OK, Here we go..... I think it only fair to start with this photo as this trip to Tokyo, and the inspiration of these two guys with me in the photo, really kicked off my interest in exploring food, photographing said eats, and sharing/explaining my impressions of my experiences. So, to you David Chang and Anthony Bourdain, Cheers, and thanks. As I begin I think it only fair to explain a bit of what my purpose with this blog is. As you know, I do not participate in Facebook, and I wont go into why here, but I NEEDED a vehicle to communicate and connect with those in my life, both near and far. As the name implies, this will primarily be a blog about pizza. However, as this is mine, I will feel free to do and say as I damn well please, as it pleases me. So I hope to not offend or tiptoe too far over the line of appropriateness, but if I do, that's just too fucken bad. Enjoy. Pizza, food, life experiences, thoughts, feelings, rants, and more food. This is what you will find here. Please feel free to share and pass along to anyone you think might have an interest, as I hope you will as well. Sincerely yours, DVA

Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Berkeley Pizza, San Diego, USA, Chicago Style Pie




This is gonna be a no bullshit post, so hold on to your ass

The BEST Chicago Style pizza in San Diego

Yeah, I said it.  You know my loath of words like "best" "favorite" etc.... but for this pie, on this night, I gotta use it.  I offer only one caveat, and that's an apology to Hollywood Pies, who I think is the best Chicago style pie I've ever had, but you guys skipped town and Hollywood is not a place I'll enthusiastically travel to for so many reasons.  So, back to the here and now....

It's been a while since my last Berkeley pie.  So long ago in fact that they now have 2 store front locations, whereas previously you had to know the number of the dude and they would only deliver, maybe you could pick it up, but there was no restaurant, no store, just super cool schizznizzle.  But, I digress.  I am at the North Park location, getting a pie to go.  It's raining, I've just finished a hot yoga class, the boys are sore, and I'm hungry.   Three doors down and here I go.....


A pretty cool interior, intentionally sort of stark, urban, rustic.   And shockingly laking of people.


Two TV's. One showing sports and the other with a "Cool Hand Luke" style movie.


This is over the entrance to the kitchen and it's HUGE.  


I LOVE this oven.  No pretentious wood, italian, brick, blah blah blah here.  We're making pizza and the only thing we need from the oven is heat.  No need for added flavor, there's enough in the pie.  Berkeley's is serving pizza, not charcoal.


Random kegs of beer abound.  Another coolness-ness


Here's a dozen taps and there's another row of a dozen of them to the left, and there appeared to be another 20 or so of unused taps on the ready when business picks up, my guess.


Ommegang.  Yes please.


OK, enough of that shit, let's fuck this pie up.

A very cool old school pizza box.


Yeah, I forgot to get a shot of the whole pie.  But you have to remember that I'm STARVING!!!!!

The first impressions are good.  It weighed about 57 million pounds and had my car smelling of all things pizza.  The slices come apart easy, holding their own on the way to the plate.  Firm but not hard.  What did she say?!?!?


Ohhhh mama!  Get fricken ready!


Sausage and pepperoni.


It's delicious.  So good in fact that I don't even think I chewed the first slice on the way down.

I took a bit more time with the second one, in order to properly inspect and explain, and so I don't choke to death also :-O

So the first thing I notice is the sausage which, as I requested from the sole employee at The Berk, was a complete layer of sausage, which I think is a thing....  And I say this because you can, at most Chicago places, order either a complete layer of sausage or sporadic chunks, and I request the complete layer, of which some areas near the crust appear to have been abandoned.  But really, this is quite a small gripe.  The sausage is plentiful and flavorful and the pepperoni has just the right level of spice and balance with the sausage, and completely coats the pie.


Now to the crust.  It seem not a true "Chicago Style" I have to say.  Meaning that it should taste and feel similar to a pie crust (apple, cherry, etc.. you get what I'm trying to say...)  and this Berkeley pie crust has the texture, ever so slightly, of a new york/east coast pie.  However, it has structure to it, holds up to the weight of what's going on above it.  Don't get me wrong, I love it, and I think it works beautifully, in perfect harmony with the rest of the show.  Firm yet not hard (like Lefty's.  Try them and you'll see.  Down in the corner there is so much cornmeal or something bad that it turns into a rock.  Like eating an old chocolate chip cookie that has been sitting out for a week.  Bad).  

Although most do as do I, eat this style pie with a knife and fork, you should be able to pick it up and eat it like a slice, which is what it is....  And you should be able to, and you should want to cause it's so fricken good, eat the WHOLE crust without putting it down, and you should want to.  There should be no pile of crust on the plate at the end.  No pizza bones!

Pizza bones = bad


2 slices down and I need another, sofaking good


On to the tomatoes and cheese.

Nice big chunks of tomato packed full of flavor.  You can taste the balance of acid to sweetness exploding in your mouth.  And a nice light coating on the pie too.  Not too soupy and not too sparse either.  Just right.

Lastly the cheese.  
Stringy and salty, the glue holding together this collage of ingredients together.  A nice thick layer smack dab in the middle.  Like a molten chocolate lava cake where you slice into it and it oozes out.  

Although this is a large thick pie it's not overly filling.  That may sound retarded to some of you, but it's true.   Don't get me wrong, it will fill you up, but it won't knock you out for the night and won't sit in your belly like a ton of bricks.

Great flavors, great ingredients, right here close to home.

Eat there, take one home, get it delivered, do it how you want, just do it, you'll like it.

DVA

Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Devine Pastabilities, The Torpasta, San Diego, California

I'm not sure about you, and I'm not sure about me either for that matter, but the thought of pasta stuffed in a sandwich peaks my interest. 
It was late one night that I saw this on some really stupid tv food show, but the sandwich really caught my attention. Yeah, sure, the owner has a story about how he was 9 and dreamed up this idea and used to make them at home and yatta yatta yatta, not sure how much of it I'm buying, but it is CERTAINLY enough to draw me out of the house to check it out, and it's not a far drive so let's roll!

First, beer me!


It's located in a mini mall on Midway near the Broken Yolk.  A nice selection of beers on tap, fairly comfy booths, a few tvs located throughout.  My expectations are set fairly high right about now, and I'm super hungry, this is looking, and smelling pretty good!

So the whole idea centers around pastas of various types, stuffed to order inside an italian role, presented on cool stands that hold the sandwich vertical.

We peruse the menu and while were trying to decide the waiter asks if we need some help making a selection.  We begin a discussion on the meatballs, because we are near to selecting the spaghetti and meatball one, obviously, and the waiter informs us that they have a vegi version and the meatballs are from Trader Joe's...at which point I start to pucker...  Why would they not make them here?  What else are they getting at Trader Joe's, or elsewhere for that matter???  Hmmmm, I'm on high alert!

We end up ordering the fettucini with alfredo sauce, adding broccoli and sausage, and.... 


The spaghetti and meatballs


Both are packed super full and on top are lots of sausage pieces and a few meatballs, on their respective sandwiches....  Bursting might I even say.  I'm so stoked right now!

And then we eat


And then we realize that the only sausage and meatballs are the few on top and the rest of the sandwich is pasta and sauce, which isn't bad but to pay the extra couple bucks for the meat we were expecting a bit more than a few pieces on top.  Kinda lame.

And we keep eating and we start to realize, both from the flavor and the view of what's going on in the kitchen which you can view from the dining room, that they aren't actually cooking anything here.  Sure, they're boiling some pasta, but they don't make the bread and aren't making the sauce, nor the meatballs nor sausage.  They are opening jars and slopping it out.  

Boo!

This is the classic scenario of someone that has an idea but really doesn't know jack shit about cooking or running a restaurant or making good food.  Just a great idea with poor execution.    If you like the flavors of "Home Town Buffet" or if Walmart had a restaurant the flavors here might just be right up your alley.

For me, I want to shove my Torpasta (that I didn't finish) right up
 the owner of this place's alley!

Go somewhere else for lunch


Better yet, have one of these!

DVA


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