Over 70's: Do you remember your first pizza?

[MossRoad]

There's a family owned pizza joint in town, Paesello's, that makes really great pizza. They have been voted Best Pizza in Michiana a couple of times.
Jeez, makes me hungry just thinking about them.

We'll have to try that. My wife and I have been hiking your county parks lately and always end up hungry!

Barnaby's Pizza in South Bend by Howard Park was always our go-to pizza place since grade school. After ice skating at Howard Park or after a high school football game at School Field, get a large cheese pizza with extra cheese and some cold beer once we were legal(maybe a few years before that ). We still go there a few times a year when the kids are in town.

 

[BravoXray]

We'll have to try that. My wife and I have been hiking your county parks lately and always end up hungry!

Barnaby's Pizza in South Bend by Howard Park was always our go-to pizza place since grade school. After ice skating at Howard Park or after a high school football game at School Field, get a large cheese pizza with extra cheese and some cold beer once we were legal(maybe a few years before that ). We still go there a few times a year when the kids are in town.

We do have some nice parks in Elkhart County.
Paesello's is on US33 next to the Family Dollar on the north edge of town, east side of the road. 574-533-2200

 

[buckeyefarmer]

My favorite pizza is in western MD at a local restaurant, wood fired.

 

[bunyip]

I knew an Italian pizza shop owner quite well and he told me about the best pizza, came from naples and was just a dough topped with parm a ham, oil and a sprinkle of parmesan, he went back to Italy after 30 years and told me was going to this place.
When he got back he was disgusted, he said the place was still there and he asked for the most popular pizza, they brought out the 'Aussie', tomato, cheese, ham, pineapple with and egg in the middle, had to go back to get the original, I heard about this for the next two years.
My first pizza was in 1967 when I was in the Air Force, I was working overnight in a comms squadron and there was a pizza shop not far away, I didn't like it as I dislike olives and anchovies and not aware there were others, I now go to a local woodfired pizza shop when we don't make our own when I can't be bothered firing up the wood fired oven outside, at the moment it is winter and too cold.......... by our standards, 14C today.

 

[bunyip]

I might add I like traditional pizzas, not a lot of topping and definitely not a lot of cheese, I saw a youtube video of someoneone making a big party pizza, layer of sauce followed by lots of mozzarella then a layer of salami then repeated twice over, coronary on a crust, dripping grease everywhere, not my idea of a good pizza.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

I might add I like traditional pizzas, not a lot of topping and definitely not a lot of cheese, I saw a youtube video of someoneone making a big party pizza, layer of sauce followed by lots of mozzarella then a layer of salami then repeated twice over, coronary on a crust, dripping grease everywhere, not my idea of a good pizza.

That sounds so good.

 

[stuckmotor]

I knew an Italian pizza shop owner quite well and he told me about the best pizza, came from naples and was just a dough topped with parm a ham, oil and a sprinkle of parmesan, he went back to Italy after 30 years and told me was going to this place.
When he got back he was disgusted, he said the place was still there and he asked for the most popular pizza, they brought out the 'Aussie', tomato, cheese, ham, pineapple with and egg in the middle, had to go back to get the original, I heard about this for the next two years.
My first pizza was in 1967 when I was in the Air Force, I was working overnight in a comms squadron and there was a pizza shop not far away, I didn't like it as I dislike olives and anchovies and not aware there were others, I now go to a local woodfired pizza shop when we don't make our own when I can't be bothered firing up the wood fired oven outside, at the moment it is winter and too cold.......... by our standards, 14C today.

Your mention of Naples reminds me of a thicker cheesier pizza that Pizza Hutt carried for several months possibly thirty years ago. The name might have been Napolo all I can remember is that it sounded like a place in Italy. If Pizza Hut ever brought them back, I missed it.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

I might add I like traditional pizzas, not a lot of topping and definitely not a lot of cheese, I saw a youtube video of someoneone making a big party pizza, layer of sauce followed by lots of mozzarella then a layer of salami then repeated twice over, coronary on a crust, dripping grease everywhere, not my idea of a good pizza.

One of my favorites is a tomato torte. Spread the crust with pesto, add sliced tomato and asiago. Bake.

I had a roasted garlic pizza in Amsterdam that had no tomato at all. It was delicious.

I ordered a pizza in Belgium called the "Four Seasons" that was served warm, not hot, and had a raw egg in one quarter. Not an experience I wanted to repeat.

The worst pizza I ever got in the US was at Godfather's. Lousy crust, thin toppings, no flavor.

One of the best pizzas I ever had was a little place in Winthrop, Wash. They used a pre-made crust, but the toppings were to die for. Smoked meats and cheeses at their best.

You can get pretty good pizza in Italy.

One of my pipe dreams is to build a wood fired pizza oven in the back yard. I would put the firebox under the oven, duct the smoke into the oven at the rear and out the stack in the front.

 

[bunyip]

We have pizza hut, I am not one of their customers, one I like at home is tomato base, thin sliced roast potato and topped with stilton and some bocconcini, once again the cheese is sparse, a friend does one similar but with broccoli rather than potato, also very nice, wife likes smoked salmon and brie, then just to be different we put it just the base in the pizza oven and it puffs up, take it out, cut it in half and stuff the pocket with rocket (aragula), proscuitto and thin sliced brie or camembert, magic but must be hot so the cheese melts over the rest of everyrhing.

 

[/pine]

...The worst pizza I ever got in the US was at Godfather's. Lousy crust, thin toppings, no flavor....

The building where Godfather's Pizza was in my old stomping grounds...just happened to be bought out by several enterprising gents (mostly with restaurant industry backgrounds)...the establishment they opened is the original Hooters...The rest is history...

BTW...if you visit Clearwater FL (just across the causeway from TIA)...be sure to check it out...outside in one of the flower beds is a tombstone that says "RIP Godfather's Pizza"...!