Let me preface this entire article by saying: There is absolutely, positively no such thing as “authentic New York-style pizza” outside of the five boroughs — not even Yonkers. It’s not me being a snob, because I am certainly not. It’s just the truth.
You may or may not be one of those people who think the only X factor between New York-style pizza in New York City as opposed to somewhere else is New York City’s almost-pristine tap water. David Spatafore thought this, and in 2014, he was shipping 3,000 gallons of New York City tap water to his Village Pizzeria in Coronado, California. Spatafore wasn’t alone in his delusions. Dan Isaac, co-owner of Famous Famiglia, procured 100 gallons per week for his pizza parlor in Accra, Ghana.
I’m not here to rain on anybody’s pizza party, but I think all of this is hogwash. No imported tap water, Brooklyn Bridge murals, Statue of Liberty figurines or Derek Jeter-signed baseballs will convince me — and hardly any other New Yorkers — otherwise.
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The classic New York slice is sans toppings. I love anchovies and pepperonis on my pizza just as much as Michelangelo, Donatello and the rest of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, but a true slice of New York-style pizza is like Alex Delaney beautifully stated at the beginning of his 2018 Bon Appetit piece: “Sauce. Cheese. Dough. Attitude.” To verify this topping-less stance, I called my Aunt Pam, the most “New York” New Yorker I know, and she agreed: Cheese only. Save the toppings for Detroit.