Pizza Party


As a former resident of both New York and Chicago, I’ve purposely laid a bit low on the whole Wine Country pizza debate.

For one thing, the definition of pizza ’round these parts is almost impossible to nail down. Is a salad on top of pizza crust a pizza? Is goat cheese and arugula? And, come on, what’s with the whole wheat crust thing?

The other issue? I’ve been mostly underwhelmed with the cardboard and gluey cheese horrors I’ve frequently found being passed off as pizza. Sorry, but putting spaghetti sauce on a frozen crust ain’t pizza. Yep. I just threw down that glove.

There are some notable exceptions:
Rosso’s wood-fired pizzas. Fresh mozzarella, garlic, tomatoes-come on.
NYPie: Solid New York style. But no slices?
Bistro Don Giovanni: Fig and prosciutto.
Odyssey: Arugula was never so good on a pizza
Mombo’s: A slice of pesto never lets me down

So I pose the question to you, BiteClubbers. What’s the best slice of pie in the North Bay? White or red, clams or pepperoni? From New York style to California, Chicago or Sicilian, what rocks our little corner of the world? Is a wood-fired oven a necessity? Am I just crazy? Is there some truly outstanding pizza to be found in Sonoma?

Have at it.

Need somewhere to start? Peter Lowell’s in Sebastopol throws open the doors on Oct. 6 (Saturday) and promises to have some killer pies. Check out my preview. Or, be the first to lend your opinion about this mostly-vegetarian, all-organic newcomer.