Slice

Edwardo's Natural Pizza: No Longer Great, But Still Very Good

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 16:00:00 -0500

Daniel Zemans, our man in Chicago, checks in with another piece of intel on the Windy City pizza scene. Daniel also blogs about Chicagoland pizza with his friends on the Chicago Pizza Club blog. —The Mgmt.

Edwardo’s Natural Pizza Restaurant

1321 East 57th Street, Chicago IL 60637 (map); 773-241-7960; 8 other locations
Getting There: Metra to 57th Street or 6 Jackson Park Express bus to 57th Street and Stony Island, walk 1/2 mile west
Pizza Style: Stuffed and thin-crust available; known for stuffed
Oven Type: Gas
The Skinny: One of the oldest stuffed pizzerias; still good but, other than the crust, has declined in recent years
Price: $20.72 for a medium pizza with one topping

In my review of Bacino’s, I mentioned that the owner of that establishment got his start in the pizza business after entering into a relationship with the owners of Giordano's (review here). That relationship didn’t work out, and Dan Bacin opened Bacino’s in 1978 using an Italianized version of his name. It so happens that there is a second pizzeria that has a similar history.

Edward Jacobson split from the Broglio brothers (then the owners of Giordano's) and went out on his own in 1978. There was no way to Italianize Jacobson, so he added an o to the end of his first name and opened the first Edwardo's Natural Pizza Restaurant on the far northern border of Chicago in Rogers Park. A year later, he opened his second location, this time on the south side in Hyde Park.

Edwardo's sought to carve out a niche as the healthier version of stuffed pizza. They pushed (and may well have invented) a spinach-soufflé-stuffed pizza, which was full of finely chopped fresh spinach. Hydroponic basil and oregano was grown in each restaurant and they used it on the pizza and sold it separately to people who wanted to take home some fresh herbs. Edwardo's tried out a whole-wheat crust as early as 1981. A concern with quality was also evident in the restaurant's use of San Marzano tomatoes in the sauce.

The company was clearly onto something, as there were six locations by 1984. Jacobson then entered into a relationship with Chicago real estate investors Ivan and Jeffrey Himmel. Soon thereafter, Edwardo's expanded to Minneapolis and Milwaukee and had plans to expand throughout the Midwest. They had some success in both areas and even worked out a deal whereby United Airlines served individual sizes of their stuffed pizzas on some flights.

In the meantime, the Himmels's company took over Edwardo's entirely and expanded its food empire to include Gino's East (review here). Edwardo's has suffered some setbacks in recent years, but today there are still nine locations, seven of which are in the Chicago area, with one on the outskirts of Milwaukee and another in Muncie, Indiana.

The highlight of Edwardo's stuffed pizza is the crust. The flaky crust has a nice soft chew but is strong enough to stand up to and complement the large quantities of cheese and sauce. The mozzarella was a little tough and chewy, although not terribly so. My understanding is that mozzarella gets tougher as fat is removed, and the ingredients listed on Edwardo's mail-order page indicate that the mozzarella is made from both whole and skim milk. It could also be that the company is using lower-quality cheese.

The generously applied sauce had a strong, slightly sweet flavor. It had fewer tomato chunks and was a little pastier than is common on stuffed and deep-dish pizzas but was still pretty good. I do not know what kind of tomatoes Edwardo's uses today, but I think it's safe to say that the days of using San Marzano tomatoes are long gone. There was a noticeable amount of salt in the pizza, which might have been in the sauce and might have been in the cheese, but that didn't detract much from the pizza. The sausage, which was overly salted, had a decent fennel flavor but was otherwise not good, an inexcusable fault in a city with ample suppliers of excellent sausage. I did not have it on this visit, but spinach remains a very good topping choice at Edwardo's.

Edwardo's has been a major player on the Chicago pizza scene for 30 years. It still serves up a very good stuffed pie, but I would recommend both Giordano's and Bacino's over Edwardo's.

Bacino's: Chicago's Healthy (?) Stuffed Pizza
Giordano's, a Stuffed Pizza Classic in Chicago
Pizza D.O.C.: Less Than a Minute from Greatness
Delisi's Pizzeria & Bar: A Fully Restored Neighborhood Institution
Gino's East: One of the Best Deep-Dish Pizzas in Chicago
Bricks, Pizza Heaven in the Bowels of Chicago
Burt's Place: Home of the Pizza King of Chicago
Is Chicago's La Madia a Pizzeria or Restaurant? Who Cares?

The Pizza Dome: Whatever

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 14:30:41 -0500

Yes, we've seen the Pizza Dome.

It's so not going into the upcoming Slice–Serious Eats Gift Guide this year.

Original Cosmic Ray's Pizza from 'Futurama'

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 06:00:00 -0500

Jason Kottke just hipped me to this funny bit of pizza trivia from Futurama. Original Cosmic Ray's Pizza. The joke works on so many levels.

What Pizzerias the Gossip Girls and Boys Would Frequent

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 23:30:00 -0500

I just watched last night's Gossip Girl episode ("O Brother, Where Bart Thou?"), the one where Vanessa has a gift certificate to Grimaldi's ("I'm thinking double pepperoni"). For all you non–New Yorkers, yes, it's a real place (you can read all about it here on Slice), and, yes, it does offer gift certificates (I called to make sure).

Vanessa Abrams

I agree with New York magazine's recap assessment—Vanessa would totally be a "Di Fara diehard." All the way. Why? Vanessa sucks. She's annoying and oppressively self-righteous in that way that only certain chip-on-shoulder Brooklynites can be. If you were unlucky enough to befriend her—or worse, date her—she would totally twist your arm, reverse-snob you, and schlep your ass all the way out there. "OMG, Nate! I totally know this little place that's hidden and has, like, the best pizza ever! None of your Constance Billard or St. Jude's friends would be caught dead there." And then she'd secretly judge you if you grumbled about the long wait or what a mess the dining room was.

Where the Rest of Them Would Eat Pizza

Blair Waldorf

My first thought: Blair wouldn't eat pizza. But then an evil little elf reminded me that, "Yes, she would! She would just throw up afterward!" I think any generic Ray's pizza would do for that. Loaded with all the crap the various Ray's put on their pies.

Dan Humphrey

Dan is overearnest, smug, and unbearable. Like a lot of the folks on Chowhound. Which is why he, like a lot of the folks on Chowhound (and like Vanessa), would be a Di Fara fan. He's also writing a pretentious short story or a "Shouts & Murmurs" piece about the Di Fara experience in hopes of getting it in the New Yorker.

Serena van der Woodsen

Serena has a kind, goofy side, so she'd be comfortable slumming it in pizzaland. But she's totally high-maintenance, so only Una Pizza Napoletana will do. Then again, Dan could puppy-dog-eye her into a trip to Totonno's (it's deep to wander Coney in the off season), after which she'd reveal her vulnerable side and wonder "Why can't we always be like this?"

Nate Archibald

Nate is totally dull. He gives little thought to what he eats and just grabs an unimaginative slice of pepperoni at whatever pizzeria is closest. (Unless Vanessa drags him to Di Fara.)

Chuck Bass

Chuck Bass eats at whatever pizzeria is still open after he gets out of his burlesque parlor or the strip clubs. Since the New York burlesque scene seems to be centered on the Lower East Side, let's say Rosario's. It's open till 5 a.m. If he's cruising the West Side strip clubs, let's say 99¢ Fresh Pizza, open 24 hours.

Little Jenny Humphrey

Jenny would eat at Lazzara's. It's one block up from Mood Fabrics.

Rufus Humphrey

Rufus would make homemade pizza (with some sort of expensive Spanish ham, imported "00" flour, and buffalo mozzarella) and then guilt-trip Dan and Jenny into staying in, listening to him blather about Lincoln Hawk and Lisa Loeb. Lily van der Woodsen would show up unexpectedly, have a bite of pizza, swallow with a pained expression, and then make a grandiose statement.

Additional reporting by Kerry Saretsky

Kansas City's Grinders and Its Tater Tot Chili Pizza, on 'Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives'

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:45:00 -0500

Madness lies ahead, at Eat Me Daily.

Kansas City, I love you. I spent my formative years in your metro area. But this nonsense is why we had to break up.

You will forever be synonymous with barbecue and pretty little women, but you will never be known as a pizza town.

How could you, with this crazy-ass Tater Tot–Chili Pizza at Grinders?

The Eat Me Daily weblog has video of the monstrosity.

Grinders

417 East 18th Street, Kansas City MO 64108 (b/n Oak and Locust streets; map)
816-472-5454

Pizza Quote of the Day: XOXO

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 13:45:00 -0500

"Vanessa had a gift certificate to Grimaldi's? No way would she admit to that. She'd be a Di Fara diehard all the way. Minus 3." —From New York magazine's always hilariously dead-on Gossip Girl recap [And, yes, Grimaldi's does offer gift certificates.]

Ray's Real Pizza Moves to Jersey

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 09:45:00 -0500

New York Times

As if things weren't confusing enough when it comes to the name Ray's and the world of pizza. The New York Times chronicles the move of Ray's Real Pizza, once a Times Square pizzeria whose customers included (at some time or other) Alec Baldwin, Puff Daddy Diddy Dude, and Dom DeLuise.

The story mostly details how the former Times Square location attracted celebs and how the new Hazlet digs are devoid of famous eaters: "The Russo brothers keep a camera under the counter just in case a celebrity happens to stumble in. Some customers claim they’ve seen Jon Bon Jovi, the drummer Max Weinberg and Bruce Springsteen drive by."

Given the way that most pizzerias (and restaurants in general) seem to exaggerate star appearances, it's hard to tell if Ray's Real Pizza was ever a celeb magnet, but when you're touting a Max Weinberg drive-by, things have definitely slowed down in the limelight department.

Truth Hammer: The First Ray's

Also, I've gotta bring out the Truth Hammer here. You may see some other websites (ahem, Grub Street) getting confused and dubbing Ray's Real Pizza "the actual original Ray's Pizza," but that is far from the case. Ray's Real is said to have opened "in the late 1970s," according to today's Times story. Compare that to this nugget from the Times archives:

Documents gathered during the Rays' legal battle show that there was no Ray's Pizza listed in the 1959 Manhattan telephone book. That was the year Ralph Cuomo, the 22-year-old son of immigrants from southern Italy, opened a pizzeria in Little Italy, using his mother's recipe.
It was at 27 Prince Street, between Mott and Elizabeth Streets, on the first floor of a building that his family lived in and owned. The next year's telephone book listed the name: Ray's Pizza.

Ray's Real Pizza

3429 State Route 35, Hazlet NJ 07730
732-203-1600

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Dear Slice: Check Out My Research Paper on NE Pennsylvania Pizza!

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 11:00:00 -0500

Clicking in to the Slice inbox today, we've got some scholarly research to delve into. (Emphasis mine.) ...

I'm in the American Studies graduate program at Penn State-Harrisburg. A link on your blog about Northeastern Pennsylvania being the Pizza Capital of the U.S. led me to a short research paper last spring, so I thought I'd share it. Most of this is nothing new to you experts, but you may find some of the info I found in mid-century city directories interesting.

—Tim

------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Tim,

This is AWESOME.

Thank you! I love the research on the directories. That was a really smart way to look at historical pizza data and one that I would have never thought of doing. It would be cool to do that with NYC pizzerias, but I bet it would get hairy!

Hey, would you mind if I offered up this paper as a PDF for Slice readers to download and read? I totally understand if you wouldn't be into that, but I think it would be fun.

Thanks again for the reading!

Hasta la pizza,
Adam

------------------------------------------------------------

Hi Adam,

Feel free to share, since your site was the spark.

—Tim

------------------------------------------------------------

And here's the PDF: brixius_AMST535_final.pdf

East Village's Five Roses Pizza Closing

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 10:00:00 -0500

According to Jeremiah's Vanishing New York, the landlord is raising the rent on the little pizzeria on First Avenue between 10th and 11th Streets.

Saturday is the last day, and after that, the owner may try to move the location farther east.

Five Years Ago on Slice

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 16:20:06 -0500

A screen grab from the Slice archives:

Five years ago to the date, if not the minute.

I was just looking at past Thanksgiving posts on the site and found this one. The sentiment remains the same, if not the travel plans. I'm staying in New York this year but eating turkey nonetheless. Pizza is for after the holiday, when I'm sick of the bird.

I Hope So

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:35:03 -0500

From the FAIL Blog.

Citigroup Deal Banged Out Over Domino's Pizza

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 08:15:00 -0500

Domino's latest slogan is "You've got 30 minutes ..." But this gives a whole new meaning to that tagline:

Meanwhile, about 20 staffers were working at FDIC offices a block from the White House, subsisting on Domino's pizza for dinner at around 8 p.m. and working on the deal until about 11:30 p.m., according to a person familiar with the matter. The agency's board met at 10 p.m., discussing the package for about 30 minutes before the vote to aid the bank.

We're all doomed.

First Taste: A Pizza Preview of Jim Lahey's Upcoming Pizzeria, Co.

Sat, 22 Nov 2008 00:30:00 -0500

Co.

230 Ninth Avenue, New York NY 10001 (at West 24th Street; map)
The Skinny: Actual round pizza from Jim Lahey, the bread man behind Sullivan Street Bakery (as opposed to his Roman-style flatbread pizzas found at the bakery). And, oh, it is awesome
Pizza Style: A sort of Neapolitan–New York-style hybrid
Oven Type: Earthstone gas oven; Lahey may burn a couple logs of wood or add wood chips to aromatize the crust
Opening: Target open date is Tuesday, December 2, but Lahey says, "realistically the 5th or the 9th"
Related: Update on Jim Lahey's Co., Co. Is 'Pizza Hut Meets Blue Hill'

Wednesday, about 5 p.m., Ed Levine here in the Slice–Serious Eats office was like, "So, who's going to Co. with me to shoot the tasting?"

"Um, what tasting," I asked.

"I told everybody about it. In the group chat on IM."

"Uh, no you didn't."

Long story short, I volunteered myself to trail Ed to some sort of preopening oven test and tasting at Jim Lahey's upcoming pizzeria on Ninth Avenue and 24th Street. (Lahey and company have a target opening date of December 2, but, Lahey says, "Realistically, it's more like December 5 or 9.")

We arrived, and it turned out Ed had scored some sort of super invite, because it appeared to be a tasting primarily for Lahey's investor, Phil Suarez. I felt like I had crashed an intimate gathering, but the company was welcoming, and pretty soon everyone was concentrating on the food coming from the kitchen, anyway.

Below are some photos, along with some thoughts. But before I get into it, I have to say that as I was writing this post, I called Lahey to get some follow-up details, and he told me to just come over and fire away as he was experimenting with some new pies. So the set below mixes Wednesday and Friday evening. Just go with my flow, peeps. Mega pizza porn, after the jump.

The Oven

Lahey is using a gas-fired Earthstone oven. He says he may put a couple pieces of wood in it or use wood chips to aromatize the pies. (Aromatize the pies. Poet but didn't know it.)

Co.'s Company Rules

The bread matters
Freshness (no old mise/misse/mies)
Quality
Consistency—properly trained
Thought out
Simple

And, yes, that's a Raytek infrared gun-style thermometer on the make table.

The Domenico

The first pie to come out of the oven Wednesday night was what Lahey called the Domenico. On my subsequent visit Friday afternoon, he had shortened it simply to "The Dom." It's an homage to, you guessed it, Dom DeMarco of Di Fara.

It's basically tomato sauce, buffalo mozzarella, and just enough pecorino Romano, though on Friday, Lahey mentioned keeping 36-month grana padano around.

Before rabid Di Fara-heads pile on, let me say that this pie is an homage to Dom. Not a straight-up attempt at cloning. As such, it was pretty much a Margherita pie with some added tang from the pecorino. Another difference between it and the Margherita was that it was a little more cheese-heavy than the Marg.

Margherita

Here's Wednesday night's Margherita pie. I didn't get an upskirt of this one, but hold your breath a bit while you scroll, because I've got a crust reveal of one of the Friday afternoon Margs below, taken after watching Lahey build about three pies with varying sauce and cheese ratios. Here's a step-by-step of a Margherita build-up:

Stretching the dough—an obvious first step. After which Lahey flours the pizza peel and then sprinkles on a bit of salt with the flour, something I'd never seen any other pizzaiolo do.

Saucing the dough. The sauce layer was pretty sparse on this first one, but he was experimenting with different amounts of the red stuff to find the right balance.

Lahey adds the cheese. They're using buffalo mozzarella, sourced from Italy, but they haven't settled on one particular source yet.

And, of course, basil makes the Margherita complete.

Here's one of those bad boys about 10 seconds out of the oven.

I promised it, and now I deliver: There's the upskirt on that bad boy.

The Hunter

The Hunter, in the kitchen.

When Lahey brought this one out of the kitchen on Wednesday, he called this one the "boscaiolo," Italian for forester or hunter. It's a pie made from things a forester might pick up while out in the woods. As served, this one had mushrooms, sausage, and onion. Which just happens to be very near my favorite combo (sausage and onion).

The Hunter, on the table.

The Popeye

The Popeye needs no explanation. Strong to the finish, folks. Strong to the finish.

Other Pies Not Pictured

There was a pie Lahey's calling the Ham and Cheese—topped with fontina and then prosciutto thrown on immediately after the pie comes out of the oven, which serves to warm the meat just enough. We sampled two versions on Wednesday, the more interesting one with a few caraway seeds scattered on the dough to give it some aromatic pop while eating. I hope the caraway version shows up on the menu rather than the noncaraway version.

On Friday, I watched an experimental pie being born. It was awesome (can you say Kentucky bacon?) and would probably have purists scratching their heads, but it really worked. Unfortunately, Lahey went off record with this one, so I cannot tell you more than bacon! at this time.

Toasts

In addition to pizza, the menu will also feature "toasts." If you want to get all Italiano, you could call them bruschetta. This pinto bean toast was my favorite (we also tasted a tomato-topped toast, but as tomatoes aren't in season, it may not find its way on to the menu come opening day). Flavored with peperoncini, it has a subtle heat that cuts the slight sweetness of the beans. Lahey adds the slightest bit of anchovy to the mix to give it some salt—but fear not, anchovy haters, you'd never know the little fish had any part in this bruschetta.

And of course the base is from Sullivan Street Bakery, so you're already starting with some of the best bread in the city.

Yeah, Yeah, Pretty Pictures. But How Did It Taste?

The pies on Wednesday night were amazing. Lahey is a bread genius, and as the crust is the hardest part of pizza to perfect, we're already in good hands. The hole structure was beautiful, giving the end crust a crisp, chewy puffiness that would compel even crust-haters to finish an entire slice. There was ample flavor here, thanks to a dough that was left to rise 24 hours, developing a yeasty tang. The crust was crisp and chewy, but did not suffer from overchewiness. You know how some pizza crusts are too chewy and give you a jaw ache? Not happening here. There was minimal tip sag on any of these pies.

Friday's pies were made using a younger dough, so the flavor wasn't as assertive, but they were just short of pizza nirvana and would still blow away many of the best pies you've had.

One of my favorites was the Hunter, which featured the same peperoncino used in the pinto-bean toast, giving it a little bit of a kick that started slow but never overwhelmed the other flavors in the mix. In fact, Lahey said on Friday, much of the menu will make use of the chiles to greater or lesser extent.

I liked the Dom for its use of the salty, tangy pecorino and would probably opt for that over the Margherita.

The nice thing, though, is that the pies are small—about 12 inches in diameter—so if you go with a group of three or four people, you can order different pizzas and share, easily getting a taste of many of the pies.

The menu is not yet set, though it seemed pretty certain that the Dom, the Hunter, the Margherita, and the Popeye would be on it, along with a basic Marinara pie.

Compared to pizzas of similar size and style, I'd say Lahey's making a pie that's more Franny's than Una Pizza Napoletana, but it's easily in that league of awesome. There's more crispness to the crust than you'll find at UPN, but the pizzas seem less fussy than those at Franny's.

My prediction is that the place will be packed. Good thing that it's only a couple blocks from the Slice–Serious Eats office, so I can get there early.

The Dining Room

I usually don't get too into interior design crap on Slice because, really, who cares? But since I had unusual access, I snapped some dining room porn for you. And, at the bottom of this post, there's the entire set of photos in a slide, with some bonus outtakes for you.

The dining room is all clean lines and warm wood. Though minimalist and spare, it has a welcoming feeling. There are 54 seats.

There are two communal tables with 12 seats each and a banquette of two-tops flanked by two round six-top tables.

The bar. It's got a marble top and, at the time of this photo, one tap for beer. There's an espresso machine on the back bar.

Miscellanea

This rabbit lamp sits in the windowsill of the kitchen, for now. "We found it in the basement," Lahey said. "It's the only thing we kept from what was in here before. I guess we should give it a name."

The expediter's view into the dining room.

Other Restaurants Nearby

Txikito, two doors up
Grand Sichuan International, across the street

Cool Video: The BBC Goes Inside a Frozen-Pizza Factory in Ireland

Thu, 20 Nov 2008 13:15:00 -0500

The BBC has a fascinating video inside a frozen pizza factory in Naas, Ireland. It's amazing how few people are needed to run the place, which turns out 2 million pizzas a week.

It's all very Laverne & Shirley intro, minus the wacky charm of human beings.

When the pizza "bases" are topped with to-mah-to sauce, it'll sort of remind you of the Play-Doh Mop Top Hair Shop.

And the pepperoni stick machine—looks sort of like some octomonster has been caught in a trap. [via Tien Mao]

Italian Fiesta Pizzeria: The Obamas' Chicago Pizza Favorite, Reviewed

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:30:00 -0500

But President-Elect Appears to Favor St. Louis Pizzeria

Italian Fiesta Pizzeria

1400 East 47th Street, Chicago IL 60653 (map); 773-684-2222 to order; 773-924-5339 to reach restaurant
Getting There: Metra to 47th Street or 6 Jackson Park Express bus to 47th Street and Lake Park
Pizza Style: Tavern-cut thin crust
Oven Type: Gas
The Skinny: Greasy thin-crust pizza
Price: $19.70 for a large pizza with one

When reports started trickling out in July that Barack Obama's favorite pizzeria was Italian Fiesta Pizzeria, I took it a little personally. By that time, I had already given time and money to his campaign, and despite my cynical nature, I had already had so many glasses of Obama Kool-Aid that my former neighbor and state representative could do no wrong in my eyes even as he surprised me by voting for FISA and shown ~~cowardice~~ political pragmatism on gay marriage. But now came reports that he favored pizzas from Italian Fiesta Pizzeria, which I knew served far from top-notch pizza.

Italian Fiesta has been in the South Shore neighborhood on Chicago's south side since 1951. Even as the neighborhood changed dramatically (read: blacks moved in and whites ran away), Italian Fiesta stuck around, eventually adding locations in Hyde Park and a couple of southern and southwestern suburbs. Michele Obama grew up in South Shore and, presumably, she gets the credit for introducing it to the president-elect.

After the jump, find out whose pizza Barack Obama really craves. [He] "wouldn't shut up about my pizza," the joint's owner said.

Obama banners decorate Hyde Park and downtown Chicago.

The Hyde Park location that the Obamas patronize is a small restaurant in a strip mall that does not offer a dine-in option. Those who choose to go pick up their pizzas are advised to call at least 45 minutes before they arrive, despite there being no possible way it takes even half that amount of time to cook one of Italian Fiesta's thin-crust pies.

Another quirk of the ordering process is that the phone number used to place the order is not to the restaurant itself, but to a general number where the person answering asks not only takes the order but also asks which location the order should go to.

The restaurant consists of a waiting area that's about 10 feet by 20 feet and a large kitchen area visible through a small bulletproof glass window, where about a dozen people were busy making and packing pizzas. There were a couple of signs on the wall in the waiting-ordering area that caught my eye. One warns that there may be a long wait for pizza, and the other explains the refund policy: No refunds, only exchanges, and if a customer wants to make an exchange, they have to bring in the uneaten portion of their pizza.

I picked up my sausage pizza and headed to the car to open the box. Inside was a steaming thin-crust pizza with a noticeable amount of oregano and grease sitting on top. The buttery crust is thicker than traditional Chicago thin crust, but still pretty thin. The homemade sauce was well seasoned and was generously applied around the outer part of the pizza, but the middle pieces could have used a bit more. The sausage seemed to be fairly low quality, but it had some flavor and was well-represented on the pizza.

I was ready to write off Italian Fiesta after a couple of pieces, but when I got home about half an hour later, I ate some more. By that time, the grease had largely soaked back into the pizza, which resulted in a vastly improved pie. That's not to say the pizza magically became a high-quality treat, but there was something rather comforting about it. Italian Fiesta does not offer a pizza to be savored, but it offers a decent pie, particularly for late night diners—Italian Fiesta is open until 1 a.m. during the week and 2 a.m. on weekends.

Obama's Real Favorite Pizza—It's from St. Louis

That said, I'm not certain that Barack Obama fans will actually be that much closer to their hero by eating pizza from Italian Fiesta. See, while Michelle Obama has proclaimed her love of Italian Fiesta, I haven't found a quote from the president-elect himself sharing her enthusiasm. In fact, the owner admits that Obama has never been seen in the restaurant. There is, however, a story out of St. Louis that offers some insight into his pizza palate.

Pi

6144 Delmar Blvd, St. Louis MO 63112; map); 314-727-6633; restaurantpi.com

When campaigning in St. Louis toward the end of the election, Obama spoke to about 100,000 people. As anyone who has given a speech to 100,000 people knows, it's a draining experience that builds up an appetite. Chris Sommers owns Pi, a Chicago-style pizzeria in St. Louis. He sent Obama and his staff some pizzas for a post-speech meal, and a few hours later, the future president called Sommers and said it was the best pizza he'd ever eaten.

Apparently, Obama was not just being the nice politician when he made the call. The campaign's Missouri Field Director later called Sommers and said that Obama "wouldn't shut up about my pizza."

Eager to ~~get more publicity~~ return the affection, Pi is introducing a new pizza called the Broccoli O'Bama, which consists of a vegan thin-crust topped with broccoli, seasoned potatoes, applewood-smoked bacon, gruyere cheese, cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese, minced garlic, and fresh chives, and is served with a side of sour cream.

I have never been to Pi, so I can't vouch for it one way or the other. But as far as Italian Fiesta Pizzeria goes, well, let's all hope Obama is better at leading the country than he is at picking a pizza. At the same time, if anyone had to go eight years without pizza, Italian Fiesta would taste like the best food on the planet.

Pizza D.O.C.: Less Than a Minute from Greatness
Delisi's Pizzeria & Bar: A Fully Restored Neighborhood Institution
Gino's East: One of the Best Deep-Dish Pizzas in Chicago
La Gondola: A Chicago Version of New York Pizza
Pizza Capri: Disappointing Thin-Crust, Passable Stuffed Pies in Chicago
Bricks, Pizza Heaven in the Bowels of Chicago
Burt's Place: Home of the Pizza King of Chicago
Is Chicago's La Madia a Pizzeria or Restaurant? Who Cares?

Pizza on the 'Sarah Silverman Program'

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 18:15:08 -0500

On the Sarah Silverman Program, "Steve and Brian threw their backs out in the bathroom (for reasons I don't want to get into). And they're hungry. And there's a pizza in the other room." Video of the scene at Eat Me Daily.

Two Boots Rock Center Closing; Two Boots Hell's Kitchen Imminent

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:15:00 -0500

The Two Boots location in Rockefeller Center (in the weird mall-like area belowground) is closing. But when a door closes, a (pizza) window opens. The mini chain will open a branch at Ninth Avenue and 45th Street. So sayeth Midtown Lunch.

Best Pizza in Boston?

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 07:00:00 -0500

Where's the best pizza in Boston? Jacqueline of the Leather District Gourmet says she's found it at Emma’s, ordering a hot sausage, caramelized onion, and kalamata olive pie. It's her favorite in the Kendall Square part of Cambridge.

Flour, Cheese Prices Drop; Pizza Prices Remain High, May Yet Climb

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 17:00:00 -0500

A cheap slice to stave off hunger used to be a given. That all changed earlier this year with the skyrocketing price of flour and cheese. But, but ...

Now, not only is the cost of a 50-pound bag of flour half the $36 it cost nine months ago, mozzarella cheese is down 15% from its summer high, and fuel prices, which affect nearly everything, are way down.
Yet most business owners have a million excuses for sticking with menu markups made when wholesale prices were sky high.
Here's how Sal's on Court St. in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, explains its $3 slice, on a note taped to the wall: "Due to increase in price of floor and cheese and all other items."

Our hero in this story from the Daily News is Abu Nasser of 99¢ Fresh Pizza near Grand Central:

... He knows other pizza makers charge up to three times more than he does for slices. He disapproves. "They are hurting the customers," he said.

99¢ Fresh Pizza

151 East 43rd Street, New York NY 10017 (b/n Third and Lexington avenues; map) 212-922-0257

Related: Cheap Pizza Slices in NYC

Order Domino's via TiVo

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 14:30:00 -0500

As of last night, broadband-connected TiVo subscribers can now order Domino's pizza via the device using the TiVo Domino's widget. So far, there's no scheduled ordering—your order is placed for delivery right away instead—but if you were planning that far ahead, you'd probably get your lazy ass off up the couch. [Tip o' the hat to: Nick Solares]

Facebook-Fan Papa John's, Get Free Pizza

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 13:15:00 -0500

"Beginning today, any Facebook user who becomes a 'fan' of the official Papa John’s Facebook page will receive an online redemption code for a free medium pizza with any online pizza order." [bizjournals.com]

Dear Slice: Ridiculous Pizza Snowman

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 10:00:00 -0500

Clicking in to the Slice inbox today, we've got ...

Saw this stupid thing in the paper this morning and had to send it to you. Sorry about the cheap-o scan.

Hope you dudes are doin good,
Andy

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Dear Andy,
Thanks. That's actually kind of awesome. Was that from Sunday's Kansas City Star? I'm trying to find the corresponding story for it, but the Star site is hard to search. Was it from this Best Pizza in Kansas City article?

Hasta la pizza,
Adam

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It was an ad for a bar or something.
—Andy

Breakfast Pizza at Motorino

Sat, 15 Nov 2008 16:15:00 -0500

The Strong Buzz reports reports that there's breakfast pizza on the menu at Motorino.

The joint is now serving brunch on Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. All dishes are $10, with coffee or juice.

Says Strong, "Mathieu Palombino is turning pizza into the breakfast food of champions with pies topped with creamy fior di latte, fluffy farm eggs, smoky pancetta, and handfuls of basil and Parmiggiano."

If you're too much of a purist to go for a breakfast pizza, the "panetti" sandwiches there sound pretty good: "made from Motorino’s pizza dough stuffed with the likes of mortadella, taleggio, radicchio, and aceto." [via Kathryn Yu]

Motorino

319 Graham Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11211 (at Devoe Street; map)
718-599-8899
motorinopizza.com

Searching for London's Best Pizza

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 16:15:00 -0500

Bloomberg

Bloomberg Television ropes Italian chef Francesco Mazzei of L'Anima into a tour of London in hopes of finding the best pizza there.

But, oh, they didn't hear about saving the best for last. By a stroke of good luck or bad luck (take your pick), they end up finding the best pizzeria in the Big Smoke at the start of their tour.

Having done a number of pizza tours myself, I know how disappointing it is starting on a high and then hitting misses the rest of the day.

What's that you ask? Oh, the best pizza joint in London? Franco Manca in Brixton.

Franco Manca is owned by Giuseppe Mascoli, 50, from Positano, on the Amalfi Coast. He uses lievito madre natural yeast and slow- rising sourdough that he prepares 20 hours in advance. The brick oven is from Naples, the flour from Piedmont, the organic tomatoes from Liguria and the cheeses from Somerset. Yes, Somerset in England, where they are made by Alham Wood Cheese....
"It can be difficult to find good pizza in London," Mazzei said. "PizzaExpress is a bit like McDonald's. There's no authenticity. It's fine for families and kids but not for a pizza connoisseur and not for a chef. I've never been to Pizza Hut."

And here are what various outlets have said about Franco Manca: Chowhound, Time Out London, Metro.

And a few nice pix.

Londoners: Have you been? What's your verdict?

Franco Manca

4 Market Row, Electric Lane, Brixton, SW9 8LD
020 7738 3021
francomanca.co.uk

Win Your Thanksgiving Turkey at Serious Eats

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 15:45:00 -0500

It's not pizza, but Slice's parent site, Serious Eats, is giving you a chance to win a Thanksgiving turkey.Deets here, peeps »

Pizza Quote of the Day: A Great Pizza Trick

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 13:30:00 -0500

"In my old office, I'd sometimes leave my pizza on the radiator so it stays warm and I could eat it throughout the day." —Joshua Bousel