Of Pizza and Cincinnati

Weekends in Cincinnati are fun. There's nothing better than Skyline Chili. There's a time for hearty, meaty, beany Texas chili. Then there's time for something better.

I went 180 on chili this weekend though for LaRosa's pizza, another Cincinnati specialty. There is no place better in the tri-state area to have this than the Boudinot location. Good atmosphere, a friendly community, and good food marked by the sweet pizza sauce. The better part, is you can chalk up their traditional style pizza as thin crust, because it is. When you're not going to Chicago, and you're not dipping in garlic butter (mmm...) why not just save a few calories and grab a thin crust?

Meg, me, and two friends went for the Buddy card (a must if you're in Cincinnati often) and got a deep dish cheese pizza (free) and a traditional crust chicken and pepperoni pizza. Poifect! With breadsticks and a tip, you get out around $27. Ugh, but I'm glad I rode my bike before then, because it was filling.

Speaking of the two toppings, they're kind of at the opposite ends of the spectrum. When you think of ordering a pizza for a group, what do you get? One cheese and a pepperoni, probably. What do 95% of the pizza places do (unfortunately, LaRosa's as well)? They put the pepperoni under the cheese. It blends right in with the cheese. That's bull. If you're doing pizza, put your pepperoni on top. It gives the meal a crisper taste and provides a better presentation than the three rings of dough, sauce, and cheese.

Chicken on the other hand. It's thicker than pepperoni, a more distinct taste, and is typically cut so you're getting more meat bang for the buck. Why pepperoni is used more often than bacon, sausage, or chicken confuses me. If you're going to get meat, then put that stuff on top or put on some real meat.