'za life...

there's gotta be someone out there who collects pizza boxes, eh??? or at least snaps of them??? will google...

vancouver's pizza landscape has changed quite a bit over the years and it's something i've followed w/ my eyes, heart, and stomach. the proliferation of dollar slice joints has recently been usurped by a classier brand of pizzerias—think thin crust, neapolitan-style (or inspired) 'zas to be eaten w/ cutlery and wolfed down w/ vino—finally matching the pies coming out of toronto at restaurants like terroni or pizzeria libretto. while crisp/semi-charred shells and liberal toppings can be wonderful (esp accompanied by the wet, hot, vinegary chili peppers at terroni, who's got that ish on the coast??? dry chili flakes are nice, but please... step it up!!!), i still prefer something a little more soft, doughy, and cloud-like. food snobs laugh if you will, but F.M. classic pizza is the staple of my west coast pizza experience. i believe it used to be on dunsmuir (in between seymour and richards) back in the day, but it's been nestled at 589 west pender (former home of record shop row in the 1990s) for a good number of years... hella consistent, there's something about their tomato sauce (and simple, louisiana-style hot sauce) that reels me in slice after slice (i've definitely filled out a few of their buy 10 get 1 free cards and will champion it against their next door competitor—or any local "dollar" slice—till the end of time). i usually opt for F.M.'s peperoni, mushroom, sausage (or ham/pineapple), but pesto is a nice veg alternative (and hella greasy FYI, no surprise there)... remember, this is pizza for under $2 ("fat and filling," says my fat and full stomach) and according to their advert (and pizza boxes, pictured above) they also make "low fat pizza & thin crust." hmm... something to try. ah, probably not. pretty partial to making pizzas of the thinner variety at home (w/ the oven blasting as high as it can go, a little trick i picked up from master 'za maestro, decaf); ingredients (like prosciutto and olives) picked up at local italian grocers w/ ash's homemade crust... oh my!@#$%!!! like roti (something i'll post about more extensively at a later date), no pizzas are created equal. it's their varied nuance and details that keep me coming back for more... any which way, 'za should be made fresh (and never reheated up front, colour me odd that way, leftovers, of course, a ok!@#$%!!!), consumed w/ the swiftness (don't forget to chew), and preferably, shared w/ friends. what's your favourite 'za??? (PIZZA) PEACE

*shout out to saskatchewan's western pizza ("all-dressed," esp pre re-branding), abruzzo, bitondo's, and north york pizza pizza circa '86-'89 (don't laugh, and yes, hard to believe now, but shit was real!!!)...