| When temperatures drop and the snow begins to fly, those hearty, outdoor types strap on their skates, snowshoes or skis and head out to have their winter adventures. Those of us who are less ambitious use the reduced visibility and sub-zero wind chill as an excuse to hibernate. But even the most devout couch potato has to eat sometime – which is why pizza delivery was invented.
In the hopes of guiding you through your lazy winter eating, the intrepid editorial staff at Fast Forward bit the bullet and waded through the 32 pages of pizza listings in the Calgary yellow pages. (Truth be told, it probably had more to do with getting free lunch, but that doesn’t make our pizza experiment any less scientific.)
The plan was this – once a week for five weeks, a pizza joint would be chosen from the phone book and we would sample their wares. In interest of fairness, we would order the same pie every time (half pepperoni and mushroom and half vegetarian) and the company would have to provide citywide delivery, so anyone, anywhere in the city can order a pie in an emergency. Woody Allen once said, "Pizza is a lot like sex. When it's good, it's really good. When it's bad, it's still pretty good." Over the course of five weeks, we learned this wasn’t necessarily true.
WEEK ONE
· Deep Dish Chicago Pizza (531-3131).
· Estimated delivery time: 45 minutes to one hour.
· Actual delivery time: One hour and nine minutes.
· One large 16-piece square pizza costs $22.47 (this includes a $1 split topping charge).
A square pizza makes for more surface area, but in the case of this pizza, it also meant more grease. Editor Maureen McNamee used a paper towel to dab off the extra, and news writer Amy Steele was heard to be saying, "I think I actually have a sheen of grease on my face." Still, nobody went hungry, although theatre, books and lifestyles editor (and resident vegetarian) Martin Morrow admitted that the toppings on the "Earth Harvest" side were only "so-so." The cheese was crispy but the crust was not, leading us to conclude that this was the quintessential three-pint pizza, or the kind of pie you would order for your friends when they help you move. "This would congeal nicely for breakfast," said publisher Ian Chiclo.
WEEK TWO
· Boston Pizza (248-4848).
· Estimated delivery time: one hour.
· Actual delivery time: One hour exactly.
· One large pizza costs $31.14 (this includes a $3 delivery charge).
After getting no answer from several pizza joints, we were elated when someone at Boston Pizza picked up the phone. When the pizza arrived, the pepperoni was crispy (a big bonus for McNamee), the sauce was tangy and the fact that the crust wasn’t as doughy as last week’s was encouraging. "This is the pizza you would eat if you had the family over," said Steele. Although it was less greasy, Chiclo said that he preferred the fare from Deep Dish Chicago, but some of us suspect that has a lot to do with the fact that you get less pizza for more money from the folks at BP.
WEEK THREE
· Athens Pizza (228-9414).
· Estimated delivery time: 45 minutes to one hour.
· Actual delivery time: one hour exactly.
· Two 12-inch pizzas cost $26.67.
When we called Athens Pizza in the second week of pizza trials, they told us to call back in 30 minutes. A return call yielded no results, but did pique our curiosity enough to call back on week three. As it turns out, it was worth the wait.
A better value than Boston Pizza, the veggie pizza may have been soggy and covered in pineapple, but the meat eaters agreed that the pepperoni had good flavour. Steele rated it as the best pizza to date, exclaiming, "This crust kicks ass!" Athens may have more grease than Boston Pizza, but it has much less than Deep Dish Chicago. The fact that McNamee had three pieces is certainly a compliment, and Chiclo admitted that there was no gimmicky tagline he could ascribe to Athens Pizza – "This pizza is just for eating."
WEEK FOUR
· Awesome Pizza (220-1700).
· Estimated delivery time: one hour to one hour and 15 minutes.
· Actual delivery time: one hour and 27 minutes.
· Two 12-inch pizzas cost $26.75.
Despite the free delivery, Awesome pizza did not live up to its name. The box opened to reveal a classic looking greasy pizza and we quickly learned that the less toppings there were, the more obvious it was that the crust was too doughy. "This is like eating bread with some topping on it," said McNamee, and Morrow was quick to agree. The vegetarian pizza was mushy, there were too many onions and the veggies were too small. "More vegetables and less bread," said Morrow, although Chiclo astutely noted that kids, with their less discriminating palettes, would happily stuff themselves on it. Not us, however. This was the only week we had leftovers and they went in the garbage.
WEEK FIVE
· Little Caesars (244-2777).
· Estimated delivery time: one hour.
· Actual delivery time: 37 minutes.
· Two large pizzas cost $22.99.
Little Caesars certainly proved to be the droopiest pizza of the bunch and the most disappointing for vegetarian. Morrow was quick to point out the "old, desiccated" tomatoes and many of the veggies tasted like they were past their prime. For the most part, the crust wasn’t too doughy, but the pepperoni pizza actually had two slices where the dough wasn’t cooked at all. Everyone agreed that this was a pizza to eat while it was hot, because it certainly didn’t cool down very well.
So, after five short weeks, we declared Athens Pizza the hands-down winner, but this certainly isn’t a definitive victory. First of all, our stipulation for citywide delivery excludes several fabulous independent pie-slingers who only have a five-kilometre service radius. Secondly, despite phoning during business hours, nobody answered when we called A Milano Pizza, Euro Pizza, Famous Pizza, Americano Pizza or Best Choice Pizza.
There you have it, winter homebodies – be careful where you call for pizza, because not every slice is created equal. |
Copyright ©2005 FFWD. All rights reserved.