NY Gianni’s Bronx Style Pizza is already getting lots of rave reviews, both here and in numerous other websites like that of “the pizza geek.” So why write about it again? Because I took a little trip to heaven on the gossamer wings of something I had never eaten before: tomato pie.
Hard to believe that a native Syracusan wouldn’t even know the difference between “tomato pie” and pizza, but it really is a different animal. A little research tells me there’s the Sicilian-inspired style that Gianni’s making, and there’s a completely different southern style, made with mayonnaise and baked in a pie crust. We are definitely not referring to the latter.
Gianni’s tomato pie was sitting in the case, waiting to be heated up, when we walked in. While our pizza was cooking, three of us polished off two large slices of tomato pie. While in any other pizza joint I usually leave a lot of pizza crust behind, the crust on this baby was every bit as much the star as the sauce. It was so light and airy, I had to ask Gianni how he made it (you go in and ask, I’m not telling!). It had just the right touch of oil and a crispy edge that gave it depth and interest.
The other star of the show, the sauce, took me by surprise. Living in upstate New York, you end up eating a lot of red sauce and most of it is pretty bad. But this sauce was as light as the crust, deeply tomato flavored, with a touch of garlic and basil and the lightest sprinkling of Parmesan. Ooo! I’m salivating just thinking about it! When Gianni asked how it was, my response was “heaven on earth! como si la hubieran hecho los ángeles!” – as if the angels had made it!
It’s hard to believe something this seemingly simple could be so mouth-watering. But let me describe a similar experience. The garden these days is bursting with cherry tomatoes. So when you’re standing out there in the sun, they must go into the mouth. Bite into one and you first go through the part that holds it together, the skin, and then suddenly your mouth is filled with the most intense, warm, sweet-tangy burst of tomato flavor. Light as a feather, you must eat another. There is only one experience equivalent to this: biting into one of Gianni’s tomato pies.
Tomato Pie is very common in Utica, but the only place I’ve seen tin in Syracuse is OIP. Theirs is “okay”, but I knew someone must do it better. Good to know – I’ll try it on my next Gianni’s visit. By the way – I put his place up on Yelp, as they weren’t listed and there were no reviews.
Best tomato pie that I ever ate was at Geddes Bakery up in N.Syracuse on rte. 11….just sayin’
Ooo! I love a little competition! Fred, have you tried Gianni’s? And if so, could you tell us the difference between the two tomato pies?
We stopped in at Nick’s Tomato Pie in Armory Square yesterday and discovered no tomato pie. Nick told us that it doesn’t sell well downtown, so he only has it at lunchtime on Tuesdays. If we remember to get down there during that tiny window, we’ll report on it here. We did have a very good slice of cheese pizza direct from the oven.