Day 2 of our PA-WV-OH was a bike ride from Pittsburgh’s downtown, then climbed over Mt. Oliver (an old Italian Immigrant district, then up over Mt. Lebanon. Picked up the Panhandle Trail at mile 22 and took that into Weirton, WV. Hopped off the trail a few times to get pictures of historic Post Office artwork.
I was a little surprised by the amount of fallen leaves covering the trails. Despite it being 90F, there was the “smell” of fall and the start of FOOTBALL SEASON. Being in Pittsburgh, I started to think of Red.
I introduced Rose, my Ma’s (Grandma Joanne) friend in my last post. Although Rose was Southern Italian-American, she received her last name (Mc…) from her husband, a flaming red-headed Irishman named….you guessed it… Red!
Red was my first experience with a Stillers fan. Red was a dihard Rooney guy and, by default, the Stillers. How could he not be? Irish and Red (Ruanaidh (pronounced Ru-ah-nee) is the Gaelic version of Rooney, meaning “redhead.” (see this link).
I felt sorry for Red. We (the Browns) had won 8 championships by then while none for the Stillers (they have 6 now, but we still have 8, but who’s counting!) Stillers didn’t start winning until they hired a kid from Cleveland by the name of Noll!
My friends from the Burgh…I just had to write that because I know it will come back at me with flying colors when we see each other!
Review – DiCarlo’s Pizzeria, Weirton, WV
Recently, I found a site billed as the “Pizza Hall of Fame”(see link). I like this site because it tends to focus on older pizzerias that have a story, a HISTORY. One of these is DiCarlo’s Pizza (Pizza Hall of Fame link, DiCarlo’s website).
DiCarlo’s website is worth a look, especially the link on “Ohio Valley Pizza.”
And although, I grew up in Ohio, I’d not been to Steubenville (which is also the home of Dean Martin)! Unfortunately, I didn’t make it to Steubenville. My ride was way tougher than planned. So, we stopped in Weirton, WV. Thankfully, DiCarlo’s has a location there that’s been open 65 years!
Date – September 1, 2022
City – Weirton, WV
Neighborhood – Dan Taan Weirton (still a very strong Pittsburgh influence)
Beverage Pairing – Siena Tuscany Sangiovese
Style – Ohio Valley Pan Style
Toppings – Two pizzas one with cheese the other with cheese and pepperoni, Fresh – No
Sauce – Bright and Tangy, rich, not too thick or thin, Very good, I wonder where the tang came from (meaning, what type of tomatoes are they using)
Cheese – Just plain old grated moozedell, semi-melted, pretty weak and bland, but there was a lot. The cheese and toppings are added after the crust and sauce has been removed from the oven to allow them to melt on the pizza and to cool it down.
Cheese to Sauce Ratio – Sauce=Medium, Cheese=A lot, though the cheese was a lot and bland, the sauce cut through it
Crust – Nice crunch, taste – somewhat bland with an oil fried tinge, medium thickness, nicely browned/pan fried, some air, but dense due to the mechanical rolling machine forcing out most of the air
Comments – I really wanted DiCarlo’s to be great, but it wasn’t. I could not get over the lack of cheese taste, especially given the amount of cheese that they slathered over the squares that nearly hid the excellent sauce. And, the cold, uncooked pepperoni was not good for me.
Overall Rating – Good
Go Back? Maybe, wouldn’t drive 6 hours or bike 5 like we did again
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