Pizza Capital of the United States?

**Fury13** · April-29-09, 02:36 PM

Hungry Howie's slathers butter on their pizza crusts, for god's sake. I mean, butter, not olive oil... Jeezus! Nauseating. Sorry, I believe there's a right way and a wrong way to do things... I hope they go bust.

**ejames01** · April-29-09, 03:49 PM

Cut it out. More people are going to yell at us!

Originally Posted by Fury13

Hungry Howie's slathers butter on their pizza crusts, for god's sake. I mean, butter, not olive oil... Jeezus! Nauseating. Sorry, I believe there's a right way and a wrong way to do things... I hope they go bust.

9mile&seneca · April-30-09, 09:03 AM

The first job I had was when I was 8 delivering hand bills for Pizza Square on 9 mile beween Seneca & Rensallier in 1969. As far as I know still in biz. Probably not the same owner...

**heedus** · May-06-09, 09:32 AM

This is exactly the kind of thing that Detroit/Southeast Michigan needs to do to leverage its assets: http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...FREE/905059965. Certainly, California could have jumped the gun and hosted a conference like this, but U of M, GM, and DTE beat them to it. The more people identify with a region for some distinguishing characteristic, the better it is for that region b/c that region can further leverage that distinguishing characteristic for development purposes.

Admittedly, pizza may not have been the best example of this but with the 50 year anniversary of Little Caesar's, it's been in the news a lot lately, and the region really could do more to embrace these pizza making enterprises.

**gumby** · May-06-09, 10:44 AM

Originally Posted by ejames01

It isn't an opinion. It is a proven FACT that Dominoes and Little Sleezers serve crappy food. Only a disturbed individual would even dare to claim that they are the best pies that one could buy. You could buy better pizza at a gas station.

I guess you can't argue with stupid people.

**48217** · May-06-09, 08:08 PM

L C convention is at Motor City Casino this week.

**kraig** · May-20-09, 07:21 AM

I won't be surprised if someone posts this as a new thread. I figured I would post it here since there was such a good discussion about this.

May 20, 2009

4 local pies among GQ's best pizzas; Detroit No. 3

BY SYLVIA RECTOR
FREE PRESS RESTAURANT CRITIC Detroit is the third-best pizza city in America, GQ writer Alan Richman declared after traveling 20,000 miles, visiting 10 cities and tasting almost 400 pies to name the country's 25 best pizzas for the magazine's June issue.
Making the accolade sweeter, Chicago came in fourth.
New York and San Francisco were first and second.
"No city has more consistently satisfying pies than Detroit. No city executes its particular style" -- also called Sicilian or pan pizza -- "as flawlessly as Detroit," Richman wrote in his blog, an online companion to his article and his list of 25 best pizzas.
It includes four local pies:
The Gourmet Veggie at Luigi's Original in Harrison Township was No. 13. Richman called it the best vegetable pizza he tasted anywhere.

Buddy's cheese pizza was 15th. Praising the company's crusts as "one of the best in America," Richman said they were "a little better than the competition's, and almost every pizzeria I tried in Detroit did them well."

The pepperoni pizza at Tomatoes Apizza in Farmington Hills was No. 21. "The non-Sicilian crust was soft, slightly charred, and entirely appealing," he said, and he applauded the many thin slices of pepperoni allowed "to curl and crisp up in the oven." [[He despised the common local practice of hiding the slices under sauce.)

The cheese pizza with feta at Niki's in Greektown was 24th. It was that pie that convinced him of the excellence of feta as a topping, he wrote.
In an interview, he said Detroit scored so well because of the overall high quality of pizzas he ate here and because of outstanding crusts that he called "unequaled."
Richman, who won two James Beard awards this year for magazine food reporting, said he was surprised and pleased by Detroit's showing.
"I'd never met anybody who said Detroit had great pizza. ... And I was so happy, because who can imagine there are still pizza secrets out there nobody knows about?"
GQ's June issue will be on newsstands Tuesday; read the article and blog at www.gq.com.
Contact SYLVIA RECTOR: 313-222-5026 or srector@freepress.com.

**rb336** · May-20-09, 07:37 AM

seriously, haven't we all known this?
never had san francisco pizza,

for a slice, and great thin crusts NY can't be beat [[two boots is #1 to me)

**jcole** · May-20-09, 07:37 AM

Chris Chelios was just on Deminski and Doyle, and they asked him about his favorite pizza. He said that while he loves Little Caesar's, they get 15-20 pies in the locker room after every game and he's tired of it. So, his favorite is still a Chicago pizza from Giordano's. He also said he doesn't get the 'Coney Dog thing'.
I just thought it was interesting.

**kraig** · May-20-09, 07:46 AM

Originally Posted by rb336

seriously, haven't we all known this?
never had san francisco pizza,

for a slice, and great thin crusts NY can't be beat [[two boots is #1 to me)

Is there anywhere in the Metro area where someone can get some New York pizza that is an example of it? The closest I've had to New York pizza is Sbarro's and this other pizza place that was in the Ren-Cen food court that tasted just like Sbarro's, and they both sucked in my opinion.

Pizza Papalis isn't as good as Giordani's, but, it's still more than good enough to give you an example of what a Chicago Pizza is supposed to be.

**East Detroit** · May-20-09, 07:51 AM

Originally Posted by Fury13

Sorry, it's all about product and the quality of that product, not whether it's "hometown." [[In pizza as well as cars... "hometown" cuts no ice with me. Quality is what matters.) Improve the product and I'll root for it to succeed. Until that day, however, if a product persists in being lousy, I'll hope that it fails.?

Nice for you. Nice to have integrity. Not sure why you would hope something fails, but that's another story.

Thing is, I've never seen you root for anything Detroit to succeed.

Maybe you did start a thread about something you like that is hometown and I missed it, but meanwhile I will wonder why you are on DetroitYES.

Not just you, but several that do the same thing.

I guess I would take your loyal opposition thing seriously if I ever saw the positive to balance the negative.

**jcole** · May-20-09, 08:13 AM

Originally Posted by kraig

Is there anywhere in the Metro area where someone can get some New York pizza that is an example of it? The closest I've had to New York pizza is Sbarro's and this other pizza place that was in the Ren-Cen food court that tasted just like Sbarro's, and they both sucked in my opinion.

Pizza Papalis isn't as good as Giordani's, but, it's still more than good enough to give you an example of what a Chicago Pizza is supposed to be.

Tomatoes a' Pizza in Farmington Hills is supposed to be as close to a NY pie as you can get in the Detroit area

**heedus** · May-20-09, 08:32 AM

NYPD in Ann Arbor is good NY style pizza, but it's a hike from many places in metro Detroit.

**ejames01** · May-20-09, 08:39 AM

There is good Pizza to be had in Michigan but it is NOT Little Sleezers.

**kraig** · May-20-09, 09:36 AM

Thanks for the info Jcole and Heedus. I'll check out the place in Farmington Hills this weekend. I'll check out the spot in AA during football season when I'm up there, for hopefully [[that's for a whole other thread), the redemption of Rich Rodriguez.

**slick** · May-20-09, 09:46 AM

http://www.freep.com/article/2009052...mong+GQ+s+best

just adding more pizza grease to the fire!
You are all correct.

**rb336** · May-20-09, 11:01 AM

Originally Posted by kraig

Is there anywhere in the Metro area where someone can get some New York pizza that is an example of it? The closest I've had to New York pizza is Sbarro's and this other pizza place that was in the Ren-Cen food court that tasted just like Sbarro's, and they both sucked in my opinion.

Pizza Papalis isn't as good as Giordani's, but, it's still more than good enough to give you an example of what a Chicago Pizza is supposed to be.

there's my cousin's ny pizza in BH at woodward/sq lake. pretty good approximation

I know people who say Papalis is better than giodani's but not as good as... [[fill in the blank, reverse it, etc.)

**Fury13** · May-20-09, 10:13 PM

Originally Posted by East Detroit

Nice for you. Nice to have integrity. Not sure why you would hope something fails, but that's another story.

Thing is, I've never seen you root for anything Detroit to succeed.

Maybe you did start a thread about something you like that is hometown and I missed it, but meanwhile I will wonder why you are on DetroitYES.

Here's the point: if something is dogshit but it's from Detroit, that doesn't mean it's great just because it's from Detroit. It's still dogshit.

And I've been posting on various versions of this forum since '99, so the "rah rah, Detroit will be great in five years" schtick has worn thin many times over.

**Detroitej72** · May-20-09, 10:19 PM

Originally Posted by Fury13

Here's the point: if something is dogshit but it's from Detroit, that doesn't mean it's great just because it's from Detroit. It's still dogshit.

And I've been posting on various versions of this forum since '99, so the "rah rah, Detroit will be great in five years" schtick has worn thin many times over.

So why do you keep reading this forum?

**Fury13** · May-20-09, 10:27 PM

Information. Dialogue. Ideas.

**East Detroit** · May-20-09, 10:41 PM

Originally Posted by Fury13

Here's the point: if something is dogshit but it's from Detroit, that doesn't mean it's great just because it's from Detroit. It's still dogshit.

And I've been posting on various versions of this forum since '99, so the "rah rah, Detroit will be great in five years" schtick has worn thin many times over.

No kidding.

Are you just the self-nominated negative balance to those you see as blindly loyal to Detroit, or is there something you like about Detroit or its products?

**heedus** · May-21-09, 08:53 AM

I have to be honest, this one caught me a little off guard [[maybe home field advantage?): Dominoâ€™s Pizza ranked No. 1 in University of Michigan customer satisfaction survey

See Crain's for full story: http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...FREE/905209950.

I'm telling you, I'm not crazy. D-town has a legitimate shot at the title of Pizza Capital of the United States.

**Fury13** · May-21-09, 10:35 AM

Originally Posted by East Detroit

Are you just the self-nominated negative balance to those you see as blindly loyal to Detroit...

Yes. Especially when, during a topic of discussion, it's evident that Detroit absolutely pales in comparison to another city or region that does that particular thing better.

Just because it's our hometown doesn't make it great. It just makes it home.

Originally Posted by East Detroit

...or is there something you like about Detroit or its products?

Sure. I think Detroit music can't be beat, in nearly any era or genre. Detroit is truly one of the most important five or six cities for music in the world.

I eat Better Made potato chips. I loved Red Pelican mustard. I really liked the old Velvet peanut better [[the original recipe didn't include sugar). I enjoy a coney once in awhile. I think Buddy's pizza at the original location is world-class [[and Cloverleaf and Loui's are right up there too). A Sanders cream puff-hot fudge sundae would taste wonderful right now.

Vernor's was great when it was made with stevia and had a stronger ginger taste and more carbonation.... now, it's not so much.

I think the automobiles of the '50s, '60s, and '70s provide a fun nostalgia vibe [[but epitomize utter uselessness for today's economy and lifestyle). I like the Penobscot, Guardian, and Fisher buildings. There is some great architecture here, especially from the 1910-1930 era.

Most of all, I admire the resiliency and grit of metro Detroiters.

**Patrick** · May-21-09, 04:13 PM

Some salad tosser from Houston had to bitch asbout it. It's awesome..

http://blogs.houstonpress.com/eating...es_25_best.php

The only surprise at the top? Detroit at number three, showing that the city is capable of doing something other than destroying the economy and rusting.

**xphillipjrx** · May-22-09, 10:13 PM

Originally Posted by Fury13

Hungry Howie's slathers butter on their pizza crusts, for god's sake. I mean, butter, not olive oil... Jeezus! Nauseating. Sorry, I believe there's a right way and a wrong way to do things... I hope they go bust.

Howie's puts butter on the crust IF YOU ORDER BUTTER OR BUTTER/PARMESAN CRUST. It's not standard procedure to put butter on the crust. I first started eating Howie's when I was a kid and the family across the street would buy them. I grew up in Southfield and the closest Howie's for years was the one in Redford next to Cheryl's School of Dance. The girls across the street took tap lessons and their parents would pick up a pizza before coming home. We starting getting Howie's once my sister took lessons at Cheryl's.

I worked at Caesars for seven years during high school and college. I worked at Pizza Station #1 on Telegraph S of 10 mile. Mike and Marion Illitch would come in for dinner on Sundays. That restaurant was one of the first places Petr Klima went when he first got here. I also worked at the Caesars on South U in Ann Arbor during college. Debbie Schlussel worked there the summer of 1988.

Originally Posted by reddog289

Where is Happys Pizza in the mix?

I live in Chicago and there is a Happy's [[63rd & Damen) that opened last week Tuesday. They said they plan to open 20 locations in Chicago. I've been waiting for a good Sicilian pizza place to come to Chicago. BTW there is a Hungry Howie's in Schererville, IN.