks like he finally caved in to the D.O.H. because he was actually wearing a hat. It was a little blue train conductor's cap. Pizza was better than ever. We had a regular and a pepperoni/onion pie. It doesn't get any better than that.
—Jon S.
Jon,
Thanks for the update. Next time: Pix, please! ;)
Hasta la pizza,
Adam
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 23, 2007 at 9:23 AM
The recent mention of Slice on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire prompted this email from a former New Yorker who did some time in my hometown of Olathe, Kansas, before moving to Minneapolis. This "rant" made my day after I opened it Saturday afternoon. Enjoy! —Adam
Dear Slice,
I just discovered your website courtesy of the fact that it was a question on Millionaire. My first search on your site was for Lento's because I went to elementary school one block away. (I am over 50 now.) Last year I was in New York for a reunion and saw that Lento's was gone and was saddened indeed.
I have not yet had time to explore your site but was interested to note that your father had tried opening a pizza place in Olathe, Kansas. We resided in Olathe from 1981 to 1988, and I can remember hunting for a place that had a brick oven. People who had grown up there didn't even like pizza from a brick oven because they had grown up on the chain stuff and that was their definition of what a pie should be. As I recall, there was a brick-oven pizza place at Oak Park Mall, one near Johnson County Community College, and one in a mall near Kansas City, Kansas. That one was run by a guy who had come from Brooklyn and was really good but a lengthy drive up from Olathe if you had a quick hankering for a slice. So my question to you is: When and where in Olathe did your father try this pizzeria? I certainly would have been one of his customers if I knew about it. We lived up the hill from the Nazarene college.
"New York pizza is 50 percent wax paper and 50 percent olive oil dripping down your arm."
Now, I did notice you lamenting the quality of pizza in Manhattan. That is because, with the exception of Little Italy, pizza is not from Manhattan. New York–style pizza is a misnomer. Pizza came from Brooklyn (and branched into Queens). Pizza was on every corner in the Italian and Jewish neighborhoods of Brooklyn. At that time, Catholics abided by the dietary restrictions, so pizza, calzones, and strombolis were standard Friday night fare. Some places in Manhattan that are now residential were not back then, so pizza places for carry-out were not needed. What has developed in Manhattan is the quick and dirty—customers may or may not come back but there will always be another—rather than the family-owned-and-operated places that counted on developing repeat business in the neighborhoods.
In fact, even as late as the early '80's I took my husband to New York with our kids. I parked him in Nathan's while I went to get tickets at TKTS. The man bought slices of pizza there, and when I got back he said he didn't understand why New York pizza was so special! Fool. You don't go to Nathan's to buy pizza! Even though he was from the Midwest, I thought he had listened to me rant often enough that he knew that.
Once, while living in Chicago, he asked one of my coworkers, who was from Rockaway, about New York pizza. My coworker gave the best definition, and I still remember it: "New York pizza is 50 percent wax paper and 50 percent olive oil dripping down your arm." I thought that truly summed it up.
When we moved to the armpit called Cleveland, I took the Yellow Pages and called every pizza place listed and asked if they had a brick oven. If the response was "a what?" I said, "Thank you, if you don't know what it is, you don't have one."
Now, if you are ever in the Twin Cities area, there is an interesting pizza place there called Punch. They have a special oven that runs at 800°F. You barely get it ordered and paid for and it's ready. While the aficionado looking for "New York pizza" will not be satisfied, it is a very good taste to try.
Thanks for letting an old lady rant. If I have repeated things that are elsewhere on your site, I apologize.
—ffrrggyy
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 16, 2007 at 3:27 PM
The pizza you'd get from this deal is probably about as appetizing as the check I threw down Uncle Sam's big-ass moneyhole last week, but you've gotta give Papa John's props for the $10.40 reference. [via Tien]
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 12, 2007 at 7:54 PM
Dear Slice,
This sign just went up on B btwn 2nd & 3rd. Any clue who's behind it?
—KW
Beats me! Readers?
Solo Pizza
Address: 27 Avenue B, New York NY 10009
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 12, 2007 at 4:30 PM
At one point, I had rolled my own mashup Google pizza map, but when the Big Goog released its My Maps feature, I gave up trying to wrassle with code that I didn't quite understand anyway. I realized it would be easier to use the new feature to serve up Slice's local psearch info in a graphical way.
I give thee the Slice Pizza Map (NYC Edition).
I'm hoping Google keeps refining its technology. I'd like to see custom uploadable icons for place markers and also an easy way to embed My Maps into websites. Only time will tell.
Until then, you can click on the image of Slice's NYC map below or the link at left in the navigation menu.
Huge props to Robyn (aka The Girl Who Ate Everything), who has been interning at Serious Eats HQ and helped tremendously with this map.
[Related FAQ topic: Why haven't you idiots reviewed XYZ pizzeria yet!? It's only the best ever!]
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 11, 2007 at 3:12 PM
When it rains, it pours, eh? On the heels of Subway's crazy venture into the pizza-making world, we get news out of Chicago that Dunkin' Donuts is making pizza. At least with Subway, you can imagine a connection—they deal with bread and cheese every day. But Dunkin'? Here's what Chicagoist's Louis Frascogna:
The deep dish-looking pizza has the exact same flavor as the frozen bagel bites we ate as kids, which isn't a bad thing. The crust isn't really crusty, but more like hot bread, and the sauce has that standard fake pizza sauce flavor with assorted bits of basil. The cheese was just as nondescript, but acceptable. We ordered pepperoni but didn't really see a lot of pepperoni.
It isn't that it is terrible, but it was a little overpriced for the size, at $3.99, and it was so hot it did burn our thumb a little bit. Also, now that we ordered that pizza we are still hungry and feel bad about ordering donuts too.
The pizza here looks and sounds like the kind I tried at Subway. I wouldn't be surprised if the "speed oven" used and distributor were the same.
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 10, 2007 at 6:53 PM
Subway Pizza, blogged to Slice from the Flickr photostream of Slice
Earlier today, Lia alerted me to the fact that Subway has started to roll out personal pizzas in a few test stores in Manhattan's East Village. The chain plans to serve the mini pies nationwide by June.
liacheesedip: http://yumsugar.com/204748
nycslice:: INSANE!
nycslice:: EVIL
nycslice:: GROSS
liacheesedip: you need to go to one of the East Village Subways that have it
liacheesedip: for science
nycslice: for weird science
nycslice: maybe for lunch
liacheesedip: ewwwww
nycslice: let's not rush to judgment!
Speaking of "rush," isn't the saying "fools rush in where angels fear to tread?" Yeah. I think it is.
Prebaked at a central facility and shipped to individual stores, the small, six-inch pies take 90 seconds to reheat in a "speed oven." These things cost $2.99 for plain, $1 more for pepperoni or sausage. Veggie toppings are free.
Would you be surprised to learn that these things blow? I didn't think so. Either mine missed the prebake step at central or they're supposed to be pale gummy messes with a slick layer of greasy cheese.
I think Consumerist said it best, and I'm not even going to try to out–bon mot them ...
According to Brandweek, "After you eat this you won't go back to Pizza Hut," the Subway employee in New York boasted. We haven't been back to PIzza Hut since they stopped giving us free pizza for reading books.
Touché!
Anyone interested in trying this pizza can head to the Subway at Fourth Avenue and 12th Street. But first I should remind you of another fool-filled adage: "A fool and his money are soon parted."
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 4, 2007 at 2:36 PM
From PRNewswire.com:
Denver area pizza lovers have a 'hole' lot [Groan —Ed.] to be excited about as Einstein Bros. Bagels cooks up new pizza bagels for its hometown customers.... Einstein Bros. is now offering five Pizza Bagel flavors in 28 Front Range restaurants.
When I was a kid, Sis Slice (who was around 7 at the time) came up with this idea—using
Lender's frozen bagels, some
Chef Boyardee pizza sauce, and whatever mozzarella we had on hand. She submitted the idea to a local TV station's "create an afterschool snack" contest.
And never heard from the station.
Hey, I thought it was a great idea at the time. These days, you couldn't get me near a hybrid pizza bagel. It just takes the best of two respected traditions and ruins them.
To this I say, Oy vey AND mamma mia!
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 4, 2007 at 2:11 PM
The New York Post files its story on Di Fara's reopening:
"It feels great to be back. I thought I'd be out of practice until I made that first pie," said Dom, who's been serving up pizzas there for 42 years.
Many of DiFara's faithful said the pizzeria got a raw deal from the city, which hit the eatery with nine violations.
"They're pinching this cat when all he does is make love for people to eat," said Matt Crane, a 37-year-old musician.
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 3, 2007 at 4:26 PM
This Serious Eats stuff I've gotten myself into is a weird business. Blogging about pizza, burgers, and other food is now part of my job, so it wasn't out of the realm of the ordinary to take part of the day to go out to Di Fara Pizza.
The joint had just reopened after having a nasty run-in with the New York City Department of Health. As many of you know, the DOH smackdown wasn't pretty. Along with minor violations like failure to wear a hat and gloves, references to mouse poop and unsanitary conditions peppered the report.
But, a couple weeks of forced closure, the pizzeria's proprietor, Dom DeMarco, was back behind the counter, looking and acting a little peppier for the involuntary rest—greeting regulars in his trademark laconic way and accepting well-wishes from customers with a quick nod.
I was slightly jarred by the new coat of green paint on the walls, which gave the dining room a cozier yet more vibrant feel (see above). In retrospect, the previous faded-yellow color wasn't so becoming, eh? The place looked cleaner, too, with new trash cans that, by all indications, were actually being put to use.
It's funny what passes for news these days. You can sure as hell bet that Slice would be on hand for this event, but two other publications were also present: the Courier Life (right, at top) and the New York Post (right, at bottom). Notebooks out and cameras clicking away, the reporters interviewed people: "Are you a regular? How often do you come?"
But most important: "Even after the Department of Health report, you've come back. Why?"
The answers were typical for Di Fara devotees. "He makes the best pizza," one of the patrons responded.
I got there around 1:30 p.m., ordered a half-artichoke pie, and began the ritual waiting. Many of you know I hate crowds and lines, but the place wasn't that packed. Either the report had scared off lightweights and weak stomachs or folks just didn't know that the Dominator was back. But I had my pie by 2:15 p.m. or so (not bad time these days), ate a couple slices at a table (more than a handful of seats were available), and made my way back home to pick up my laptop and head into the office.
While I waited, I asked Dom's daughter, Maggie, about the fate of DeMarco's Pizzeria, the site of a violent gun battle a few weeks ago. The Post had reported that DeMarco's was closing for good, which didn't quite jibe with what the New York Times had said in an earlier, more thorough piece. The Times had it that DeMarco's would close its sit-down restaurant portion but keep the take-out pizzeria portion open. Maggie confirmed this. Alas, the Old Gray Lady's not called the "paper of record" for nothing, kids.
What's that you ask? Oh. How was my pie? Well, Dom was using the top oven as well as the usual middle oven, and I don't know how hot that top oven gets, but my crust could have used a bit more time in the fire.
Oh, and, Dom was stubbornly refusing to wear gloves and a hat!
For photo outtakes, click through the jump!
Continue reading »
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 2, 2007 at 5:40 PM
I just got off the phone with Dom DeMarco, proprietor of Di Fara. He says the joint's reopening tomorrow. And that when it was reinspected, it received a "0," which actually is good—as in zero violations.
Posted by Adam Kuban, April 2, 2007 at 2:21 PM
Friend of Slice Lia just sent me the photo above. Says the tipster: "What a dumbass name. Their pizza better be damn good!"
My thoughts exactly.
CHICKIE PIG'S BRICK OVEN PIZZERIA & RESTAURANT
Address: On Ludlow Street, between Rivington and Delancey, Lower East Side.
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 30, 2007 at 4:30 PM
Heh. That college town being Lawrence, Kansas, according to a recent story in the University Daily Kansan, the college newspaper I once worked on for a few semesters:
Lawrence’s pizza market is crowded with restaurants vying for the affections of hungry students and other residents, making it difficult for some businesses to survive.
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 29, 2007 at 10:44 PM
I didn't know who this Joss Stone was until looking her up on Wikipedia, but I guess she's popular enough to have paparazzi take her picture while she visits from the UK. Blimey! She knows what to do while here, eh?
Posted by correspondent, March 27, 2007 at 4:15 PM
LA RUSTIQUE BAKERIA
Address: 84 1/2 Morris Street, Jersey City, NJ 07302 (near Exchange Place)
Phone: 201-860-4010
Hours: Mon-Fri 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sat-Sun 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. (hours can be quirky; call ahead)
Payment: Cash and all major credit cards
The Skinny: Takeout and delivery only, with some outdoor seating
All photographs by Michael Parillo
BY MICHAEL PARILLO .:::. As both a lifelong New Jerseyan and a pizza obsessive, I've been known to get gloomy about the state of the slice in my area. Too many ten-gallon cans of industrial-grade tomatoes, too much sweet and spongy dough. So a couple of years ago when I was tipped off about a killer pie in Jersey City, I made a beeline to La Rustique Bakeria.
JC isn't exactly in my neck of the woods, but if you have pizza, I will travel. I loved the pie, and I vowed to return. But then, whether out of laziness or wanting to avoid faraway takeout—La Rustique has just one table inside but adds outdoor seating in the warmer months—or simply because I've been captivated by my wife's homemade pizza and the impressive recent offerings in New York City, I didn't make it back until now.
Not much has changed at the small, modest-looking storefront bakery and pizzeria. A blown-up 1938 mug shot of Frank Sinatra still watches over the pizzaioli as they stretch their dough ("Nice and thin, gumbah—attaboy," I imagine Blue Eyes saying), and a glass case by the register still holds a tempting array of enormous pies—larger than those on the menu—which are cut and sold as "oversized slices" (Margherita $3; with toppings, $3.50).
Since this wasn't a warmer month, I had to order my pies to go. I went with a large Margherita with half sausage (large Margherita, $14.30; small, $8.50), and a small white pie with spinach (large white, $16.95; small, $10.95). The owner seemed suspicious when he saw me snap a photo from the sidewalk, and I didn't want to blow my cover, so I faded into the woodwork for a few minutes while my pies cooked. (I would defend my right to photograph, sans flash, to the ends of the earth, but I prefer to avoid confrontation with people who are feeding me.) Luckily, the baking didn't take long, given the intensity of the inferno beneath the brick oven's high-heat tiles.
After paying and shrugging off a sarcastic comment about my "taking pictures for posterity"—did he think I was trying to steal his design secrets?—I threw my short stack of boxes in my car and drove away. This is the part that kept messing me up. I was staked with hot pizzas, but I had no nearby safe house at which to tuck into them—home was almost 20 miles away. Park bench? Hourly motel room? I pulled over and settled for a few quick bites of the white pie—you know, because it would be unfair not to eat some of the stuff while it was as hot as possible. This was a good move, for the moment.
But then, as I drove, with my windows fogging over and my taste buds teased into great expectation, I had to endure the tantalizing aroma of smoke, herbs, tomatoes, and hot cardboard (I love the scent of pizza-warmed cardboard, a perk of the takeout experience). I avoided looking at my speedometer, and I'm lucky I wasn't pulled over.
I made it home while the pizza was still warm, and I went to work in earnest. The Margherita looked similar to the one I had the last time, which I'd photographed, for posterity. Today's specimen was a gorgeous, colorful pie, with snow-white house-made mozzarella peeking out from under the bright red blush of San Marzano tomatoes. (The cheese is so delicate and low in moisture that it must be placed beneath the tomatoes or it will burn.) The vibrant red was blurred to a fuzzier hue where Parmesan cheese had been sprinkled. The end crust bore the precious burn marks that I've come to value so highly.
Unfortunately, the pizza wasn't thin enough in the middle, and some of the internal areas met my teeth with a somewhat gluey texture. It seemed the bottom had charred before the dough directly beneath the cheese had had a chance to set fully.
Still, this was one tasty pizza, albeit subtly so. La Rustique achieves a refined savoriness rather than favoring forceful flavors. In fact, it's a pizza that resists being adorned. I liked the sausage slices, but the fennel-rich links, though nice, threw the flavor out of balance a bit. There's no question in my mind that ordering a Margherita is the way to best appreciate this pie as a whole—the creamy and mild mozzarella, the tangy and not-too-sweet tomatoes, the salty Parm, the nicely charred crust, all in harmony.
Yes, the Margherita is the star, but the white pie might earn top billing elsewhere. Not surprisingly, it, too, had subtle charms, given all of its innocent white, so its generous dusting of oregano and its scattered slivers of basil really picked up the flavors. And it contained no mozzarella, only a thin layer of ricotta. My thoughts on ricotta-topped pizza can go both ways—as much as I love No. 28 in Manhattan, I've found the ricotta on its white pie to be too pillowy—and so I was glad that La Rustique got the ricotta-to-other-stuff ratio exactly right. My only complaint about this pizza was that I could not detect the presence of the roasted garlic that was noted on the menu as being blended with the ricotta, which sounded like a nice touch.
Overall, with both pies, the very best parts were the burnt bits. There's just nothing like an oven that's hot enough to literally put its mark on a pizza. La Rustique's dough itself is good, not quite baking up crisp-chewy at the end crust—the ultimate—but offering a satisfying crunch before the cornicione collapses. Where it's charred, though, and where the smokiness of the burn marks can mix with the flavor of the cheese and the tomatoes—now that's heaven on earth. Jersey, listen up: No more pale pizzas!
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 27, 2007 at 2:47 PM
It might be high in antioxidants, but this pizza crust, developed at the University of Maryland, seems like it would be low in deliciousness:
University of Maryland food chemists said on Monday they had found ways to enhance the antioxidant content of whole-grain wheat pizza dough by baking it longer at higher temperatures and giving the dough lots of time to rise.
It actually turns out that the "higher temperatures" cited were between 400 and 550°F, which isn't all that out of the ordinary for most pizza ovens. What's interesting here is whether this effect occurs in whole-wheat pies cooked in high-heat pizzeria ovens. [via Cyrus]
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 22, 2007 at 10:36 PM
It always becomes an issue when a highly regarded pizzeria opens a second location -- will the pies be as good at the new branch? Will production at the original branch suffer as a result of the new venture? The New York Times on the new Fairfield, Connecticut, branch of Frank Pepe's:
To the average aficionado of thin-crust pies, the chewy, somewhat salty dough dished up by Fairfield’s Frank Pepe is every bit as good as any coming out of New Haven. One reason for that is the use of a coal-fired oven, which generates far more heat than most gas or electric installations. Another, a waitress told me, is that the batter (and red sauce) is whipped up every day from scratch.
Spicing Up the Great Pizza Debate [New York Times]
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 20, 2007 at 10:03 PM
Oh, my.
If you haven't seen it elsewhere, Gawker has dug up the NYC Dept. of Health inspector's report that closed Di Fara temporarily.
If you know us, you know we don't like having to report this news.
Source
Di Fara Pizza: One Slice, Free Droppings! [Gawker]
Further Reading
All Slice entries on Di Fara [The Slice Archives]
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 16, 2007 at 12:19 PM
Looks like the gunman who killed a bartender at Greenwich Village pizzeria DeMarco's and then two auxiliary police officers was not a former employee of the pizzeria, as was previously postulated. The New York Times:
A neighborhood resident, Tina Lourenco, told reporters that she had seen the gunman and recognized him as a former employee of the pizzeria.
But Dominick De Marco Jr., whose sister, Margaret Mieles, is a part owner of the pizza parlor, said Mr. Garvin was probably not a former employee, but instead a former customer.
Also from the Times, speculation on the motive:
Mr. Garvin, who moved to the Village from the Bronx about two weeks ago, had patronized the pizzeria occasionally and had been ejected several times for unruly behavior, a manager told the police. Investigators said that Mr. Garvin was the friend of a cook who had been fired by the pizzeria last fall, and for reasons that were unclear may have blamed Mr. Romero for the dismissal.
SOURCES
Greenwich Village Gunfight Leaves Four Dead [New York Times]
In Heart of Village, 4 Lives Intersect in a Chain of Violence [New York Times]
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 15, 2007 at 11:53 AM
Some sad news today. Romero Morales, a bartender at DeMarco's Pizzeria (a kinda-sorta offshoot of legendary Di Fara) was shot and killed last night for unknown reasons by a gunman. The shooter ran from DeMarco's and was chased by two auxiliary policemen—Nicholas Pekearo and Yevgeniy Marshalik—, who were then shot and killed by the gunman. The shooter, in turn, was shot and killed by cops arriving on the scene moments later.
The New York Times says:
It was unclear last night what lay behind the first shooting at the pizzeria, DeMarco’s at 146 Macdougal Street. The police said the gunman, wearing a fake beard, walked into the restaurant and was given a menu by Mr. Romero. When Mr. Romero turned away, the authorities said, the gunman shot him 15 times in the back.
When asked at a news conference this morning at nearly 2:30 what had prompted the attack, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said, “It’s just inexplicable.”
Our condolences to the family and friends of the bartender and the staff and owners of DeMarco's and to the family, friends, and colleagues of the two auxiliary police officers
Update: The Associated Press is reporting:
Authorities were investigating why David Gavin, 32, went into a pizzeria around 9 p.m. Wednesday, asked for a menu and then shot an employee 15 times in the back before fleeing, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said.
A neighborhood resident, Tina Lourenco, said she saw the gunman and recognized him as a former employee of the pizzeria.
FURTHER READING
All Slice posts on DeMarco's [The Slice Archives]
SOURCES
Village Shooting: 4 Dead, Including 2 Auxiliary Cops [Gothamist]
Greenwich Village Gunfight Leaves Four Dead [New York Times]
4 killed in NYC shootout; motive unknown [AP]
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 14, 2007 at 2:30 PM
The folks at Grub Street, New York magazine's foodblog, try a mighty expensive pizza: "Made of crème fraîche, six kinds of caviar (including a sac-load of intense black Russian Royal Sevruga, the same kind used in Norma’s omelette), and shaved slices of fresh lobster, the sample sowed confusion in our proletarian ranks."
Eh. You'd be an idiot to order one of these things. It's a waste of good pizza and good caviar. But, apparently, Bo Dietl purchased one. There's one born every minute.
If you feel like being a sucker, the pizza is available at Nino's Bellissima Pizza, 890 Second Avenue, New York NY 10017 (at 47th Street); 212-355-5540.
We Try a $1,000 Pizza [Grub Street]
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 13, 2007 at 1:20 PM
The following events took place last Tuesday, March 6, at the Javits Center in Manhattan, during the New York Pizza Show. I was on hand to judge in PMQ magazine's America's Plate pizza competition. Contestants came from Canada, Luxembourg, France, Spain, Italy, Australia, and the U.S. I had wanted to live-blog the proceedings, but I experienced technical difficulties early in the day. So, here is the tape-delayed version of last week's events.
9:31 a.m.: I enter the Javits Center. It's my first time here. Lots of tall glass and concrete. Doesn't seem very inspiring for a building that in many ways is New York City's face to visiting professionals.
9:53 a.m.:I check in, get my "floor pass," and head toward the PMQ New York Pizza Show corner of the International Restaurant & Foodservice Show.
9:54 a.m.: My cellie rings. It's Tom Boyles, editor of PMQ magazine, the trade publication that has organized the New York Pizza Show. "Where are you? I've got to brief the judges. We need you on the floor."
"I'm tryin'," I say. "The guards won't let me in till 10 a.m." Boyles pleads with the scanner-wielding guards to let me in a few minutes before the floor actually opens to attendees. I get in.
9:59 a.m.: I sit down at a table and meet "Pizza" Paul Nyland, who will serve as one of the judges. Soon after, Dino Ciccone, president of the World Pizza Organization and builder of the World Pizza Bike, sits down. Ciccone will be lead judge, and he wants to consult with us on ground rules. "There might be shrinkage on pies in the oven," he says. "How far plus or minus do we want to give contestants? An inch in either direction?" (Judging rules state that all pies must be round and 14 inches in diameter; deviant pies will be docked 1 point. Boyles notes that in past shows, contestants have been known to cut their pies into novel shapes—the outline of Italy, for instance—confident that their creation was so good that the 1-point deduction would have little effect on overall score.)
10:04 a.m.: John Brescio, owner of legendary Manhattan pizzeria Lombardi's, arrives. He's another of the judges. Ciccone continues to clarify scoring criteria. "In the event of a tie, which category should serve as tiebreaker?" he asks. "Overall appearance, taste, or creativity?"
"Taste," Brescio says, emphatically—spoken like a man who doesn't rely on frills and wacky toppings to sell his pies.
10:10 a.m.: With the judges' briefing done, Boyles dismisses us, telling us to meet him at 11 a.m. in the PMQ conference room. I wander the floor, looking at pizza ovens (that's a Roto-Flex multideck rotary oven at right), delivery vans, dough-shaping machines, sauce-dispensing machines. The sauce-dispensing machine catches my eye, all tubes and vats. What's the point? Here's a $3 piece of sauce-dispensing technology for you—it's called a ladle.
10:33 a.m.: It looks like the final judge has arrived: restaurateur and caterer Tony Modica (right), who's also the creator of the Pizza Dance. Mr. Modica has an entourage with him, consisting of at least one accordion player. I've never seen the Pizza Dance in person, so I secretly hope that Mr. Modica will break into it at some point during the day—I mean, otherwise why lug an accordion in? (A note on the Pizza Dance: Its moves correspond to the motions you go through while making pizza: "Bang it, shake it, spin it, put it in the oven.")
10:50 a.m.: I decide to see what kind of wifi connection the Javits Center has. Nothing free. I decide to pay the $29.99 daily rate. Hey, it's for the sake of pizza, right? I connect (woo hoo!), close the lid of my MacBook, and proceed to the judges chambers.
11:11 a.m.: I'm in the judge's chambers, waiting for the first slices to come in. The other judges are with me, chatting pizza and making restaurant shop talk. In Italian. Mamma Mia, how I regret having studied German in college at this moment. Wait! I understand something: va fanculo, I hear. I wish I knew what prompted that exchange!
With no pizzeria experience to chat about and no Italian beyond a curse or two and the phrase for "good luck," I slink to a corner to communicate in the best way I know how: blogging. I transfer some photos from my digicam to my laptop and then, connecting again successfully to Javits wifi, I upload a couple pix to my Flickr account. I'll kill the time spent waiting on slices by live-blogging this thing. Slice readers will get minute-by-minute updates on how the judging is going.
11:27 a.m.: Ugh. Yeah, right. Let's put that on hold. Friggin' Javits Center is ripping me. After having connected and uploaded a photo, the wireless is not working for some reason. It registers that I've paid and tells me to "click here to continue." I click. Animated ellipses blink: "One moment, please." I'm transferred back to step one: "Click here to continue." I can't get the damn thing to work. I guess this will be tape-delayed blogging of the America's Plate.
11: 35 a.m.: Boyles, serving as pizza runner, brings the first pie in. We don't know which team it's from. Neither does Boyles—it's double-blind judging. We do know it's from Contestant No. 2. "No. 1 is running a bit behind," Boyles says. "It'll be along shortly."
No. 2 looks good, and I remember lead judge Dino Ciccone's advice. He's a veteran of numerous serious pizza-judgings and has been on the other end of the stick himself, as a contestant. In the event that the first pie is terrific, Ciccone says, it's best to be conservative with the grading. In other words, even if it rates a 10 in your book, give it an 8 or so. That way, if another pie comes out later that's even better, you still have room to grade it higher.
I'd never thought of this before, and it's one of the things that put this pizza competition head and shoulders above some of the others I've judged in. The overall knowledge of the judges, their love of pizza, and their attention to detail are superb. In this room, I'm clearly the greenest of greenhorns, the tenderest of tenderfoots, the n00biest of n00bs.
No. 2 features a beef topping laid out upon a bed of neatly applied cheeses. Cheese and sauce are in balance. Sauce is bright and fresh tasting. There's a nice, puffy outer lip to the crust. Modica doesn't like that. I don't mind it. The bottom is charred nicely. Not bad for a team using an oven it's unfamiliar with. I give this one high marks.
11:44 a.m.: No. 1 finally appears. Straggler. "Look at that," Brescio moans. "That's a premade commericial crust. Lift it up, let's see the bottom." It's not surprising that professional pizza men also want to sneak a peek at an upskirt view of the crust.
This upskirt reveals a spongy, golden-brown crust. It reminds me of a Pizza Hut Pan Pizza crust or a Domino's Deep-Dish crust. I imagine the airy yet over-oily mouthfeel I'm about to experience. But I don't. The crust is actually not that bad, just not all that impressive to a bunch of diehard New York–pizza guys. Many remark that the toppings are incredible—"Great artichokes," Ciccone says—but wish that the crust would have been cooked a little more. I find the black olives too salty and dominant for my taste, obscuring the flavor of the 'chokes.
11: 52 a.m.: Hot on the heels of tardy Contestant No. 1 comes No. 3. Boyles brings in the pizza box, and opens the lid to reveal a spectacular sight. A pie topped with sheets of gold leaf. I recall the gold-topped 007-inspired pizza from Scotland. This one has everyone talking. "Can you eat that?" Modica asks.
"Yeah. I've seen this before," Ciccone says. "It's edible gold leaf."
"A guy in Park Slope does this," I say. "He calls it the 'L'Oro di Napoli' and it's inspired by a Sofia Loren film. It's supposed to just pass through the body harmlessly without being absorbed."
This one is great. The crust, the sauce, the cheese distro. Everything. Nice char on the thin, crisp-chewy crust (right). The only complaint I have is the gold leaf, which is more gimmick than anything. And since one of the judging categories is "Pizza Viability"—i.e., how practical is it to make for typical restaurant service—I score it low in that column. Seems like it would be expensive to reproduce this pie.*
I guess I'll have some valuable poop soon.
12:04 p.m.: Contestant No. 4 emerges. Boyles walks in, hoping aloud that he hasn't "ruined the chefs' creation." Opening the box lid reveals why he was worried. At the four corners of the pie are large gorgonzola-stuffed dough knots. It looks like a medieval castle of some sort. Is this one of the European pies, I wonder.
It's loaded with many, many toppings, all of which are top-notch and incredibly flavorful and fresh-tasting. There are simply too many, however—and too many "wet" toppings that sog down the crust. "There's a gum line on this thing," Ciccone says. "It's raw."
I can't even get an upskirt because not even with all the years of practice in pizza-upskirting could I get this slice to stand up for a shot from underneath. I have to down-blouse this one. :(
None of the judges tries the dough-knot things. We're just confused by them. The crust is stuffed with the same mild gorgonzola that tops the pie.
12:33 p.m.: Contestant No. 5 comes out swinging with a pie called the "Pacific Dream." I guess that this one might be the American pie and that the American team is from California. It's the most out-there pizza yet, with smoked salmon, onion, basil, and salmon roe dotted upon dollops of crème fraîche.
I never would have dreamed of putting crème fraîche on a pizza, but, well, it was kinda good—in that way that crème fraîche makes almost anything good. It was interesting. The smoked salmon almost tasted like bacon of the sea, since it was thin and smoky and had cooked to a baconlike texture in the heat of the oven.** High marks for creativity but still a weird pie overall.
12:49 p.m.: Uh oh. Another out-of-order snafu. Contestant No. 7 hits the judges chambers before No. 6. Oh well. Boy, does it hit us. We can SMELL this pizza the minute it floats in. This one is called the "Prince Henri," we're told. Hmmm. THAT definitely must be a European. France? Luxembourg? Probably not Spain. It features salame piccante paired with a very pungent gorgonzola. The gorgonzola is just too much and obscures the taste of the salame piccante and the sauce. The only time I taste anything other than gorgonzola is when I bite into the cherry tomato on my slice and it bursts its tomatoey flavor onto my tastebuds.
12:56 p.m.: The last of the pies comes out. Contestant No. 6. It's another odd one. It's called the "Lamb Paradise" and has lamb, feta, tzatziki sauce, chives, olives, grape leaves, and tomatoes. It's almost overkill, and we think the crust is going to suffer for it. But it's a hearty whole-wheat crust. Whole-what?!?!? Yes. That does not endear it to us. The judges must have followed the letter of the roundness law on this one -- it is perfectly, strangely, arrestingly circular. This is like a gyro on a pizza. Like the "Pacific Dream," it is creative and tasty but just not completely there.
1:22 p.m.: The scores are in, the judges are tallying everything. Ciccone and Boyles (right) reach a total and rank the contestants.
1:44 p.m.: We leave the judges chambers and head to the stage area. It's time to award the winners.
1st Place: Spain (The Gold Pizza)
2nd Place: France (The Beef Topped Pie)
3rd Place: USA (The Puffy Boboli-Like Pie)
4th Place: Australia (The Lamb Paradise)
5th Place: Luxembourg (The Prince Henri)
6th Place: Italy (The Dough-Knot Pizza)
7th Place: Canada (The Pacific Dream)
2:03 p.m.: The U.S. Pizza Team shows some off some of its moves. Here's a vid:
2:32 p.m.: I leave the Javits Center. $29.99 poorer, seven slices heavier, and content at having tried pizza from all over the world.
FOOTNOTES
* I later learn that edible gold leaf isn't that expensive but that it's a tricky substance to work with—it wants to stick to everything and you have to be patient with it to apply it to a pie.
** In describing this pie to Girl Slice, I am told, "Oh. They basically did a blini pizza." That sounds about right.
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 6, 2007 at 5:12 PM
Just one of many pizzas I ate today at the
New York Pizza Show. Sorry I didn't blog from it as promised. The Javits Center's wifi sucked and wouldn't let me on after I paid for access. Report coming ...
Posted by Adam Kuban, March 6, 2007 at 8:23 AM
Pizza Patron, the Texas-based pizza chain that received death threats when it announced it would take Mexican pesos at its U.S. stores, is extending the program. It was supposed to run through February but will now run through the end of April.
Founder Antonio Swad: “We have carved this niche in the pizza industry to compete and serve an underserved market, the Latino customer, not to make any political statement.”
Texas: Chain Extends Pizza-For-Pesos Program - New York Times
Posted by Adam Kuban, February 28, 2007 at 11:49 AM
Holy moly:
Devout churchgoers have begun worshipping a pizza pan - after claiming the Virgin Mary has appeared amid the melted cheese, tomato and pepperoni.
Virgin Mary appears on pizza pan [Metro.co.uk]
Posted by Adam Kuban, February 22, 2007 at 2:37 PM
The Hot Truck, blogged to Slice from the Flickr photostream of Slice
Hey, folks: I just published a story about the original French bread pizza joint on Serious Eats....
It was late last Friday evening and I was on the phone with my girlfriend's sister after having recently arrived in Ithaca, New York, for a weekend visit. "Drive up to campus, and ask any student. Everybody knows where it is," Sis said. "We'll meet you there in 15 minutes."
Armed with that tip and a simple map drawn by the motel desk clerk, we set out on the snowy streets hoping the pavement had been sufficiently cleared of last week's slippery precip. Our destination: The Hot Truck. Continue reading 'The Hot Truck'
Posted by Adam Kuban, February 21, 2007 at 5:03 PM
Dear Slice,
If you ever make it back to New Haven, you could do a lot worse than Abate, just a little way down Wooster Street from the better known places. Always overlooked because of its famous neighbors, you won't get slow or rude service there, and the pizza is excellent. Modern is excellent also. Considered one of the big three but seemingly without all the attitude of the other two. I've had some great pizza at numerous places in the greater New Haven area. There are some mediocre places in New Haven as well, but, in general, the standard is a lot higher there.
On a totally unrelated subject, I saw someone raving about Casserta's in Providence, Rhode Island, and comparing it to the best of the best. Bleecch, I say. As a frequent visitor to Providence, I think they have a fantastic Italian section—great restaurants and salumerias to die for. But pizza? Markedly inferior. Regular slices at Casserta's were mediocre. Spinach pie is great if you enjoy a mini calzone stuffed with lots of soggy, gray-green, overcooked frozen spinach. Tried pizza at three different places in the area and was disappointed at all of them. I finally decided it was just something they didn't do well in Rhode Island (they do a lot of other things well).
—Jim H.
Dear Jim,
Thanks for the tips. Slice has been to Pepe's and Sally's the "famous neighbors" of Abate that I'm sure you're referring to. Modern Apizza has long been on our to-try list, but Abate itself is a new one for us.
As for Rhode Island, Slice hasn't been. What about Al Forno, home of grilled pizza? We've heard great things about it. Have you been?
Hasta la pizza,
Adam
Posted by Adam Kuban, February 20, 2007 at 9:08 PM
Late last week, our long-lost roving reporter, E-Rock, checked in with a voicemail message stating that he was waiting in a two-hour line for a seat at Phoenix's Pizzeria Bianco. Here's his report:
I thought the place was really cool. It's kind of just off downtown, right near where the Diamondbacks play. As your photo shows, it's a pretty small place, but they own a stand-alone bar next door (Bar Bianco) where you can wait. And it's like drinking in someone's house. They also have benches and stuff outside where you can sit. A very relaxing, homey set-up. I drank this beer from Tempe, Arizona, called Hop Knot. The stuff is so strong it's like I had a kind bud lodged in my trachea.
The pizza is definitely worth the wait. You just have to plan things out. Before heading to the bar, I wandered around downtown Phoenix, which has more construction going on than Dubai. The two hours really flew by, but you can probably chalk that one up to jet lag or my enjoyment of the warm weather.
We ordered the pizza Margherita, and this nonsauce thing called the Rosa, which has a couple cheeses, red onions, olive oil, and these Arizona pistachios (WTF?). Very nice. I would definitely put it up there with anything I've had in New York City. But was it better. The best? I don't freakin' know. I was trying to figure that out. I decided that I still have to go to with Patsy's. I guess it's like one of those drug things when someone says their first line was the best and nothing else ever lived up to it. (I've always wondered—do they mean the first one ever or just of the night?) Anyway, when you're a junky, it's hard to differentiate, especially when everything you're dealing with is such high quality.
By the way, I also went to Pink Taco in Scottsdale. It was like eating in a Juicy Couture store.
Posted by Adam Kuban, January 19, 2007 at 12:00 PM
This morning at the Serious Eats office Ed came in talking about how he had dinner with someone last night who had spent two hours in line at Di Fara earlier this week.
I was like, "TWO HOURS?!?! At Di Fara? Surely that's an exaggeration! Maybe two hours' total time there, but not solely in waiting."
Funny then that I should get a copy of David Rosengarten's Tastings newsletter in my inbox soon after. In it, Mr. Rosengarten recounts his very long wait, after which, he and his friend employ a novel tactic for getting their fix:
Mama mia. So it came down to this: to get a slice of pizza at Di Fara, you have to go up to a couple of complete strangers and beg for it. Not that I minded, mind you.....after all, this is major 'za we're discussing......but there's gotta be something wrong with a system that reduces a man to that.
The pizza was good. Really good. Though not quite up to my five-year-old memory. Why? I remember more flavor then; this one was quieter. But it still had that droopy, soupy, wet-but-crisp textural complexity that the best Neapolitan and New York Neapolitan pizzas do. My faith in pizza was still secure—though my faith in humanity was a little shaken.
The full story is almost too painful to read because it's all too familiar.
I haven't been to Di Fara in ages—I love the place, but most times my hatred for crowds and lines overrides that. Has the wait really become two hours long?
Posted by Ed Levine, January 12, 2007 at 12:30 PM
Ed Levine, of Slice's parent site, Serious Eats, went to New Haven, Connecticut, on Wednesday and files this report. —The Mgmt.
WORDS BY ED LEVINE .::. Two years ago, when I was writing Pizza: A Slice of Heaven
, I spent a couple of days at Pepe's Pizza in New Haven, Connecticut. I’ve been eating Pepe’s excellent pizza since the '60s, when my oldest brother went to school in New Haven.
I’ve always loved just about everything about Pepe’s—the huge oven that dominates its interior; the smart, sassy waitresses; the incomparable crust with a crisp exterior and tender interior; the tangy shower of Romano cheese that lends just the right amount of tang and saltiness to the pizza; the meaty locally sourced sausage chunks; and, of course, the incomparable clam pie, which has the perfect ratio of clams to crust. Most of all, I love the fact that Pepe’s fabulous pizza is the legacy of the hard work and perfectionism of Frank Pepe, an illiterate southern Italian immigrant who built Pepe’s with his blood, sweat, and dough. Although Frank Pepe passed away in 1969, his spirit lives on at Pepe’s in the many photographs and paintings of him that adorn the walls at the pizzeria and even the pizza boxes there.
What I discovered in those two days would have taken the smile off the face on the box. His nine descendants who collectively owned the business were at war. Things had gotten so bad they were thinking of selling or closing it. And what’s worse was that the pizza was suffering as a result of this internecine family warfare. The pies were still damn good but maddeningly inconsistent. I ended up feeling not very sanguine about Pepe's future.
Continue reading »
Posted by correspondent, January 5, 2007 at 1:29 PM
DISPATCH AND PHOTOS BY DAVE, Special to Slice .::. New York–style pizza is disappointingly scarce around Rochester, but it can be found. One of the better examples is produced at Main Street Pizza in Brockport, a college town about 20 miles west of the city. Main Street offers thin-crust "NYC Style" or white garlic pizzas, as well as "Traditional Pizza," which is described as "thick crust, zesty sauce with two cheeses," all available by the slice ($1.50) or pie. New York–style pies come in 12-inch, 14-inch, 16-inch, and 18-inch sizes and average out to about $1 a slice.
At its best, Main Street puts out some damn good, authentic New York pizza, with a thin, bready crust and a judicious amount of sauce and chewy mozzarella. I say "at its best" because that's my one complaint: In my half dozen or so visits, Main Street has been somewhat inconsistent. One pie was undercooked and the crust had separated into two layers, with a paper-thin bottom that you could peel away from the other layer of dough stuck to the underside of the cheese. Still, Main Street's pizza has been good enough, often enough, that one bad experience hasn't deterred me from returning.
My most recent pie (pictured, a 16-incher) was above average, though not as nicely charred underneath as the best that I've had there. Like almost all pizzas around here, Main Street's is cooked in a gas-fired, steel-deck oven. Because Brockport is only about an hour from Buffalo, I should mention that the wings are pretty good, too.
MAIN STREET PIZZA
Address: 82 Main Street, Brockport NY 14420 [map]
Phone: 585-637-8760
Payment: Cash and credit accepted
Dave is Slice's Upstate New York correspondent. He prefers to go by "just 'Dave'."
Posted by Adam Kuban, December 21, 2006 at 1:06 PM
New place coming to Manhattan's Lower East Side. Pizzeria di Santo. Gothamist sez:
Eschewing the $3-4.50 slices at Pala (we love the pumpkin and pancetta slice regardless of the cost) and the over-priced, fancified pies littered around the area in favor of basic round (red and white) and square slices, they hope to bring quality product based Grandma’s recipes to late night eaters.
PIZZERIA DI SANTO
Address: 171 Ludlow Street, Manhattan 10002 [map]
Posted by Adam Kuban, December 21, 2006 at 12:01 PM
Photograph courtesy Dalton Rooney
The above photo appeared on Dalton Rooney's photoblog Seriously Excited! Says Mr. Rooney, "I'm working on a series of similarly themed Brooklyn photos:
http://www.seriouslyexcited.net/category/hello-my-name-is/"
Posted by Adam Kuban, December 20, 2006 at 12:11 PM
It's been awhile since Slice has waded into the plaintive muck of Craigslist's Missed Connections section. So come with me, my loves, into the swamp of love that spawns "That's Amore." --The Management
Tues night - you gave the pizza guy change for me - m4w: You: cute girl in cute girly jeans. You spared your spare change to save me a pocketful of pennies. Me: tall fella in black jacket. Thanked you but didn't say more. Where: Rigoletto's on Columbus and 70th
Rt 95 South Rest Stop Exit 21 - m4w - 40: Friday, 12/15 around 9:30am...you were getting ready to open the Boston Pizza shop and I could not keep my eyes off of you. We shared a quick glance and smile as you carried the cash drawers. You disappeared before I could catch my breath and say hello. Get in touch if interested in getting to know each other!
You gave me a slice of pizza and.... - w4m - 28 (Midtown): Wish I would have given you my phone number. Met you in the hotel bar you gave me a slice of pizza. If you want to meet again please reply.
CLOWN PARADE????? - m4w - 32:
I was that guy sticking a sword down my throat and I happened to look over and there you were: you were throwing fireballs into the pizza place across from the stop. You had a big red nose (a la "RUDOLPH" -- hahaha LOL) and we caught eyes. If you are reading this, maybe should meet up for a nice hot drink and maybe a laugh or two (HAHAHAHAHA)
Pink Polka-Dot Belt at "Inland" - m4w - 21 (West Village): You went to see "Inland Empire" alone last night, and you asked me what theater it was in. You were wearing high-heels and a trenchcoat, which I found classy. I liked your accent, and it got my heart going. After the movie, my roommate told me to go up and ask you out to dinner but I was too nervous. You walked to the opposite platform (we were on the dowtown D side) holding what looked like pizza. Just seeing you made me all dreamy. But, anyway. I hope I can the second chance on this. Can I take you to dinner?
A month or two ago, leaving W 4 and getting off at Columbus Circle - m4m - 20: I can't believe I'm actually doing this...but my best friend just introduced me to this whole "missed connections" thing. I know it's a long shot, but I'll see what happens anyway. I met you on the train (not sure which one), and it was late at night. You started a conversation with me and you were saying that your friend had just been arrested because he broke a mirror off a cab. You said you were from Maine, and we got on a New England discussion. You work for BMW selling cars I think? Anyway, I thought you were cute, and I just wanted to see if you were out there somewhere. You: sandy brown hair, cute smile, glasses, rosy cheeks. Me: brown hair, brown eyes, thin, eating a slice of pizza.
Posted by Adam Kuban, December 19, 2006 at 5:11 PM
Mr. Cutlets over at Grub Street pans the new Grimaldi's at Aviator Field, the food-court pizzeria that Patsy Grimaldi came out of retirement to open:
Patsy’s immense gas-burning oven, rumored to be so super-hot as to approach the temperatures of his Dumbo restaurant’s coal ovens, is actually tepid in comparison. The pies cook quickly enough, but the bottom crust barely chars. And the young flunkies executing the master’s design are still getting the hang of how to actually make pizza; the amount of sauce, the placement of the cheese, and other subtleties all seemed haphazard. (They will gladly reheat slices, though, which we recommend.)
But, Mr. Cutlets says, "Rome wasn't built in a day," so he's giving Mr. Grimaldi the benefit of the doubt and reports that he will visit again to see if Patsy can "work his magic."
Patsy Grimaldi's Fall from Grace [Grub Street]
Photograph courtesy of Aviator Sports Complex
Officemate: "I believe this day calls for a Totonno's pizza for lunch."
Me: "I believe it calls for two."
Posted by Adam Kuban, December 14, 2006 at 10:56 AM
We haven't had it, and can't vouch for it, but, as a wise man* once said, "If something's free, take it." If you're in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, or Cornelius, North Carolina, Vocelli Pizza, is offering free pepperoni pies to the first 100 customers today at 4 p.m. as part of those stores' grand openings. [link; via Ben]
VOCELLI PIZZA, Cornelius
Address: 20601 Torrence Chapel Road, Cornelius NC 28031 [map]
VOCELLI PIZZA, Myrtle Beach
Address: 4505 Socastee Blvd., Myrtle Beach SC 29588 [map]
Posted by Adam Kuban, December 8, 2006 at 4:15 PM
Today we've got a super-duper Di Fara duo for all you fans of Dom and his art. (Slice counts itself among your number.)
Exhibit A is the photo at left here. Reader Jason T., who's also the winner of our sister site's most recent contest, sent this to us after he had won the contest (no quid pro quo, yo): "One of my good friends, Jake, lives in Santa Cruz, California, and loves Dom's pizza so much that he had an artist paint an image of Dom on his surfboard."
Exhibit B is a wonderful anecdote from FOS Norman H. ...
So, I'd heard rumors that Dom had expensive taste when it came to wine. It didn't seem to ring true, in light of how he seems to run his life, and the, um, less-than-extravagant way he runs his business.
So I decided to buy him a bottle. I scoped out the neighborhood, trying to figure out which liquor store he would use, and there was one a few doors down. Very young kid behind the counter, but what the hell. I asked if he new Dom, and he said sure. So I told him I wanted to buy a bottle of wine, as it was Dom's birthday, and did he have any idea what Dom usually bought.
The clerk immediately sucked in his breath, paused, then said, "Ooh—depends on your budget."
So I knew at once that the rumor was true. I asked to see what Dom usually picked—one was $84, the other $110. I was smiling, and the guy then said, "Well, he does sometimes go a bit cheaper," and pointed out a $35 French (I know!) red, which I bought.
REFERENCES
Book Report: Everybody Loves Pizza, in which Slice first learned of Dom's nightly bottle of Amarone Valpolicella [Slice Archives]
All Di Fara entries [Slice Archives]
Posted by Adam Kuban, December 7, 2006 at 3:28 PM
Be careful what you joke about:
Washington D.C.-based Manny & Olga's pizza was only joking when it printed coupons that said buy 1,000 pizzas and get 1,000 free.
But students at Georgetown University are taking the offer seriously.
A campaign is underway on the campus, and, as of yesterday afternoon, 953 students had joined the so-called pizza coalition.
College Kids Accept Pizza Challenge [meatnews.com]
Posted by Adam Kuban, December 5, 2006 at 12:17 PM
Could you eat an entire 20-inch pizza by yourself? With two toppings? What if it guaranteed you free pizza for a year? Blogger Bear Silber reaches for the eye of the tiger:
The Pizza and Pipes Belly Buster challenge was a success. A few men set out to make history, two became boys while one became a legend. What exactly is the Belly Buster challenge you ask. Simple, it’s a 20” pizza that must be consumed in one hour or less by one individual. To date many have tried but none have been victorious. The Hall of Shame is filled with Polaroids of individuals who’ve attempted to conquer the Belly Buster while the Hall of Fame lay bare.
Did Mr. Silber succeed? You'll have to read his post to find out.
Belly Buster Challenge [Bear Silber]
Photograph from Bear Silber's Flickr photostream
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 28, 2006 at 6:02 PM
A Slice tipster just gave us some news: Patsy Grimaldi (right) is coming out of retirement to run a pizza joint at the new Aviator Sports & Recreation complex at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn.
What's that you ask? Grimaldi was retired? Wha?
Yeah. A few years ago, he sold the eponymous pizzeria that sits under the Brooklyn Bridge and has been in semiretirement since, retaining a partnership—with Sean McHugh—in the Hoboken branch, the day-to-day operations of which he leaves to Mr. McHugh.
Our tipster tells us that Mr. Grimaldi and his wife, Carol, will run the pizzeria, which is located in the "Brooklyn Hall of Fame Food Court," and that this will be something completely different for Mr. Grimaldi. First, he's doing slices, which he's never done before. Second, the oven is not coal-fired; it's a Wood Stone gas-fired, brick-lined oven.
Word is that Mr. Grimaldi has the go-ahead from the current Grimaldi's to call it Grimaldi's at Aviator, thus avoiding any naming controversy, a subject that Patsy is familiar with from his run-in with the group that owns the Patsy's Pizzeria mini chain in Manhattan.
Our tipster was at Aviator Sports Complex for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the food court and says that Mr. Grimaldi was scheduled to make his first pies in the newly delivered oven shortly after the pomp and circumstance subsided.
We'll bring you more as this story develops...
Coal Miner: Patsy Grimaldi hangs on to nearly lost art of cooking with coal [Pizza Today]
A Menu from Grimaldi's Hoboken [Slice Archives]
All Grimaldi's entries [Slice Archives]
Photograph from PMQ.com
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 21, 2006 at 9:00 AM
Dear Slice,
I couldn’t help but notice that you have no listings for good pizza in Washington, D.C.! Well, if you ever find yourself down this way, I strongly suggest you come to my neighborhood of Mount Pleasant and check out Radius Pizza. While I would not call it 100 percent New York–style pizza, it is awesome and has been rated the best pizza in D.C. by a congresswoman from Manhattan, albeit the Upper East Side. ;-)
In my opinion, Radius is the best pizza that Washington, D.C., has to offer.
Sincerely,
Gil G., Washington, D.C.
Dear Gil,
Thanks for the tip. What about 2 Amys? Slice has heard some great things about that place, too.
Hasta la pizza,
Adam
###
RADIUS PIZZA
Address: 3155 Mount Pleasant Street, Washington, DC 20010 [map]
Phone: 202-234-0808
Pizza Intel: DCFoodies.com, DCist.com, Washington Post
2 AMYS
Address: 3715 Macomb St. NW, Washington DC 20016 [map]
Phone: 202-885-5700
Pizza Intel: DCFoodies.com, DCist.com, Washington Post
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 20, 2006 at 8:46 PM
Dear Slice,
You forgot to include northern Virginia in your lists. And the best of the best is Pomodoro (Tony, the owner, is from Naples, by way of Brooklyn). —Larrie F.; Fairfax Station, Virginia
Thanks, Larrie. We're always looking for good recommendations for pizza made by New York City expatriates. —The Management
POMODORO PIZZA AND PASTA
Address: 12152 Fairfax Towne Center, Fairfax VA 22033 [map]
Phone: 703-273-7405
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 9, 2006 at 10:45 AM
Reader comment and response is still pouring in thanks to yesterday's New York Times story. So many great comments and recommendations. And questions. Reaching into the proverbial mailbag, we have ...
Dear Slice,
Do you know of any good late night or 24 hour pizza places in NYC?
—Bilal
Dear Bilal,
Slice is a homebody, more prone to lying prone on the couch at night, remote in hand, watching Battlestar Galactica. But our favorite late-night (if not 24-hour) place is Vinny Vincenz. Great squares here. Sunday through Thursday till 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday till 4:30 a.m.
Late enough for you?
And, as always, readers, if you know of any good 24-hour or late-night pizzerias, chime in with your comments!
Hasta la pizza,
Adam
VINNY VINCENZ
Address: 231 First Ave., New York NY 10003 [East Village, b/n 13th/14th sts.; map]
Getting There: L train to First Ave. Vincenz is practically on the corner
Phone: 212-674-0707
URL: vinnyvincenz.com
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 8, 2006 at 2:49 PM
Dear Slice,
Got to your site from the NY Times article on Domino's Brooklyn Pizza. Since I live in NC now, this is what passes for pizza down here. I am originally from Brooklyn and haven't had a good slice of pizza since the last time I was in NY.
I notice that the state of NC doesn't have a link on your site. Does this mean that there is no place in the whole state to get a good slice of pizza? I live near Matthews, which is Southwest of Charlotte.
Any suggestions would be appreciated, although we aren't ready to move back to NY....yet. —Susan V.
Dear Susan,
The Pizza by Location list in the left-hand sidebar indicates that we've got some sort of blog post (review or commentary) from a specific city, state, or country. If there's no link, there's no content for that area.
But don't despair! Just because we don't have a North Carolina link there doesn't mean there's not good pizza to be had in the Tarheel State. Fellow pizzablogger Tom Sliker maintains the New York Pizza Blog, which seeks the best New York–style pizza joints outside of New York City. In North Carolina, he lists:
Roma’s Pizzeria: Atlantic Beach
Anthony’s Pizza: Bryson City
Carlo's Pizza: Charlotte
I hope you're close to one of those.
Hasta la pizza,
Adam
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 8, 2006 at 2:42 PM
Dear Slice: I'm one who isn't supposed to eat wheat products and am looking around for places that offer alternative dough in their pizzas. The only ones I've been able to find are Cafe Viva on Second Avenue, which offers a spelt pizza crust, and Risotto on Bleecker Street, which offers a rice pizza crust.
Do you have any other recommendations of places that offer other crusts or pasta restaurants that offer pasta that isn't the standard wheat flour? Thank you, S.A.S.
Dear S.A.S.: There's an Upper East Side joint whose name we really dig. Try Slice, at 1413 Second Ave. I think they may have some options for you. —Ed.
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 8, 2006 at 12:28 PM
More Times collateral. This time, a question from a new reader in Miami:
Hi there Adam: Learned about you from the nytimes.com article on Totonno’s vs. Domino's. I moved here to Miami two years ago, and as a third-generation Manhattanite, I must tell you that I really miss good pizza. I loved Totonno’s, but since I lived in Greenwich Village for the past 15 years, I really loved a slice from Joe’s off of Sixth Avenue near Cornelia Street as well as the pizzeria on University Place near 13th Street (my old neighborhood). Those were my weekly haunts.
The reason I’m writing is to see if you know of any pizza places here in Miami that are at least good if not very good. With all the transplants from New York and the surrounding areas, there must be something! Only places I have found are a small chain called Archie’s, which is OK, and also a place called Spri that is just so-so. But it let me tell you, it’s no New York. Honestly, if I could find a great slice here, Miami would be Utopia!
Let me know if you have any insight. Great job with your site – I think it’s hilarious and wonderful! —Emily G.
So how 'bout it readers? Any suggestions for good New York style pizza in Miami?
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 8, 2006 at 12:26 PM
And another one from Connecticut:
Pizza to me is defined largely by having the roof of my mouth burned by cheese on a slice obtained at a walk-up window somewhere along the walk from the FCC field office on Washington and Christopher Streets in Manhattan, heading down to the old Radio Row between Canal and Cortlandt streets before the WTC was built. I did this walk regularly with friends in high school in the '60s, so the comment about pizza invoking a nostalgic experience may be true!
But for today's "ah-beetz," take me to Modern in Noo Haven! The plain pie with double mozz, and the white clam, is unbelievable. Better than Sally's, IMHO, and without the attitude. Way better than Pepe's (although I do need to try their white clam.) Not only the best pie, but unlike Sally's or Pepe's, you get a friendly staff and comfortable setting, nice clientele, usually a reasonable wait or no wait, great salads with anchovies, if desired, and excellent beers by the pitcher. (They're outside New Haven's Little Italy; they have to be better!) We've brought Modern takeout as fas as Albany and Martha's Vineyard for later enjoyment. It heats up great in the oven!
I certainly agree about Roseland in Derby, BTW. Definitely worth finding! —Dennis J.
MODERN APIZZA
Address: 874 State Street, New Haven CT 06511;
map]
Website: modernapizza.com
Phone: 203-776-5306
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 8, 2006 at 10:36 AM
Here are some tips that New York Times readers are sending in:
Next time you're planning a trip to Connecticut, don't miss a great pie (no slices) at Roseland in Derby. Great history and possibly the most expensive pizza on earth. Bring lots of money for the lobster pizza, BUT don't complain until you've eaten one! A must visit. —Jeff D.
[Roseland Apizza: 350 Hawthorne Ave., Derby CT 06418; map]
Came across your site in the Times today. I know Mount Vernon is not New York City, but I saw reviews of Jersey pizzerias. Has anyone reviewed Johnny's in Mt. Vernon? I moved to Georgia two and a half years ago but had lived in Westchester all my life. I've been going to Johnny's for literally 50 years. I come back to New York frequently and eat there at least twice on any visit. I think it's awesome pie. —Harvey M. [Johnny's Pizzeria: 30 W Lincoln Ave., Mount Vernon NY 10550; map]
Harvey: Yeah. We've got mostly New York City pizza on Slice, primarily because that's where our editors live and because we hardly get away from the city. But we love to hear about pizza everywhere, in the U.S. and overseas. So recommendations for pizza anywhere are welcome.
Additionally, we first learned about Johnny's on Jeff Varasano's Famous Pizza Page. Here is a pizzeria, right under our noses and not so far away, that had completely escaped our greasy eye. It is on our list. —Ed.
Hi Adam! Went to your site when I saw the link in the New York Times article about Domino's. I couldn't believe you didn't have anything for Pizza in Connecticut!!!!! As a transplanted Noo Yawka, the one thing I found was that Connecticut has some AMAZING pizza spots!! Check it out!!! —Donna Y.
Donna: We actually do have some entries for Connecticut. We've been to Frank Pepe's (excellent clam pies, friendly service) and Sally's Apizza (great plain pies; lousy, rude service). Any other recommendations there? —Ed.
I just found your website through the New York Times article today. I wanted to recommend a fantastic pizza parlor in Brevard County, Florida, where I live. The pizza is the best in Florida; the name is Bizzarro’s, in Indialantic, Florida, owned and operated by Frank Bizzarro, whose family is originally from Naples, Italy, and who moved to Brooklyn. Frank and many of his family members now live in Brevard County (we’re south of the Space Center and Cocoa Beach). Anyway, I highly recommend the pizza. Thanks. —Leslie C. [Bizzaro Pizza: 635 Wickham Road, Indialantic FL 32904 map]
Thanks, folks! Keep the recommendations coming: adam@sliceny.com
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 7, 2006 at 5:02 PM
Since today has been a fairly salacious day on Slice, we'll end the afternoon with a roundup of "That's Amore," a feature we haven't trotted out in a while. Buon appetito!
Looking for Jimmy from Tudor City/Manhasset originally - w4m - 35 (Upper East Side)
I know this is a longshot...but....I met you last night (11/5) at a pizza place on 3rd Avenue near 35th Street. I asked if you had run the marathon, you said no, you were just tired :) I was there w/my sis and my friend, we were going out after our pizza....tell me what I was doing during the marathon, and I'll know it's you. You also said you were originally from Manhasset I believe (or the Port Washington area). Just thought you were so cute and so nice...wish I gave you my number.
Beautiful Girl eating pizza in Famiglia - 8th ave - m4w (Midtown West)
You were standing eating a slice of pizza in Famiglia between 43rd and 44st approx 7pm. Brown hair, beautiful brown eyes, you took out your cell phone, what more can I say, the title says it all! :)
brown converse. blue jeans. light light brown hair. - m4w (Flatiron)
I saw at the counter of a place called marinos, I think. you were paying for what might have been pizza. you are lovely
Cheese Pizza around 6:30pm on Halloween Night - m4m - 25 (Midtown West)
Hello saw you at Pizza place on 57th between 10th & 11th Ave around 6:30pm pm Octiber 31. You: WM wearing shorts & a jacket. Me: BM 25 wearing gray hat and with co-worker [just a co worker]. Thought you were checking me out. I was checking you out. Both got 2 cheese slices. Maybe we can shre a pie next time
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 30, 2006 at 3:05 PM
The previous post about Ed Levine's top pizza picks drew some emailed and IMed responses that the choices were mostly all coastal and that there were no Chicago joints on it whatsoever. Well, here's a list that ran earlier this month in USA Today. In it, Jeff Ruby, coauthor of Everybody Loves Pizza (along with Penny Pollack), gives the paper his and Ms. Pollack's top spots:
Metro Pizza [four locations, Las Vegas NV; metropizza.com]
"The pizza menu at this gourmet oasis in the desert reads like a map of regional flavors. With grilled shrimp on the New Orleans, barbecued chicken atop the Memphis and pineapple on the Honolulu, there's something for everybody...."
The Cheese Board Pizza Collective [1512 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley CA 94709; map]
" 'The Cheese Board is a collective, owned by its members, that brings sustainable agriculture to the pizza table,' Ruby says. Each day the menu, featuring a single sourdough vegetarian pizza, is decided collectively by the group...."
Continue reading »
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 13, 2006 at 4:36 PM
IMG_6203.jpg, blogged to Slice from the Flickr photostream of gothamistllc
Gothamist editor-at-large and friend of Slice Tien Mao served as judge last Saturday at the Best of Long Island Pizza contest.
Five Long Island–based pizzerias competed in each of five categories: regular, marinara, Sicilian, grandma, and specialty. In Mr. Mao's words:
Our favorites from the day were Paradiso for regular pizza, Prince Umberto's in Sicilian, Paradiso's in marinara, Antino's in grandma, and Paradiso's in the specialty pizza. The winners for best pizza were Prince Umberto's for best regular and Sicilian, Paradiso for best marinara, Antino's for best grandma, and Spasso's for best grandma. Pizzas weren't judged on any particular criteria like crust, sauce, or cheese, but all based on the preferences of the judges. In addition to the pizza contest, there was also a pizza eating contest. Unfortunately due to our judging responsibilities, we could not participate. The winner, Mike Hoffman, ate almost a whole pie in about six minutes.
That's Mr. Hoffman above, looking for all the world like he's struggling to hold down what he's taken in.
I had the dubious honor of judging this event in 2004. I say dubious because I foolishly gorged on slices early in the judging process instead of taking two or three strategic bites of each.
Mr. Mao's Gothamist post has more photos and detail. Do click through.
The Best Pizza ... in Long Island [Gothamist]
Judging Long Island Pizza [Slice Archives]
Photographs courtesy of Gothamist
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 4, 2006 at 9:56 AM
Jeff Varasano (left), the man who gained quick internet fame when he announced his successful reverse-engineering of Patsy's Pizza (the East Harlem location, naturally), was interviewed by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation yesterday.
Jeff Varasano on the CBC [.wmv]
Freestyle: October 3, 2006 [cbc.ca]
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 29, 2006 at 9:30 AM
In my roundup of Di Fara posts the other day, I completely forgot to mention this one: Back to Di Fara, by writer Peter Cherches.
This is indeed a huge oversight, as it's one of the best musings I've read lately on Dom DeMarco and his art. It also complements Jason Perlow's post that rhapsodizes on the square slices at Di Fara. On his blog, Word of Mouth, Mr. Cherches details a homecoming trip to Midwood, Brooklyn, to try a few slices after a near 30-year Di Fara–less gap.
His take? The regular slices are OK, but not as great as the cult of Di Fara would have you believe. But the squares? Oh, those wonderful squares:
In a very hot oven, with the crust mostly pre-baked, it doesn't take too long to cook a square pie, once Dom gets around to it, that is. Dom's daughter served me my slice and I took it back to the table. It was oily and messy, so I used a fork and knife on it. I took a bite.
It was transcendent. It was unique. It was delicious.
Now for a disclaimer. While I like pizza, I'm not a pizza fanatic. I've enjoyed pizzas in Italy, but I don't tend to order them too often when I'm there. I also prefer Turkish pides and Alsatian tartes flambées to pizza. Still, as far as pizza goes, I can't think of any I've had that was better than the square slice at Di Fara. The major difference between the two kinds of pie is apparently the sauce. For the square Dom uses a sauce that has been simmered with prosciutto or pancetta. I think it is the heartiness of this sauce, along with the way the cheeses marry on top of it that perhaps makes the noticeable difference. In addition, Dom added fresh basil to the square slices, which gave another dimension to the flavor.
So now I'm a Di Fara's true believer, but a sectarian of the square. Nonetheless, It might be some time before I go back. Like I said, I'm not a pizza fanatic—just a humble pilgrim.
Back to Di Fara [Word of Mouth]
All Slice entries on Di Fara [Slice Archives]
Photograph by Jason Perlow
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 22, 2006 at 4:55 PM
photograph by Jason Perlow
Two Di Fara items of note for you today ...
First is from Off the Broiler, which is where the above photo comes from:
On all my visits to Difara in the past, we’ve always gone for the regular pizza pies, and haven’t eaten anything else, such as his Italian-American specialities and the elusive Square Pie — which is sold sometimes as slices but not nearly as frequent as the regular pies — that takes nearly an hour itself to prepare, because it has to be proofed, the pizza shell has to be baked separately (which takes at least twice as long as the regular pie) and then it has to be dressed with sauce and cheese and baked again. I have heard from many who are devout Difara adherents that Dom’s Square Pie is perhaps the best square in the entire city, and for those who worship crust char, it beats the regular Difara slices hands down.
The second item comes to our attention via Andrew Krucoff, who interviews historian, journalist, author, and teacher Francis Morrone. As Mr. Krucoff says, "He's got quite a thing for Di Fara":
What was your best dining experience in NYC?
The first bite of DiFara’s pizza. In an instant, I understood the Baroque....
The End of The World is finally happening. What are you going to do with your last 24 hours in NYC?
In addition to telling all my loved ones how much I love them, and presuming that Dominic DeMarco has remained blissfully ignorant of said End, I suspect I’d eat a DiFara’s pizza--also presuming the line was less than 24 hours long.
NYC Dining: DiFara Redux — Its Hip to be Square [Off the Broiler]
92YQ: Francis Morrone [92Y Blog]
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 12, 2006 at 2:11 AM
This quick take on Williamsburg pizzeria Anna Maria (the one just north of the Bedford Avenue L Train station) has a lot of good quotes and nice imagery in it. Among them, a nice summation of the unspoken ways in which a veteran pizzaman keeps his customers shuffling through quickly:
George [Acosta], 49, has been in the pizza trade since he came to New York 30 years ago. He ran Sorrento’s in the East Village for 11 years, naming it after a sepia photograph his grandfather gave him of the craggy Italian seaside terraces. And Anna Maria? “From a lot of Anna Marias in the neighborhood,” he says.
“I always look for an expression,” he says, describing his line-moving style. “It’s an instruction I give. ‘Next please!’ It applies to everyone, to the old man, the homosexual, the metrosexual.”
Do click through for some more priceless quotes.
An ‘Expression’ of Food, Brooklyn Style [New York Times]
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 11, 2006 at 4:08 PM
Yo yo yo, New Yorkers. You might know Sullivan Street Bakery. You might know its delicious pizzas. You might not know how to make them.
Oh, but things could be different. Things could be better. You could learn how to make them.
How, you ask? Well, Sullivan Street is holding pizza-making classes, taught by bakery owner Jim Lahey. On the syllabus: Roman-style rectangular pizzas, as well as pizza bianca alla Romana, a six-foot flatbread seasoned with olive oil, coarse sea salt, and rosemary. The class is largely hands-on, with each student making dough and a pizza.
SULLIVAN STREET BAKERY PIZZA CLASS
Where: Sullivan Street Bakery, Hell's Kitchen, 533 West 47th Street (b/n Tenth and Eleventh avenues) [map]
When: Sunday, October 8, 5 to 8 p.m. or Sunday, October 22, 5 to 8 p.m.
Cost: $150 per student
Registration: Dial 646-442-2398 or email colleen [at] sullivanstreetbakery [dot] com
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 7, 2006 at 10:00 AM
Pizza trade magazine PMQ and Christopher Muller, a Florida professor, hope to create the country's first university-based pizza research program at the University of Central Florida's Rosen School of Hospitality Management in Orlando.
Muller is proposing a national center to be part of the Rosen college, where five full- and part-time staffers would research trends, collect data and train restaurant owners and managers.
Now, you may be thinking just as I was: Professor, we've gone our entire lives without a pizza institute in O-town. Do we really need one now?
Muller answers with an enthusiastic, "yes," reminding those who think his idea is half-baked that there are 69,000 pizza joints nationally. Each and every American consumes 46 pieces, or 23 pounds of the stuff, each year.
Perhaps this is the advanced degree I've been waiting for?
LINKS
You can read briefly about the institute in the Orlando Sentinel [Pizza institute idea seems fresh, first item] or listen to Dr. Muller discuss the idea on PMQ's Pizza Radio site [Dr. Christopher Muller : Dir. of the National Pizza Institute].
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 30, 2006 at 12:23 AM
IMG_1668.JPG, blogged to Slice from the Flickr photostream of capndesign
After years of automat deprivation, New Yorkers can once again slot their money into a machine, open a little door, and grab a quick, hot treat. I wish I could say "hot and delicious treat," but the offerings at the newly opened automat Bamn just didn't stack up.
"Hamburger Matty" (from Slice's sister site, A Hamburger Today) and I stopped by earlier this evening for a quick dinner. We couldn't resist; the place serves a couple different kinds of burgers in addition to "pizza dumplings" (right) and mozzarella sticks.
I was jazzed to try the place. One, because I never had a chance to try the legendary Horn & Hardart Automats of a bygone New York, and, two, because I loved the FEBO automats I encountered in Amsterdam earlier this year.
With great expectations comes great disappointment. I had hopes that the pizza dumplings ($2 for four pieces) would be a slightly more elevated take on the Totino's Pizza Rolls I used to enjoy as an afterschool snack.
Eh. They weren't. For $2, I could have bought an entire box of Totino's and stayed home.
Here's more pix from the trip:
Innards:
They come with a nondescript marinara sauce for dipping:
Here's the upskirt. Not much of a looker for pizza voyeurs, though:
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 25, 2006 at 1:22 PM
Photograph by Jason Perlow
Friend of Slice Jason Perlow, of eGullet and Off the Broiler fame, just sent us this crazy picture of a chocolate pizza. It's from Max Brenner: Chocolate by the Bald Man, the recently opened chocstravagantasic store just off Manhattan's Union Square. You can read more about the store on Mr. Perlow's blog.
NYC Dining: Max Brenner [Off the Broiler]
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 23, 2006 at 10:37 AM
If you're only a "foodie" when it comes to pizza, then you might not know that Chicago, as a city, decided to ban
foie gras a short bit ago. The ban, enacted by the Windy City's city council, went into effect yesterday. As befits residents of the "City of Big Shoulders," some chefs yesterday were still serving the dish—which is the fattened liver of a duck or goose that has been overfed. (The city banned it over concerns about animal cruelty.)
Other chefs actually
added it to their menus, including a pizzeria or two, per the
New York Times:
But Jerry Stout, a lunchtime diner at Connie’s Pizza, said city leaders should have more pressing matters to worry about than fattened duck liver. Hardly a foie gras connoisseur — he could not remember whether he had ever tasted it before — Mr. Stout, 54, tried it on his pizza and said he would recommend it because of its mild flavor. “I guess we were rebels today,” he said.
Defying Law, a Foie Gras Feast in Chicago [New York Times]
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 22, 2006 at 11:10 AM
NYC pizzeria owners, here's your chance to help out a pizza lover cut off from the New York style—and make some extra scratch:
I am looking for someone, a restaurant owner preferrably that will sell me fresh pizza dough. I would need it shipped to Indianapolis. My Dad, from the Bronx, now living in Florida, is coming to visit and he makes homemade pizza but hasn't had any dough from NYC since we left New Jersey 16 years ago. I would like to surprise him with this as a gift. If anyone could provide this for me I will pay a reasonable price for the dough and shipping. Or, if anyone knows where I could purchase it that would be much appreciated.
This Indianan might want to try one of the New York–based mail-order pizza outfits we posted about last year: Mail-Order Pizza.
Wanted: italian pizza dough [craigslist]
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 21, 2006 at 7:05 AM
From the New York Times:
Then there’s the bargain block: Ninth Avenue between 41st and 42nd Street. On the corner of 41st is the ivory-billed woodpecker of the pizza industry: a dollar-a-slice shop. Take good video, or your hometown pizza-guzzlers won’t believe you.
In and Around Times Square [New York Times]
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 21, 2006 at 6:41 AM
Pizza Hut is starting an online fundraiser for Toua Xiong, the delivery driver who was shot to death on Aug. 6th. Eighty stores across the Minnesota are donating part of their profits to Xiong's family for his memorial fund. A full page in Friday's Minneapolis Star Tribune advertises the event. For a week starting on Monday, Pizza Hut will donate 20 percent of its online sales to Xiong's family.
Click here for more information: pizzahutmn.com
Pizza Hut starts fundraiser for slain pizza driver [KSTP-TV 5]
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 18, 2006 at 10:41 AM
A reader emails us:
My office is on 51st and Lex, and lately my coworkers and I have been missing the Pizza Truck. Has he changed locations or something? If you have any updates, please respond when you can (I think my boss has a craving for a Sicilian). Thank you so much! :-)
I just tried calling both the numbers listed on the truck (pictured above). The first one is disconnected. The second, well, I'm not sure if I can make it out from the photo, but it seems to be a dead end, too.
Anyone know what the score is? Would be a shame of the truck's f---ed. He made some good squares.
UPDATE: Reader Andy reports that "the truck's on 47th Street between Madison and Park now. Just had some and it was yummy." Thanks, Andy! If your boss is taking a late lunch, original poster, he/she now has the hook-up again. Keep on truckin'.
The Midtown Pizza Truck [Slice Archives]
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 16, 2006 at 7:34 PM
Via Camphone003.jpg, blogged to Slice from the Flickr photostream of Slice
Not Ray's Pizza. Corner of South Portland and Fulton in Fort Greene.
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 16, 2006 at 7:31 PM
Via Camphone002.jpg, blogged to Slice from the Flickr photostream of Slice
As soon as you begin the ascent of this staircase, the tantalizing smell of pizza assaults you. Where does it come from? Stay tuned. The mystery will be solved in minutes via camera phone.
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 15, 2006 at 10:46 PM
KINCHLEY'S TAVERN
Location: 586 North Franklin Turnpike, Ramsey NJ 07446 [map]
Phone: 201-934-7777
STAR TAVERN
Location: 400 High Street, Orange NJ 07050 [map]
Phone: 973-675-3336
Since this has been a New Jersey kinda day on Slice, I thought I'd reblog some material here from Off the Broiler, eGullet founder Jason Perlow's site. Jason alerted me to these two posts of his ages ago, and I figured it was high time I mentioned them. First off is Kinchley's Tavern in Ramsey, New Jersey:
Photograph from Off the Broiler, courtesy of Jason Perlow
Since founding eGullet, I have since learned about and dined at several of the best pizza parlors in New York City — Patsy’s and Arturo’s in Manhattan, Grimaldi’s, Totonno, Di Fara and L&B Spumoni Gardens in Brooklyn, Blue Moon in the Bronx, the list goes on. As a New Jersey resident, I do have to say that there are probably a scant few places that would come even close to those giants. But I submit to you that such a place does exist, and its in way the hell up Route 17 in Ramsey, and its called Kinchley’s Tavern. Stylistically the pizza they serve is very different from true New York style pizza, but its damn good pizza nevertheless.
Kinchley’s has been serving pizza for at least 40 years, probably more. Originally, it started out as a bar, but then at some point, they started making bar pies.
Now, a bar pie is essentially a small pizza (approximately 12 inches in diameter) with a very thin, almost cracker like crust. In terms of sauce, its somewhat on the sweet side, unless you get the “Fra Diavolo” sauce, which is considerably spicier and is usually what we opt for. My suggestion is if you go that way, opt for the pitchers of Boylan’s Birch Beer to go with it.
Photograph from Off the Broiler, courtesy of Jason Perlow
The second pizzeria Jason called to my attention was the Star Tavern in Orange, New Jersey:
Photograph from Off the Broiler, courtesy of Jason Perlow
Jason says:
As I alluded to in a previous post about Kinchley’s Tavern in Ramsey I love a good bar pizza. Star Tavern in Orange is probably one of the better examples of this particular pizza style — nice crispy crust with good char, nice tangy sauce, good cheese distribution. The restaurant has that great old school tavern atmosphere that you find in great college towns.
... I URGE you to resist the temptation to order a "special" pie or any other pie with toppings on it before trying the plain cheese pie [above] first. The plain cheese pie is an exercise in pizza perfection simplicity. This is a very good example of when less is more.
Slice will have to take Mr. Perlow at his word, since we haven't been to either of these establishments. But we trust his judgment and pass along his recommendations to you. He was also kind enough to allow us to use his photos here; please do him the courtesy and click through to his site. You won't be sorry—Kinchley's has more charm than you can shake a stick at, and his photos of the Star Tavern's wares are simply mouthwatering.
NJ Dining: Kinchley's Tavern [Off the Broiler]
NJ Dining: Star Tavern [Off the Broiler]
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 15, 2006 at 3:00 PM
MACK'S PIZZA
Location: 3218 Boardwalk (b/n E. Pine and E. Wildwood avenues; map)
Phone: 609-522-6166
Location: 4200 Boardwalk (b/n E. Roberts and E. Baker avenues; map)
Phone: 609-729-0244
The Skinny: Two locations on boardwalk. Part of the Mack's vs. Sam's Wildwood pizza rivalry. Described as "greasy" by many people we talked to, due in part to the use of cheddar in the cheese blend.
SAM'S PIZZA
Location: 2600 Boardwalk (b/n E. 26th and E. Juniper avenues; map)
Phone: 609-522-6017
The Skinny: On the Wildwood boardwalk. One half of the Mack's vs. Sam's Wildwood pizza rivalry. Sam's is Slice's preference. A delicious, salty slice with just the right crust-sauce-cheese balance. Original building burned down recently but has since been rebuilt.
SHOOBIES AT THE SHORE: PIZZA IN THE WILDWOODS
That's not just a cute sign. It speaks the truth. Girl Slice experienced seagull ferocity firsthand when she left a sandwich unattended for just a few seconds. Seagulls immediately swooped in and claimed part of it. Onlooking carnies were amused.
You can keep the Hamptons and your overpriced summer share. Give me the Wildwoods and a reasonably priced Doo Wop Modern motel instead.
With more than two miles of boardwalk jammed with roller coasters, amusement piers, carnies, shoobies, and sandwich-snatching seagulls, this jem of a resort area on the Jersey Shore has more character than you can shake a driftwood stick at. And the great wooden way there has at least as many pizzerias lining it as any given street in Manhattan. When it comes to pizza in Wildwood, though, the great debate is Sam's vs. Mack's.
I first learned of the rivalry after watching several Wildwood documentary DVDs with Girl Slice. She was going down the shore on a recent weekend to do a little historical research on the town. In each documentary, the rivalry was addressed. According to the docs, you're either a Mack's or a Sam's devotee. I followed the girl down to Wildwood, and we put that notion to the test, taking an informal poll of locals we met while in town. Sam's came out on top by a wide margin. A group of Wildwood cops were Sam's fans, as were the cashiers at a downtown Wildwood sandwich shop, who went so far as to say, "Most of the older people around here say Mack's, but us younger ones like Sam's. Mack's is too greasy."
The greasiness of the Mack's slice was echoed by almost everyone we talked to and is due in large part to the joint's use of cheddar on its pies. That's a Mack's slice above left, compared to a Sam's slice above right.
Let's make some more photographic comparisons:
From left: Mack's plain slice, Sam's plain slice.
From left: An upskirt shot showing Mack's crust, an upskirt of Sam's.
Pretty pix, eh? But you don't eat with your eyes. After taste-testing was complete, Girl Slice and I sided with the majority of the Wildwoodies we spoke to: We're Sam's fans, hands down. Sam's had the better crust -- light, airy, crisp, and pleasantly salty, compared to Mack's, which was sufficiently crisp but not as light or thin and which lacked the saltiness we found so appealing at Sam's. Add to that the near-perfect cheese-to-sauce ratio at Sam's versus Mack's thick blanket of mozzarella and cheddar (the latter cheese of which we feel has no business on a pie or slice).
Sam's was that rare find for a jaded old pizza eater like me -- a single slice that had me plunking down my money for a second. At the risk of sounding too New York provincial, Sam's held its own against many of our greatest slices and indeed surpassed much of the dreck I've eaten in the five boroughs. Transport the joint to the Big Apple, and I think you'd have a pizzeria that would make many a New Yorker's short list of top slice spots. Good thing, then, that Sam's sits firmly where it does; I need a reliable pie whenever I visit the Wildwoods. Play it again, Sam, indeed.
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 15, 2006 at 10:15 AM
Something's going on in Pizzaland. Over the last month, Slice readers have become especially communicative. We've received more great emails in the last few weeks than in any given period during this site's existence. I don't know what we did to earn the goodwill, but keep it coming! This email came over the transom at Slice HQ this morning. Please stay tuned for some additional words on these emails later in the day. —The Management
Dear Slice,
Thank you for doing the Lord's work by providing one-stop shopping for all my pizza news needs. I am a huge fan of the site and it has enlightened my own pizza eating with its histories and pizzeria documentation. I've made many a journey to the coveted pizza coves of Manhattan and Brookyn, but since my home is New Jersey, I tend to concentrate my research in the Garden State.
I'm not sure if this came across your pizza crimelab computer yet, but last Friday the Star Ledger published an article about the state's best pizza as part of their Munchmobile series. Every summer, the paper selects a small crew of foodies to accompany a reporter and photographer on weekly outings across the state. Each 'muncher' gets to select their food specialty. Here's a link to the article, but it doesn't contain any photographs. If you're really interested, I can send you a hard copy.
Anyway, I spent a glorious day in the Munchmobile (a van with decorations and a giant hot dog atop its roof) and had trouble tasting anything even close to my current obsession: Grimaldi's.
However, there was one pizzeria called Santillo's in Elizabeth, that deserves a seat right next to Grimaldi's up in pizza heaven. If you're ever interested in taking a short trip across the Hudson, I would love to host you for a Santillo's tasting. It's the oldest brick oven in New Jersey and clocks in at 160 square feet.
Keep fighting the good fight, and please let me know if I can ever be of any service. I tend to travel out of the area, and I keep detailed notes about every new pie I try in my Pizza Journal.
Best,
Scott Wiener
Thanks for the tip, Scott. The Munchmobile failed to register a hit on the Slice "crimelab computer." (Heh. I like that). Good thing we don't work for Homeland Security. I'd love to take you up on the offer. I'll be in touch about taking a trip to Santillo's. You're right, it's but a short trip over the Hudson — and I love Jersey, so it'd be nice to visit again. Talk to you soon. —Adam
The Munchmobile: Primo pizza [Newark Star-Ledger]
Slice Archives: New Jersey
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 7, 2006 at 11:22 AM
From Craigslist:
Southern Connecticut based Television Production Company is looking for pizza delivery people to represent their pizza joint for a upcoming segment on a Food Network cooking show. Filming will take place on either Aug 22, 23 or 24 (date have not been finalized) Please put food network casting in subject letter of the email and include an up-to-date photo as well as the name of the pizza place you work at. Please note that you would need to dress in your uniform Thank you.
Food Network need pizza delivery people [Craigslist]
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 4, 2006 at 9:00 AM
It's been awhile since Slice has waded into the plaintive muck of Craigslist's Missed Connections section. So come with me, my loves, into the swamp of love that spawns "That's Amore." --The Management
R Train - Tues. - Lower Manhattan - You with NY Post - m4w: you entered at one of the R's first stops in lower manhattan. Me: shaved head, white t-shirt, brown eyes, sitting near window. You: beautiful dark hair, long skirt, brown sandals, green(?) top, red toenail polish, incredible eyes, and the NY Post with silly Mel Gibson on the cover. we glanced at one another a few times, and then a man sat in between us, and began a conversation with you about your heritage. he was eating pizza. i wish i had spoken up first. second chance?
Hot blonde guy getting a late night slice of pizza - m4m - 33: Late Sunday night, or rather at about 2 a.m. Monday morning. You were entering the pizzeria on the West side of Second Avenue between 75th and 76th. as I was leaving. You were a handsome blonde guy with a cool t-shirt and I the dark on with a black hat and a GNR t-shirt. You moved to let me out, I thanked you. Not even sure if there was a connection, but worth placing this ad as a means to find out! Rock on all. [Welcome to the jungle --Ed.]
saw you in nunzio's - m4w: you were eating pizza at the counter in nunzio's on hylan blvd. i kept looking over and you kept looking back and smiled but i just didnt have the nerve to talk to you.you had flowing black hair and very sexy lips..if this was you please get back to me...thank you !
Patsy's south of Union Square - w4m - 24: Saturday 7/30. You sat at the table next to my friend and I. We made eye contact and you smiled. I thought you were cute and your pizza looked better than my pasta, too. It'd be kinda nice to see you again.
Waitress at Francesco Pizzeria - m4w - 21: I stopped in for a slice today around. You're the cute short haired brunnette. All I wanted to say is that you have the most amazing eyes, and as I was walking out brown eyed girl started playing so I decided to post anonymously just to tell you that you have beautiful eyes. That's all I have to say, and the pizza is really tasty.
You $ 2 friends outside the pizza store - m4w - 29: you were sitting outside the pizza store on 33rd street off of 5th avenue. your friend the tall one also sexy as hell but you are breathtaking. we made eye contact as i walked by and wow your soo sexy ... you guys were standing on the corner on 5th for a while i was waiting on the opposite corner enjoying the view :)
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 3, 2006 at 8:20 AM
Dear Slice: Help!!!! I'm originally from Huntington, New York, but have moved here to Rochester, New York. Do you know why the pizza here is so bad?? Is it the water?? Do you know of any place I can get an edible slice??? I miss the food down there. Do they mail pizza? --Matthew P.
Dear Matthew: We're not all that familiar with Rochester, so we're going to open this one up to readers, as we often do with request for trusted pizza intel outside the NYC area. Readers?
As for mail-order pizza, we did a post on this late last year. There are a few options, although they're pretty pricey: Mail-Order New York Pizza. -- The Management
Posted by Adam Kuban, July 31, 2006 at 2:18 PM
In yesterday's New York Times F.Y.I. column, the question was raised: Where was the first Ray's Pizza, and what's the story behind it?
A. Why don’t you ask something simple, like what happened to Judge Crater? Some New York culinary questions (just who invented the black-and-white cookie is another) are destined to remain shrouded in mystery. The evolution of Ray’s Pizza resists an easy explanation....
The Ray’s question is also bristling with lawyers. Rosolino Mangano, of Famous Original Ray’s Pizza on Columbus Avenue near 83rd Street, went to court in the early 1990’s, registered that name and branched out with many identically named Ray’s, run mostly by relatives, with others under license. Then there was Ralph Cuomo, who in 1959 opened a Ray’s Pizza at 27 Prince Street and then another one on First Avenue and 59th Street; the second location ended up in Mr. Mangano’ s hands. Other would-be Rays said they had a right to their versions. Some joined forces; some sued. You get the idea.
Slice suspected as much, from the research we've done on the topic, that's why you've never seen an in-depth investigative piece on the place on this website. I mean, if the might and muscle of the Gray Lady couldn't uncover the truth, we're afraid the Ray's question will forever remain a greasy mystery.
FURTHER READING
From A Full Belly, March 18, 2004:
Food Wars claims that there are at least 3,000 pizzerias in New York, and at least 30 of them use some form of “Ray’s” in their name including but not limited to Ray’s, Ray’s Pizza, Famous Original Ray’s Pizza, Ray’s Famous Original Pizza, World Famous Ray’s Pizza, Not Ray’s Pizza, and RayBari Pizza. A quick poll of Citysearch finds 2788 results on “pizza” and 45 results on “Ray’s pizza”. The thing is, there is no Ray.
Using his mom’s pizza recipt, Ralph Cuomo opened Ray’s in 1959 in Little Italy, which quickly became known as the place to buy the slice (and later, the place to buy a slice AND some heroin, but curiously enough Food Wars fails to mention this bit of trivia). In the early 60’s, Cuomo opened a second Ray’s (54th and 7th Ave), which was eventually bought by Rosolino Mangano. Mangano changed the name to Famous Original Ray’s, even though it wasn’t the original. Mangano now goes by the name “Ray” even though legal name is still Rosolino, and has opened Famous Original’s all over New York City. Mangano also claims that he is the “Ray” that has made the name "Ray’s" famous.
In 1981, Mangano sold a store to someone else, who continued using the name “Ray’s” and soon more “Ray’s” pizzeria variations began popping up. Ralph Cuomo then attempted to trademark the name "Ray’s." The three "Ray’s" pizza players eventually incorporated together, trademarked the name Ray’s, and then went after everyone else using the name.
But wait, there’s more! Joe Bari bought a “Ray’s Restaurant” in 1973 and turned it into a pizzeria and added his own name, Ray Bari Pizza. Bari believes he, not Mangano of Famous Original Ray’s, made the name famous by using cab drivers to spread to word about the pizzeria. Joe Bari refused to change the name, and was sued by the corporate Ray’s, and eventually changed his restaurant name to RayBari Pizza.
And there you have a small slice of the contentious history behind New York pizza.
You Can Call Them Ray [New York Times]
New York Pizza, Part 1 [A Full Belly]
Posted by Adam Kuban, July 24, 2006 at 6:18 PM
1st Pizza Hut, blogged to Slice from the Flickr photostream of spynotebook
We normally don't rhapsodize about the Hut here on Slice, but this is kinda cool. It's the first Pizza Hut. In Wichita, Kansas.
Yes, Kansas.
What's the matter with Kansas, indeed.
Before I get any angry emails from Kansans, lemme disclose that I was raised there. Therefore I can poke fun at the Sunflower State. —Ed.
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 29, 2006 at 2:00 AM
seatlle sunset, blogged to Slice from the Flickr photostream of david haggard
Cool link for you if you live in Jet City* or if you're traveling there or if you just love pizza: The Seattle Pizza Review. What do these guys have to say for themselves?
Our deep interest in pizza led to the dream of opening our own pizzeria. Our hopes were dashed when Sam learned of a disgusting skin allergy to pizza sauce while working at Pagliacci. However, we soon realized that a pizza review could be a great outlet for our pizza obsession. In a dark moment, this pizza blog was born. Our goal is to provide a comprehensive series of reviews for every pizza place in Seattle. While the name suggests an affinity for Seattle, we will also review pizza that we eat in other cities.
They've only been up to their pizza shenanigans since early this month but are a welcome addition to the world of pizza-blogging. Click on over there and give 'em a holla.
The Seattle Pizza Review [seattlepizza.typepad.com]
* I suppose they call it the Emerald City these days, but you tell me, what's a cooler civic nickname? And who can forget Queensryche's "Jet City Woman"?
Posted by Adam Kuban, June 29, 2006 at 1:37 AM
Stephen Colbert, host of Comedy Central's "Colbert Report," HATES bears. Until recently, it was a quirk Slice never quite understood. But witness:
FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. -- A frequent diner at a Flagler County pizza place has worn out its welcome. The bear has made a habit of visiting the dumpster behind the Domino's Pizza on Highway 100 and I-95.
Bears, Slice is giving you a tip of the hat for causing trouble at Domino's, but we're going to give you a wag of the finger for liking Domino's enough to visit repeatedly. You're on notice.
Bear Cub Making Habit Of Visiting Pizza Shop's Dumpster [WFTV.com ]
