Round 1: Troy
The Troy bracket.
The opening round of the Tournament of Pizza heads to Troy. Lots of favorites in this bracket. The matchups: DeFazio's vs. Red Front and Knotty Pine vs. I Love NY.
Let's go to the results.
| DeFazio's | 0 |
| Red Front | 3 |
| Post game: This was quite the upset, especially since the famed DeFazio's pizza didn't score a point. On reviewing the judge comments, though, it doesn't seem that DeFazio's lost so much as Red Front made an especially strong showing. DeFazio's was praised by the judges for its "good chewy cheese and crust combo" and it's good "oregano [and] umami flavors." But Red Front wowed the judges with its "bready and good" crust which one judge described as "crisp on outside, but fluffy as a pillow inside." Said another judge of Red Front's pizza: "simply delicious." One thing that might have done in DeFazio's was its ablility to hold up after being transported form the shop. Wrote one judge of DeFazio's: "would be better hot." | |
| Knotty Pine | 0 |
| I Love NY | 3 |
| Post game: This was another 3-nil contest, but not nearly as close as DeFazio's vs. Red Front. The judges enjoyed I Love's "crazy sweet but nicely flavored sauce" and "all that" texture. Knotty Pine didn't fare so well. Judges complained about its "funky" cheese and "dry" texture. Wrote one judge of KP: "please don't make me eat this again." | |
So, after a very strong showing Round 1, Red Front moves on to meet I Love NY in Round 2.
Tomorrow in The Tournament of Pizza: Albany.
Previous Round 1 results: Saratoga | Schenectady.
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Comments
pssst. check your bracket. it still lists a schenectady place.
... said jess on Oct 23, 2008 at 1:42 PM | link
OUTRAGE! There is no way Defazios got shut out. Red Front must be paying off the judges.
... said PJ on Oct 23, 2008 at 2:44 PM | link
Woo, go I Love NY!
(PS: the results table still shows 'Pizza King' from the Schenectady round)
... said no3rdw on Oct 23, 2008 at 3:27 PM | link
Thanks for heads-up on the scoreboard. It's fixed now.
... said Greg on Oct 23, 2008 at 3:36 PM | link
I know I'm being picky here but if the pics above are acurate representations of the pizzas consumed, I don't think it's right to pit a round, neopolitan pie against a square, sicilian pizza. I'm not familiar with red front or defazio's so I have no vested interest in either one beating the other and you can make an argument for same cheese, same sauce used on either neopolitan or sicilian but... I think there's a world of difference in how that slice of pizza will tase, the crust alone makes such a difference (to picky me, at least....)(I'll stop complaining now).
... said kmking on Oct 23, 2008 at 3:44 PM | link
it looks to me like you had ny style slices (triangles) compete against sicilian style slices (rectangles)... why wouldn't you pair the same kind/shape against each other (i.e. Defazio's vs. I love and Red Front vs. Knotty Pine)?
... said gd on Oct 23, 2008 at 3:54 PM | link
We all thought Defazio's would go against I loves. We even knew (from experience, it was a blind test) we were voting against Defaz at the time. Like they say "On any given Sunday.."
... said Joe Esposito on Oct 23, 2008 at 4:18 PM | link
As awesome as it is to be good reporters and get "the full, official story", let us not play games here. This is a no-contest set-up you got going. I Loves. All the way. In fact, this is the first time I'm realizing that there are even other places. Really?
... said heathah on Oct 23, 2008 at 5:00 PM | link
In case you AOA editors had any doubt about your blogs credibility/authority, I think the response to this contest is your answer. Folks are going ape shit over your opinion. They must really take you seriously.
And that's..... one to grow on.
... said Pantaloons on Oct 23, 2008 at 11:11 PM | link
1. The shape of a pizza does not make it sicilian. The thickness of the dough does. Shapes don't taste different.
2. Is this I Love NY on Hoosick, or (recently renamed) I Love Troy on 4th? If you've been to both, you know there's a big difference.
... said Nanobody on Oct 24, 2008 at 9:46 AM | link
PJ, I'm with you, but just read the review... the DeFazio's pie wasn't even hot. Come on now. I still have people call it the best pizza they've ever had when I bring them, so that's good enough for me. In fact, I think it's about time I visit again...
... said B on Oct 24, 2008 at 10:35 AM | link
Having grown up in Brooklyn (moved up here in my late 20's) I know full well what a 'real' sicilian slice tastes like & I know it's thicker than a slice that's called a 'square cut' up here but.... I still claim that a square cut tastes different than a round cut. It seems to me I love ny, especially, has a wonderful thin crust - that would not compare to a square cut slice from somewhere else.
... said kmking on Oct 24, 2008 at 12:16 PM | link
I cannot believe that Defazio's lost in the first round. My whole world has been turned upside down and everything no longer makes sense. I need sake and lots of it.
... said sophie on Aug 17, 2009 at 5:03 PM | link