Zoocap

On my visits to New York, I have noticed that everything tastes better.  The coffee is better.  The spaghetti and ravioli is better.  The Chinese food is better, and the pizza?  Well there is a reason that every other city in the country, has “New York Pizza” shops.  Okay, there was for a while the craze of the California Pizza Kitchen, and of course Chicago style pizza is popular as well.  But the craze of the Chicago pan pizza escapes me, as I have had Chicago style pizza, in the city of Chicago, and nothing beats the pizza of New York City.

Some people claim that the pizza in New York is so good because of three populations that have been drawn to the city throughout the years, the chefs, the food artisans, and the immigrants, all bringing their worlds together in the making of the perfect pie.  The many cultures have brought with them their customs, and their roots can be seen, or tasted rather, in their culinary artistry.  As stated before, the food of the city is just outstanding, check it out.

The first pizza shop was opened in 1905, by Gennaro Lombardi, Lombardi’s and is still on Spring Street, with the pizza cooked in the original coal oven just across the street in the original kitchen in Little Italy.  This pizzeria is still in business and is credited for the beginning of a world wide love of New York pizza.  There are many more long standing pizzerias throughout the city and each of the five boroughs.  Coney Island is home to the famous Totonno’s Pizzeria, and at DiFara, the traditional pieces covered in buffalo mozzarella are still made by Domenico Demarco, the 70 year old pizza chef extraordinaire.

My Italian friends quietly say that they now prefer the pizza of the United States, and of New York most assuredly to any of the pizza in their home towns in Italy.  My first slice was experienced in Times Square, at a popular little joint called Ray’s.  It is a taste I will never forget.  Perhaps it was the excitment of being in the city for the first time, and the vibe of the square, but as I said, it all just seemed to taste better, even down to the last bite of the crust.