The Great Pizza Debate: New York versus Chicago

Minor league baseball affiliates of the Chicago Cubs and New York Mets are hosting dueling pizza nights in separate ballparks to settle the great pizza debate of Chicago-style deep-dish versus New York-style thin crust.

There are many passionate food debates in this country. The current (and long-running) debate raging on Twitter is whether a hot dog is or isn’t a sandwich. Last May, Merriam-Webster declared a hot dog a sandwich. In the fall, The Atlantic used a four-point method of the characteristics of a sandwich to conclude that a hot dog is not, in fact, a sandwich.

Hot dogs, for some reason, seem to spur the most ardent disputes. If you order a hot dog in Chicago, you can top it with yellow mustard, chopped onions, sweet pickle relish, maybe a tomato slice, but you better not ask for ketchup. Ketchup on a hot dog is a no-no, not just in Chicago, but for many people around the country, including former president Barack Obama, celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain, and, of course, Dirty Harry.

Do you put salt in white rice? How about salt on watermelon? Which is the better brownie piece, the corner edge or the center-cut? Does the ketchup go on the fries or on the side for dipping? For that matter, is it okay to dip your fries in your milkshake? When you eat a bagel, do you cut it in halves first? President Trump recently committed the double-sin of ordering 28-day aged New York Strip well done, then dipped it in ketchup. If that’s not grounds for impeachment, I don’t know what is.

Of all the great food debates, one of the longest-running arguments is about pizza, and no, it’s not whether it’s okay to put pineapple on a pizza, although that is something people also disagree on. No, the big pizza debate is the style. Do you favor the deep-dish Chicago-style or the thin crust New York-style?

It should be mentioned that not all pizza in Chicago is deep-dish; it’s just that deep-dish gets all the publicity. The origin of the deep-dish pizza is in dispute, but many believe it was invented at Pizzeria Uno in Chicago, in 1943. Whether it was Uno’s founder, Ike Sewell, or the pizzeria’s original chef, Rudy Malnati, who came up with the deep-dish pie is uncertain.

The deep-dish is baked in a round, steel pan, with tall sides. It looks like a cake pan. The crust is thick and tall on the edges to create a bowl for the cheese, the desired toppings, then the sauce on top. It takes a while to cook and is a meal in and of itself. You’re not going to grab a “quick slice” of Chicago-style deep-dish pizza. When you get the deep-dish, you need to sit down with a knife and fork, take your time, and savor it.

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By contrast, you can grab a slice of New York pizza when you need a quick fix or have somewhere to get to. New York claims the first pizzeria in the U.S., which was founded by Gennaro Lombardi in New York’s Little Italy in 1905. Even back then, a person could buy the whole pizza or just get a slice. The New York slice features a thin crust that is both crisp and pliable and can be folded and eaten with one hand. Atop the crust goes the sauce, then the mozzarella, then the toppings, in that order. You don’t eat a New York slice with a knife and fork, you fold it in your hand and let the grease run down your forearm and drip off your elbow.

The debate between Chicago deep-dish and New York thin-crust has been raging for years. Former Daily Show host Jon Stewart had an epic New York-style rant (with New York-style NSFW language) against what he considers the abomination that is Chicago-style deep-dish pizza. He compared it to “an above-ground marinara swimming pool for rats” and said it’s not pizza, it’s “tomato soup in a bread bowl.” Giordano’s responded by saying the New York-style pizza isn’t pizza, it’s a topping that could go on top of the Chicago-style pie.

In a quest to settle the great pizza debate, two minor league teams are engaging in a promotion to determine which pizza is the best in the world. On August 4, the Class-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs, the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, will be the “Deep-Dishers” for one game. They will host a pizza party that aims to prove that Chicago-style deep-dish pizza is the pizza of choice. On the same night, the Brooklyn Cyclones will be the “Slices” and promote the thin crust, New York-style pizza. The Cyclones are the Short Season Class A affiliate of the New York Mets.

In their separate ballparks, players, front office staff, and fans will determine which style of pizza is superior. They’ll engage in a variety of competitions to determine the Pizza Capital of the World. The president/general manager of the Myrtle Beach Pelicans was quoted as saying, “The Chicago artisans have truly perfected the pizza pie,” while also acknowledging that he also appreciates the crisp, Brooklyn slice.

For Myrtle Beach, this pizza competition is one of their Foodie Friday promotions. Pelicans fans will be able to enjoy a specialty food item for every Friday home game. They also have Craft Beer Tuesdays, Wiener Wednesdays, and Thirsty Thursdays. The Pelicans have finished in the Top 100 Stadium Experiences in all of sports for six straight years according to Stadium Journey Magazine.

The Brooklyn Cyclones also have an extensive promotional schedule. This includes “Turn Back the Clock” Mondays, T-Shirt Tuesdays, Wiener Wednesdays, Jersday Thursdays, and Fireworks Fridays. Like many minor league teams across the country, the Pelicans and Cyclones promote a fun and entertaining environment for baseball fans of all ages. The great pizza debate on August 4 may not put an end to the Chicago-style versus New York-style pizza competition, but it’s still a battle worth having.

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