Go get yourself a Piece

Terry Feingold, Tom Mannis and I made our weekly excursion for culinary exploration today. Our goal: to sample the fabled New Haven style pizza. The purveyor of said fare is Piece, located at 1927 W. North Ave. in the funky (that's a complimentary adjective) Wicker Park neighborhood.

We got the "plain" variety (red sauce, parmesan, olive oil, and diced garlic -- no mozzarella) with clams. Here's a pic of said slices (credit to Tom Mannis for the excellent photography in this post):

They also offer a "white" style (no sauce, but mozzarella), and a traditional "red" (mozzarella included). The crust was crunchy and quite tasty. The sauce was very good, and the garlic and clams a very nice combo. The large was more than enough for we three hearty eaters. Tom and Terry were both quite taken by the friendly wait staff.

They also brew their own beer, and I washed down my slice with a pint of Dysfunction Ale, which was a nice hoppy pale ale. It's definitely worth a trip, if you're looking to get out of the 'hood.

Conspicuous Pizza Consumption

My friends and I have an excursion planned tomorrow to go try New Haven style pizza at a joint in Wicker Park called Piece. I once worked with someone who grew up in Connecticut and always raved about the "white" pizzas with clams. So, after many years, there's a local place that offers me a chance to see if it measures up to the hype. It's the small things that excite me.

Now I find out that the folks in NY have invented yet another type of pie. This one is a bit on the pricey side however, and honestly sounds pretty disgusting. Below is an excerpt from the Guardian Unlimited story about it. Cultural note: I guess Londonners must have their pizza delivered via moped.

Not available on a moped near you - the $1,000 caviar pizza

"This won't be for everyone, but there are people in New York who can afford it, and once tried, they'll be back for more," said Nino Selimaj, the restaurateur behind the somewhat unimaginatively-named Luxury Pizza. "It is delicious," he told Reuters.

The feast will be available at his Nino's Bellissima in Manhattan. The pizza will be topped with creme fraiche, chives, eight ounces of four different kinds of Petrossian caviar, four ounces of thinly sliced Maine lobster tail, salmon roe, and a bit of wasabi. Unlike the typical pizza, the topping will not be cooked, as it would spoil the fish. Two Wall Street business types have already gone for the idea.

That's certainly not what I think of as NY pizza. No use being rich if you can't find creative ways to blow your dough.