Chicago has deep dish. New York has a foldable thin crust. So, does Massachusetts need its own style of pizza?
State legislators are considering a bill that would declare bar pizza, “a type of pizza characterized by its thin, crispy crust, individual 10-inch pan size, edge-to-edge cheese, and a unique preparation style common to the south shore region,” as the official pizza style of Massachusetts. The legislation, filed by state Sen. Michael Brady, D-Brockton, marks the first time the state has attempted to designate a Massachusetts state pizza.
In Franklin County, however, pizza makers aren’t sure the south shore bar-style is most representative of Massachusetts as a whole.
“We do Greek-style pizza here and most of the places in Greenfield make Greek pizza,” said Costas Alimonos, owner of Georgio’s Pizza in Greenfield. “Greenfield is very popular for the Greek-style pizzas … It’s a big Greek pizza town.”
Of the 12 pizzerias in Franklin County that either list the style they make on their website or the Recorder was able to reach over the phone, Greek-style is the most popular, making up 58% of pizza options. New York-style came in second with 25% and wood-fired was the third most popular with 16%.
Lalo Patel, an employee at Goodie’s Restaurant in Greenfield, said he believed Greek-style pizza, like what is served by Goodie’s, would be better suited to represent the state, given the large number of Greek restaurants in the state.
“It would be very appropriate; there’s a lot of Greek-style restaurants here,” Patel said.
He said Greek pizza has a different look and taste from other styles. Greek pizza is proofed and cooked in an oiled, shallow round metal pan rather than stretched and baked on the floor of the oven like other styles do.
“It’s a proper recipe,” Patel said.
“What you see in the front from when we take the pizza dough out of the fridge and put the toppings on, it’s an eight-hour process before. When you make the dough, you cut it and put it in the proofer. The dough rises, then you stretch it in the pizza pan, and then it’s another three, four or five hours before you can add sauce and cheese and be able to serve it,” Alimonos said. “The whole process is different.”
The result: a pizza popular all over the East Coast, Alimonos said.
“It’s thicker, it’s crispier, it has more bread and is more fluffy,” Alimonos said.
While not a traditional pizzeria, Flis Market in Erving makes and serves pizzas on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Co-owner Liz Flis said they make their own dough and sauce and cook it in a wood-fired oven.
“A little bit of char is a good thing. It gives character, and the people of Massachusetts have character,” Flis said. “People have spice, you need something with character and we think wood-fired pizza has that character.”
Flis said everyone has their own pizza preferences and choosing just one style to represent the state is difficult, but she’s not convinced bar pizza should be the official pizza of Massachusetts.
“People love all sorts of styles,” Flis said.
“It depends on what you’re in the mood for,” Alimonos added.
Regardless of style, Flis said that what makes a good pizza is the people and ingredients behind it.
“We believe in high-quality ingredients and local pizza,” Flis said. “That’s what makes our pizza stand out.”
Patel added that pizzas are generally all made with the same ingredients: flour, sugar, cheese and tomato sauce. As long as ingredients are fresh and not frozen, the pizza should turn out well.
“The ingredients are the same, the only thing different is how you treat it,” Patel said.
Senate Bill 2548, An Act designating bar pizza as the official pizza of the Commonwealth, is currently being reviewed by the Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight. For more information, visit malegislature.gov