"In a city of expats, regional pizza styles spar for real estate from one block to another: Add Chicago deep dish to your bingo card, but also Chicago tavern style. Sicilian and Neapolitan pies come classico or "neo," crowned with peppers and pineapple and, God forbid, ranch dressing. Portland pizzaiolos make their best attempt at New Haven's elusive approach, with a trademark chew many attribute to coal-fired ovens (impossible to replicate in the PNW). And toppings run the gamut from mole to morello cherries."
"Identifying a style for Portland, however, is a whole other conversation. Portland-style pizzerias often (not always) use wood-fired ovens, sourdough crusts with Oregon-grown flour, niche produce. At Lovely's Fifty Fifty, pies may arrive topped with spring stinging nettles or fava greens, or fall chanterelles and spigarello; at Tastebud, summertime Sweet Sue peach pizzas become autumnal grape and leek numbers. So when comparing apple (topped) sourdough neo-Neapolitans and orange (cheesed) New York slices, how do you choose the Portland pizza to rule them all?"
Regional and international pizza styles coexist throughout the city, from Chicago deep dish and tavern pies to Sicilian and Neapolitan variations topped with unconventional ingredients. Portland makers attempt New Haven–style chew despite lacking coal-fired ovens and embrace a wide range of toppings from mole to morello cherries. Portland-style pizzerias often favor wood-fired ovens, sourdough crusts using Oregon-grown flour, and produce-focused, seasonal combinations. Establishments such as Lovely's Fifty Fifty and Tastebud showcase nettles, chanterelles, peaches, and grapes according to season. The question of Portland's definitive pizza centers on whether local identity or traditional pizza qualities should prevail. A local tasting selected a single pizzeria as the winner, and readers can vote in a Pizza Week bracket.
Read at Portland Monthly
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