Note: Every Monday, my post focuses on the 30 Week Blog Challenge. Want to learn more Click here!
Pizza.
Hands down, my favorite food.
My mom tells stories of me teething on pizza crust, so my love affair started early, it seems.
I grew up near New York City, so as a child, I received an incredible culinary education when it comes to pizza. Many memories were created over a pie from Gino’s, Carlo’s or Ponza’s with family and friends. Thin-crusted, large slices stacked with so much mozzarella cheese you had to fold it to make sure it didn’t all slide on the floor. My friends and I knew experienced our first taste of freedom when our parents would allow us to walk down to one of these places and get slices for 50 cents a piece–add a can of Coke and the whole meal was like $2.25 with tax. Unreal.
It’s been more than 25 years since those glory days.
I moved to New England when I was 14 years old and pizza has never been the same. Other places claim to have New York style pizza and a few have even come close. In Vermont, well, it was pointless to even begin to search for a decent pizza. It may sound silly, but it was a tough transition. Ultimately, I learned if I wanted to ever eat pizza again with any level of enjoyment, I’d have to let go of my memories.
I had to settle for a mediocre substitute.
Years later, in Maine, there was a pizza stand on Old Orchard Beach that almost made me weep with the joy of reuniting with a long-lost friend when Jon and I accidentally discovered it. The family was from Long Island, I believe. They “got” it.
Here in Ohio, there are two local places that have “New York” and “New Jersey” style pizza. And, while they are decent, they can’t compare with what I remember growing up. Maybe the comparison isn’t even fair. Those pizzas not only had the experts preparing them, but an intangible ingredient that made them so fantastic–nostalgia.
Today I have new favorite pizza places and have even dabbled in thick-crust pizza (I know, it’s sacrilegious for a New York girl!). Age and wisdom have shown me I can still enjoy a delicious pie, even if it will never measure up to my memories. I mean, why deny myself of something good just because it isn’t perfect, right? 
Hmm, now I’m thinking I may need to change my dinner plans for tonight. Pizza anyone?
Related articles
- 30 Week Blogging Challenge – Week 15 – Your Celebrity Crush (momgetsreal.com)
- 30 Week Blogging Challenge – Week 14 – Things You Love (momgetsreal.com)
- 30 Week Blogging Challenge – Week 13 – Something You Want to Buy (momgetsreal.com)
The post 30 Week Blog Challenge – Week 16 – A Favorite Food appeared first on Enjoying the Magic.