Pizza Trends Are Evolving in Utah
Pizza trends have evolved over the past 50 years in America, since beloved institutions such as Ogden Pizzeria, Tony’s Pizza of South Ogden and Circle Inn Pizza of Sunset first opened their doors. Although each recipe varied a little, you could count on fresh-baked crust slathered with rich tomato sauce, a sprinkling of pepperoni, and gooey melted mozzarella.
Now, just about anything goes, as I found out when I did a story on local pizzerias for the Standard-Examiner Dining Guide. Crusts can be thick and chewy, thin and crispy, or even gluten-free. Although garlicky tomato sauce is still king, you’ll also find pizzas spread with ranch, barbecue, Thai peanut, Alfredo, pesto, or mole’ sauces.
The Dining Guide was published on Dec. 5, but many people have told me they’ve been unable to find my pizzeria story anywhere online. So, here it is, along with a few extra photos.
Today the dozens of pizza parlors, take-outs and chains scattered throughout Northern Utah run the gamut of styles and ingredient mash-ups.
Although The Pie Pizzeria built a 30-year reputation for its thick crust and traditional toppings such as pepperoni and mozzarella, it also offers sophisticated choices such as roasted garlic, truffle oil, shiitake mushrooms, steak, chipotle chiles, artichoke hearts, shrimp, oysters, and Cajun or Linguinca (Portuguese) sausage. Besides mozzarella, you can also order feta, gorgonzola, Parmesan, smoked gouda or non-dairy cheese.
“If you are not willing to stay on the cusp of the trends, all your awards and accolades you’ve earned over 30 years won’t be worth anything after awhile,” said Brian Horman, manager of The Pie in Ogden. The original Pie opened in 1980 in Salt Lake City and opened its Ogden location on Country Hills drive in 1996.
One way The Pie adapted is by featuring limited-time specialty pizzas. If the pizza proved popular, it ended up on the regular menu.
One such special was the Holy Shiitake— pesto, button and shiitake mushrooms, chicken, mozzarella, roasted garlic, and Sicilian tomatoes, drizzled with truffle oil.
“When we took it off the menu, there were a lot of unhappy people,” said Horman.
Ditto for the Wise Guy Pie — whipped cream cheese and mozzarella, fresh spinach, artichoke hearts, roasted chicken, and diced tomatoes. After the pie is baked, it’s topped with fresh-cut basil leaves and a sweet balsamic reduction.
The current special is a Chipotle Cheesesteak Pizza, with steak, mushrooms, cheese and chipotle ranch sauce.
The Pie is known for its thick crust and lots of toppings, but also offers a thin crust for today’s consumers “who are looking pizzas that are a little lighter, a little more health conscious,” said Horman.
It also offers a gluten-free crust, which requires separate prep, equipment and utensils in the kitchen to avoid contamination with wheat flour.
“It probably took one and a half years to figure out a way to keep it safe and put out a product worthy of our name,” Horman said. “Its surprising how much gluten-free pizza we sell. We’ve had people literally in tears, they are so happy to be able to eat pizza. We also have non-dairy cheese, and the people who can’t eat both dairy and gluten are the most thrilled. There’s someone from Tremonton who drives down here nearly every week to get pizza. It’s great to see people who are that appreciative of what we do.”
But even with the rise of trendy ingredients, the traditional pepperoni pizza is still The Pie’s bestseller, Horman said. “I think there will be trends that might take away from it, but it will never go away completely.”
Ogden Pizzeria on Washington Blvd. takes pride in its tradition. Valerie and Pat Simonich use the same classic crust and sauce recipes used when Valerie’s mother, Jean Alder, first worked there as a teen for owner Jay Packham. In 1974, Jean and her husband Doug Alder bought the place from Packham and ran it until six or seven years ago, when Valerie and Pat Simonich bought it from her parents. A portrait of her parents hangs on the wall near the restaurant’s entrance.
“I’ve done this my whole life,” said Valerie Simonich. “We make our own sauces, and our own dough. Nothing’s changed.”
The pepperoni and deluxe pizzas are the most popular menu items, although they’ve added some contemporary combinations such as barbecue chicken and chicken Alfredo, said Pat Simonich, adding, “We cater to our customers.”
Gluten-free crust is something they haven’t added.
“There’s too much of a chance of contamination, and I would never want to make someone sick,” said Valerie Simonich.
Their customers span several generations, as long-time patrons’ grandkids, great-grandkids and even great-great-grandkids stop in to satisfy their pizza cravings..
“I think it’s important to stay the same, because we have a lot of regulars who come in for the same thing they’ve always had,” said Valerie Simonich.
Another long-time pizza maker is David Broadbent, who started David’s Pizza about 25 years ago in Fruit Heights, and later moved to Kaysville.
“I developed my own recipes, and when the call comes for things like Barbecue Chicken Pizza or calzones, I’ll add it to the menu,” Broadbent said. “But I tried a lot of those California style toppings like broccoli, and it just didn’t sell here. I ended up throwing a lot of it away.”
But, Broadbent will create what customers request. “I had a customer at Hill Air Force Base who liked tuna on his pizza, and he would bring in cans of tuna for me,” he said.
He also sells about 100 gluten-free pizzas a week. The crusts are pre-made by a Boulder, Colorado company, and are cooked in separate pans from wheat-flour crusts.
One hallmark of a David’s pizza is that the toppings are usually baked underneath the cheese, rather than on top. “I think the cheese seals everything in a little better and gives it a uniqueness.”
Although his carry-out shop is just down the street from a Domino’s Pizza location, “I don’t worry about the chains, I just do my thing and they do theirs,” Broadbent said.
Newer pizzerias are making waves with artisan-style crusts and eclectic toppings.
“We still sell a ton of pepperoni, but most of people who come here tend to come for other toppings,” said Mike Lee, manager of Slackwater Pub & Pizzeria on Washington Blvd.
One of the restaurant’s top-selling pizzas is the California Sunrise —a cilantro-basil ranch sauce, chicken and bacon. After baking, it’s topped with avocado slices, and thin ribbons of raw spinach.
The tender artisan-style crust is leavened with the same starter as when the restaurant opened in June 2011, and baked in a brick oven.
“I would say as a whole, Utah has a more bland, basic taste in pizza,” Lee said. “But the customers who come here don’t.”
Lucky Slice Pizza, opened on 25th Street in 2012, offers such eclectic choices as Thai peanut sauce, pine nuts, roasted potato, artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes, three different kinds of olives (black, green and kalamata), and ricotta, feta or blue cheese.
Even so, “Plain boring pepperoni is still very much popular,” said chef Will Shafer. “I like to list our specialties when asked what’s popular, but sales state that pep will always be number one.”
The eatery’s crust is thin, more of a New York style.
“The Utah-preferred pie seems to be thick, chewy dough with a lot of cheese,” said Shafer. “Of course, there is nothing wrong with this style of pizza. I grew up on it, and I still love it. But we had something else in mind.”
Of the Lucky Slice specialty pizzas, the Dub All Star (creamy pesto, mozzarella, roasted chicken, spinach, tomato, caramelized onion, and a drizzle of barbecue sauce) and the Margherita Supreme are the most popular.
The Margherita is a throwback to the classic Italian pizza first prepared back in 1889 by baker Raffaele Esposito of Naples, in honor of a visit by Queen Margherita of Savoy. He created Pizza Margherita in the colors of the Italian flag: bright green basil, white mozzarella cheese made from water buffalo milk, and red tomatoes.
This authentic Italian style of pizza is served today at Settobello Pizzeria Napoletano in Farmington. You’ll get a thin, hand-tossed crust baked quickly in a wood-fired oven, topped with a smattering of crushed tomatoes and fresh mozzarella. Its Old World approach has gained a following among Top of Utah diners. It’s also a surprise for those who considered the thick-crusted, topping-laden pies they grew up were “real Italian.”
Although these thin, foldable “tomato pies” were eaten among Italian immigrants in America, it didn’t go mainstream until after World War II. American solders who tasted their first pizza while stationed in Italy sought it out when they came home.
Between 1945 and 1960, pizzerias began sprouting up all over the country, and the Americanized versions developed a thicker crust and heavier toppings. Deep-dish pizza, rising up to three inches high with crust and toppings, was created in Chicago, not Italy.
The “gourmet” pizza trend gained steam in the 1980s when California chefs such as Wolfgang Puck topped pizzas with luxury items like caviar and smoked salmon. The California Pizza Kitchen chain popularized the Barbecue Chicken Pizza.
Although large chains such as Pizza Hut, Domino’s, Papa John’s, Little Caesar’s and Papa Murphy’s dominate much of the delivery and carry-out business, many independent pizzerias have carved out their own niche.
“I think pizza is always trending,” observed Will Shafer. “The battle between thin crust and deep dish will always be present. But no matter what kind of pizza you prefer, someone somewhere is trying something new with it.”
Other local favorites for pizza include Ligori’s Pizza & Pasta, Firehouse Pizzeria in Brigham City, Piccolo Brothers, Piccolini, Tony’s, Frederico’s in Logan, Pizza Factory, Pizza Runner, Santa Monica Pizza & Pasta, Alpine Pizza in Eden, Pizza Plus in Tremonton, Pizza Perfect in Centerville, Zeponie Pizza in Centerville, Pizza Pie Cafe in Bountiful, Rita’s Pizzeria in Clearfield, and Brick Oven in Layton.