From my observations of living in California for 15 years and now Reno for 2 years ( a Los Angeles, Sacramento, Bay area suburb now with transplants) The main thing that is commonly asked for by Californians are lots of toppings and I mean lots - double and even triple- on a pizza both exotic and common ones. Next is they will load 1/2 a pie with double or more toppings and leave the other 1/2 sauce and cheese. We are often asked to make 1/4 or 1 slice of different toppings on a pie. We only allow 1/2's. Most of these requests come from CA or Reno natives. Reno has becoming a CA suburb for years and is really hitting high gear today with mass exodus to a slower, less crowded,cheaper, lifestyle. When we get a cheese pie order it is 90%+ a sure bet it is from someone from the Northeast.
When I hit CA in 1979 pizza there was so different that I stopped calling it pizza. I spent 5 years on my first CA residency in SF and Sonoma County and never found a pizza that made me want to come back for another one. Toppings were piled on at 3-5 times the amount of what I was use to, shops allowed 1/2, 1/4 of the pizzas to have different toppings, crusts were tasteless, soggy, sauce was amped up with spices beyond extreme to my norm. They were always undercooked. These observations were based on what was normal to my roots growing up in the 1950's-70's NJ/NYC pizza world where cheese pies were #1 and 1 toppings ok and 2 the max. I have yet to find a CA pizza that makes me want to make it a regular stop. My travels have been limited to SF, Sonoma County, and SACTO
When I go home to NJ/NYC today I find more and more deck oven pizzerias following in the mega/exotic toppings, and allowing 1/2, 1/4 pie toppings. Crusts today are also more bland than I grew up with and find most pizzerias have gone way downhill. It use to be you could walk in any pizzeria in Essex County NJ and get a decent to great pie. No more. You have to know where you are going or it will be a big let down to what I grew up with. Families don't run pizzerias like they use to and hiring off the street of unskilled pizza people has caused it to slide big time. On a Nationwide view IMO the internet has caused regional foods, music, to be easily accessed vs. having to move there to experience it and thus a generic product is becoming more the norm everywhere. We now have so many franchise pizzerias in Reno and many claim east coast, CA, roots. You tell me what is the difference today with things
I give up with it all. I make the pizza I like and that is the end of it. How I got there and how I do it can be classified any way you want. I don't care cause I like it
This a CA/Hawaii or maybe it is based out of Alabama.... chain example here in Reno.
https://www.yelp.com/biz/longboards-beach-fired-pizza-reno?osq=Longboard+Pizza
