Damn good delivery/takeout style pies, for a great price…read more
I'm Philly born and raised, I bleed green, and even though I can't eat them regularly anymore because they'll kill me, I'm probably still at least 10 percent cheesesteak.
That said, I think Philly, for the most part, has given up on corner store style pizza.
Gourmet neopolitan descended pizza? We got that by the yacht load.
But we all know that's too fancy for workhorse, blue collar, I used to have to carry boxes to save up money for my Playstation games kinda taste.
I'm gonna give them their flowers this one time - NYC knows how to make cheap, solid, go to any spot and grab a slice and you'll be alright pizza.
This is not something you can do anywhere in Philly. You gotta know your spots. Most places don't let their dough rise long enough to develop flavor, or they add a ton of sugar to their dough and or sauce, or they under bake everything to get the pies out faster. You know what I mean. You've been through this. You all have a spot where you're like "at 3 am after the club, sure. But sober?"
For this reason, I learned to bake my own pies, at home. It's a multi day process. Make dough. Allow it to ferment in fridge for at least 24, but no more than 72 hours. Stretch, top, bake on a stone at 550F, and boom. The kind of pizza I'll enjoy sober.
And Carter's is out here doing this for me! On a standard (I didn't ask for well done, I wanted to see how it would come out) crust, it comes out poofy, foldable, but able to stand up to its toppings. The dough i less salty than I would make, but plenty fine and full of flavor. Same with the sauce. The cheese pulls like a dream, and the pepperoni has just the right amount of grease.
I think next time I will ask for well done, because this is the kind of crust where you get it a little toasty and whoooowheeeeee, we're gourmet now, guys and gals!
You put this pizza in the dictionary and only internet nerds that no one likes would "well actually, pizza includes Chicago deep dish style" get outta here, nerd! We're talking workhorse pizza! I do love deep dish too so that's another conversation, but not the one we're having right now.
Carter's - I salute you. You are my spot, right up there with Enjay's, for exactly what I want when I'm a little too lazy to cook, and want a delicious pie that I -never- question whether it's worth the money.
And I haven't even partaken in your beer selection yet. Got-damn. I'll update this when I do.