Who says that:
- The Super Bowl needs to be in a warm weather or dome city?
- The QB is the most important position in sports?
- All pizza in Italy must be good?
Well, NOT ME!
Who says that the Super Bowl needs to be in a Warm Climate and Dome?
While in our security line in Florence awaiting our connection back to North America, I met a guy with an “Italian League of American Football” jacket (see link). He said that he was going to Toledo FOR A LEAGUE MEETING! Yes, TOLEDO, OHIO, not Spain. Turns out Toledo might hold the “Italian Super Bowl” this year (I’M NOT KIDDING – see link)!
I explained that I’d played HS football there. He looked me up and down, and a smirk hastened across his face.
Then when I said that I had a cup of espresso as a college player, he needed to contain his laughter (not really, but it makes for a good story). He asked where I’d played and what position.
He said he knew of Allegheny College (really…I think he was being nice), but the smirk returned when I said O and D-Line!
Who Says the QB is the Most Important?
I’ve never, EVER been ashamed to be a football lineman (do I need to say line person now?).
Sports, especially football, matter in our family. My dad (Grandpa Tony) played semi-pro football after WWII, whereas my son also played college ball. And my father-in-law (Grandpa Billy) played HS ball in Rochester against some of the Aquinas teams that were nationally ranked. Our son was likely the most athletic and successful of us all!
My two cousins, Nick and John preceded me at St. John as linemen and were my idols as a kid. I assumed Nick’s number (50, which both my son AND DAUGHTER wore (in soccer)) and position (center).
I’m beyond passionate about football. While in Italy last week, I watched the Browns and Steelers, getting up at 3:30am to catch the 2nd half over VPN! Whereas, our son is more like Grandpa Tony, a fan, but more on an even keel than me. My in-game texts with our son tend to be analytical whereas the texts with my friends are XXX rated.
As former linemen, my son and I (and Grandpa Tony when he as alive) watch the games from the inside-out. The QB, RB, and Ends don’t matter. We believe in the criticality of the C, G, and T’s to a team’s success.
Frankly, the Raisins (aka Ravens) proved the lack of worth of the QB by winning an SB with Trent Dilfer! HOLY CRAP! But they were great on both sides of the line!
The QB and linemen in John Grisham’s book might be “Playing for Pizza” (see link), but if it were me, I’d hold out from pizza in Northern Italy and have my contract require that they bring it by train from Napoli every day!
Who says that All Pizza in Italy Must Be Good?
Well, this is the toughest for me to talk about. I’ve been all over southern Italy – Sicily, Puglia, Basilicata, Calabria, Lazio, and of course, Campania (the HOME of Pizza) and had pizza. All have been at least “Good” and several have been “Great” – never had I ever had a “meh” pizza in Italy – until I went to Tuscany!
We’d previously been to Tuscany, but we don’t recall eating pizza then; besides, this blog and my writing reviews about pizza didn’t exist then.
Bar Gelateria Duomo – Montepulciano, Tuscany, Italy
Let me get this out right away…I don’t enjoy Tuscan cuisine.
Though we’ve been in Tuscany before, it was soccer trip for our daughter, and we ate with her team cafeteria style, and it was more of an Americanized cuisine. So, I didn’t know about my dislike of Tuscan cuisine until this trip and having to eat pasta (pici which I like) with meat sauce and then meat again (steak or pork).
I’ve previously mentioned that I don’t like fish, but after a few days of meat, meat, and more meat and few veggies or salad, fish would have been a good change!
But finally, on day 5 of our trip and after hiking 9.6 miles of hills of vineyards and wheat, I needed and ate a pizza. It was my first pizza in the north, and was looking forward to Tuscany’s finest – NOT!
Date – 9/22/22
Pizzeria – Bar Gelateria Duomo
City – Montepulciano, Tuscany, Italy
Style – Tuscan, Roman
Toppings – Salame (Italian pepperoni) and Cheese on one, Ham, Olives, and Cheese on the other
Cheese – Greasy, Stringy, Smokey, Salty
Sauce – on the Salame and Cheese pizza, the sauce was tasty and had a nice spice, likely from the Salame but also had a sweet taste
Cheese to Sauce Ratio – Sauce Amount = A little, Cheese Amount = Medium, despite the low amount of sauce, the good taste cut through the cheese
Crust – Thin and Crispy like a saltine cracker without the salt (more on this below), no cornicione
Comments – I found out after having this pizza that Tuscany doesn’t use salt in their pizza/bread doughs (see here). The story goes that this routine is millennials old because salt was taxed so high in ancient times.
If you read about the chemistry of pizza dough (see here and here), you’ll see that the salt helps the dough’s gluten to form better bonds that hold in the air like a balloon (as in a Neapolitan or NY Style), but since Tuscany uses no salt, the air escapes, and the crust becomes thin and crispy. Thus, Tuscan Style Pizza (similar to Roman Style pizza, the same?).
I didn’t like it. Frankly, the crust sucked. And no matter how good the sauce….
Overall Rating – Meh (which is not good)
Go Back? – No
Montepulciano needs to stick to wine!
Petto’s Pizza – Montalcino, Tuscany, Italy
Date – 9/23/22 & 9/26/22
City – Montalcino, Tuscany, Italy
Neighborhood – Main Square
Style – Tuscan (not quite sure), like a thin Grandma
Toppings – Pepperoni, Cheese
Cheese – Greasy, Stringy, Salty
Sauce – Savory, Thin – not overly tasty, but not bad either
Cheese to Sauce Ratio – Sauce Amount = Medium, Cheese Amount – between medium and a lot – a good balance, the cheese did not over power the sauce
Crust – thin, but soft, spongy and chewy, very much like a thin version of a Grandma Pizza – very nice
Comments – after the debacle of the day before, Petto’s Pizza helped me regain faith in Northern Italy as a place that you can find a “good” pizza. What made this pizza more special that it was in the main square of Montalcino (and on our 2nd visit, there was a Ferrari car rally in town!).
Funny thing, the women that ran the place were from Poland. Could that be why this Northern Italian pizza was decent?
Overall Rating – Good
Would I Go Back? – Yes, and we did!
Presti’s Bakery – Little Italy, Cleveland, OH
Here’s a catch up review
Date – 9/5/22
Pizzeria – Presti’s Bakery – https://prestisbakery.com/
City – Cleveland, OH
Neighborhood – Little Italy
Style – Grandma/Bakery
Cheese – moozedell, very mild
Toppings – Sauce and Cheese
Sauce – slight garlicky and sweet taste with oregano, Tangy, Savory
Cheese to Sauce Ratio – Sauce Amount = Medium, Cheese Amount = a little to medium. Good ratio, despite the low end amount of cheese, can taste both the sauce and the cheese, neither overpower each other
Crust – Medium but on the thin side, Spongy but not airy or bubbly, Chewy, Soft
Comments – a very pleasant Bakery Pizza, not special but a solid cut, not sure if make a special trip to Presti’s for pizza, but if you’re there for sfoglitelle, and it’s near lunch, these cuts will be satisfying
Overall Rating – Good
Would I Go Back? – Yes, for sfoglitelle, the pizza would be a bonus
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