Pepe's Field Trip - Saturday February 16th Time TBD

[polishpizza]

I'm starting this thread to see if there is any interest in meeting at Pepe's in February for a PM get together.  I'm throughing this date out as I feel you have to start somewhere and no date will work for everyone.  Let's get a list going for interest first then we can nail down time and change date if need be.  My thought is we go there and enjoy the pizza and also share some knowledge about the place, the pizza and the process if we have any senior members coming.  This is just an idea.  Of course no trip to Pepe's would be complete without a visit to Libby's next door.  Just say'n

[tinroofrusted]

I would love to go, but alas I live in California and can't make the trip.  I used to live in CT many years ago, and went to Pepe's several times while I lived there.  It is one of the most memorable pizzas in my mind. 

If you do get a group together it would be great if you could make a video of your trip and post it for the rest of the forum so they can get an idea of what the place and pizza is like.  Just an idea. 

Regards,

TinRoof

[bfguilford]

polishpizza: Thanks for starting this. It looks like we've got a couple of people working on this.

deb415611 and I had just started to plan a 3-4 stop New Haven tour, probably in the spring (to avoid waiting in the inevitable long lines in the middle of the winter). We're looking at choosing from Pepe's, Sally's, Modern, Bar, as well as Zuppardi's in West Haven. I'm looking at all their business hours, and who takes reservations (the Big 3 don't, but it looks like Bar and Zuppardi's do) and I will start a new thread on that later today.

Not trying to steal your thunder... we just want to make it more worthwhile for people who would be coming from a distance, and give them more time to plan their trip. I will probably end up putting a poll together for dates.

Barry

[polishpizza]

Fine with me

[333meg]

I so, so, so, soooooo want to go! I live in Ohio though.Pepe's is on my dream list of pizzeria's to try out. I had even considered getting on a plane to try it. So maybe...I'll be tuning to see what's emerging as the plan. I would be in pizza heaven indeed!!!

[scott123]

Alright, the New Haven pizza guru has spoken

http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,23014.msg235457.html#msg235457

and given Yonkers his blessing.  Any chance for a Yonkers trip?   We can do Yonkers and Johnny's (Mount Vernon) at the same time. Johnny's is only about 10 minutes away and is Jeff Varasano's favorite pizzera (as of 2008). Johnny's has been on my must visit list for ages.

I can do the hour drive to Yonkers, and, while business might take me to New Haven at some point, I'm not sure I can swing the 4 hour round trip just for pizza.

Think about it. I'll probably be doing it no matter what, so, whoever wants to join me is welcome.

[polishpizza]

I'm 95% in as long as my kids vacation isn't that week(end) I have to check with the boss...

[scott123]

PP, I'm flexible with the date.  Just tossing it out there to see if there's any interest.

[scott r]

Its cool that you can hit them both, because my feeling on johnny's is that its the closest pizza to new haven style than anything else in the NY/NJ area.   Cant wait to hear reports back on which you prefer.     

[scott123]

Scott, rather than consider Johnny's to be very NHish, I'd rather consider NH to be very NYish  - at least, classically NYish (of which Johnny's is a prime example).

Correct me if I'm wrong here, but the dryness of a coal oven seems to impact the pizzas more at their perimeters than at their cores. At 600+ temps, I don't see moisture collecting on either coal oven or deck oven floors. Once dough meets hearth, the dryness of the oven air should have no impact on the undercrust texture.  It seems to me that the biggest difference between NH coal and high temp classic (pre-1990) NY deck oven pizza is the crunchiness of the rim. The non rim area of the archetypal NY style pizza that I grew up with is almost identical to Pepe's non rim area. Pizza town's non rim- very similar to Pepe's non rim (but not as good).  The 4 minute pizza I make now- stylistically identical.

For me, 'authentic' NY style + a crunchy rim (NH) is WAY more NY style than the dollar pizza/midtown Ray's abominations you find all over NY now- at least going by my generation's definition for NY style.

I'm not necessarily disagreeing with you're feelings about Johnny's. It's just that if any co-opting is going to happen, I'd rather see NH's similarities to classic NY style be emphasized rather than Johnny's similarities to NH 

[scott r]

You have a good point.   I think I phrased it that way because since peps's opened in 1925 I consider it one of the oldest pizzerias in the united states AND the better than any of the oldest pizzerias in NY.    

[scott r]

I need a history lesson.... pepe's is still in its original 1925 location... what other pizzerias are older (that are still in the same location with the same oven?)   

[scott123]

I think I phrased it that way because since peps's opened in 1925 I consider it one of the oldest pizzerias in the united states AND the better than any of the oldest pizzerias in NY.   

Oh, you're preaching to the choir there.  Lombardi's (1905) and Totonno's (1924) are an embarrassment. At least, they are presently.  5-10 years ago, they might have given Pepe's a run for their money, but not now.  Not the Pepe's pie I tasted.

Just to be clear, while places like Pizza Town have a trivial level of historical significance. (first slices in NJ), from a historical perspective, NY style deck oven pizza, even the 'classic' 'archetypal' pre-1990 pizza that I referred to earlier, is relatively meaningless.  At least, meaningless in the circa xxxx context.  The Neapolitans invented the tomato and cheese pizza, and the NY coal folks were the first to bring it to the new world, but the deck ovens put pizza on the map, and, for around 30 years, consistently made pizza that blew 99.999% of what passes for pizza today out of the water. It's these holdouts (Johnny's, Pizza Town, New Park) that are dying embers in a what used to be a roaring pizza paradise. NY is a vibrant domestic Neapolitan mecca, but for NY style, it's close to extinction. After tasting Pepe's and doing some research on CT pizza, I can't help but feel that NH didn't experience the same chain induced downfall that NY did- that NH isn't overrun by dollar pizza. Or maybe they did slide a bit, but not as much. Even if the stunning photos I'm seeing of CT pizza are completely nonrepresentational, from my Pepe's experience alone, I can say that NH has a massive leg up on present day NY.

The NY style in the NY area candle will never completely go dim, but I don't think it's going to improve much any time soon.  I would guess that, for the next 10 or 15 years, individuals in other parts of the U.S./world are going to have to hold the torch.  Then, when great NY style pizza has almost completely disappeared from NY, you'll see a resurgence. Like real ale, you'll have 'real pizza' and it will be big again.  That's how I see it.

[scott r]

Oh, you're preaching to the choir there.  Lombardi's (1905) and Totonno's (1924) are an embarrassment. At least, they are presently.  5-10 years ago, they might have given Pepe's a run for their money, but not now.  Not the Pepe's pie I tasted.

I was deep into my pizza making/tasting obsession 5-10 years ago, and I can assure you that pepe's was better than lombardi's and totonno's even then!  


So... did you get to sample johnnies yet?   im curious how you think it compared to pepe's