Citigroup Employees Just Not That Into Pizza

It appears that Citigroup employees in New York City just aren't that into the pizza being served in their cafeteria. Last week, I went to visit a friend who works at the Citigroup headquarters in Tribeca and I came across a promotional calendar featuring statistics about food purchased by employees in the building cafeteria. In 2009, only 16,723 slices of pizza were purchased. Let's break this down.

The building has 39 floors and according to my friend approximately 200 people work on each floor. That's 7,800 employees in the building. Let's assume that an average pizza lunch would include two slices of pizza. That means that only about 8,361 pizza lunches were consumed by employees last year -- or 1.07 pizza lunches per employee. That's over the entire year! Are there any employees or people who've eaten at the Citigroup cafeteria who might be able to comment on the quality of pizza served there?

Let's look at these numbers another way. There are 260 weekdays in a calendar year and about 250 after you account for national holidays. Assuming there are eight slices in a pie that means that only about 2090 pies were made in 2009. That's 8 pies a day. So of nearly 8,000 people in the building on a given day, only about 32 people (getting 2 slices each) have pizza for lunch. Wow.

How does this compare to other items? Well with 108,320 bottles of soda purchased (14 per employee), 137,935 pieces of fruit (18 per employee), and 95,279 boxes of cereal (12 per employee), it seems that either (a) the pizza at the Citigroup cafeteria isn't so great or (b) Citigroup employees are just not that into their pizza.

Yeminite Food Bar In Safed, Israel: What Is Pizza Anyway?

Last week I began a recap of pizza in Israel. One of my favorite meals of the trip was at Yeminite Food Bar -- a modest food stand in Safed (often spelled Tzfat). It couldn't be more different than the first place I reviewed -- The Pizza in Tel Aviv --- which is a modern two year old upscale artisinal pizza hot spot on the corner of a major intersection. Yeminite Food Bar, on the other hand, is a one man operation on a cobblestone side street in a quaint mystical town located in the hills of northern Israel. While not known for its cuisine, Safed's claim to fame is that it is the home of Jewish mysticism. Sadly, even Britney Spears can trace her roots here.

I'd stumbled upon Yeminite Food Bar on previous trips to Israel, but had never eaten there before. It's hard to miss. The loud and boisterous man behind the counter pleads for your business with catchphrases like "get the best food in Israel right here." I'll be honest. The food was great. Definitely some of the best I've had in Israel. But the question is -- what exactly is this Yeminite man serving and can it even be considered pizza?

Personally, I define pizza broadly. For example, I'd say the mushroom flatbread served at The Redhead can certainly be considered pizza.

But what about a crepe filled with mozzarella, tomato, and basil? The ingredients are the same as in many pizzas, but does folding or wrapping it diminish it's pizza-like status? I'm torn. Certainly if you order your pizza "a libretto" (aka: folded) at Motorino you are still consuming pizza, right?

So using a broad interpretation of the food, I can comfortably say that the pizza at Yeminite Food Bar was, in fact, some of the best food I've eaten in Israel. Prior to being served, the food looks like this:

But when all is said and done... what you end up eating looks like this:

So what exactly is this delcatable treat? The outside is made out of organic spelt (which one can easily make pizza crust from) that is fried on a skillet. The ingredients are added on top of the spelt. The first version I had included zatar, olive oil, tomato, basil, onion, and mozzarella. The second version substituted mushrooms for tomato.

Any trip to the Yeminite Food Bar should include a taste of both. The only complaint is that they are not particularly filling and at 25 shekels ($7.00) each, they are slightly overpriced. Not surprising since Safed is a bit of a tourist trap. I spent a total of $14.00 on my two wraps and was still hungry. Even 20 shekels each would be more reasonable. One wrap is just the right size for a snack, but even two can't quite pass for a meal.

The man who works there said that he'll occasionally try some new recipies depending on what's in season, but that in general these are his two staples. As previously mentioned, one thing that any food establishment in Israel has going for it is the quality and freshness of the ingredients. Yeminite Food Bar was no exception.

As is often the case, some of the best food around is the least filling. But that doesn't mean it's not worth going to. Especially given the lack of quality food options in Safed, it almost seems as if there is some higher mystical power summoning you to this little stand.

It's Not Delivery...

... it's... well... why yes... it is delivery. From DiGiorno? A really funny clip from the folks over at Funnyordie.com landed in my Inbox yesterday. In the video, sketch group The Midnight Show puts a nice spin on the company's famous slogan.

Oh and for our review of DiGiorno, click here.

La Pizza Nustra: Pizza Crackers

Last week, Slice posted a piece about the existence of Pizza Balls -- a zesty cheese flavored snack that may or may not be available in your local drug store.

This posting reminded me of something I found at a gas station in Buenos Aires when I was there back in November: pizza crackers!

And not just any old crackers were these triangular bits of heaven... they were fugazzetta flavored. You may recall that a fugazetta pizza contains double cream cheese, mozzarella, onion and olive oil. So I may have had particularly high expectations for this Argentine snack.

Truth be told, they tasted like any other cracker. But pizza is so popular down there, it's probably not a bad marketing strategy. If it's 3AM, you're dying for some pizza and don't have the means to find any, it's always smart to have some La Pizza Nustra crackers on hand to satisfy your craving.

The Pizza (HaPizza) In Tel Aviv: Fresh & Tasty

I recently returned from Israel where I had the pleasure (or sometimes displeasure) of trying six different pizza places. Some people refer to Israel as the land of milk and honey. Others refer to it as the land of falafel and sharwarma. But Israel will henceforth be known as the land of pizza.

Okay... maybe that's a stretch, but Israel does have a burgeoning pizza scene... one that has a bright future in urban areas like Tel Aviv. Let me break down the three types of pizza places you can find is Israel:

1) Traditional, old school "pizza" places that make you rethink how you define pizza. These people might be found in small shops in the old city of Jerusalem cooking warm pita-like bread on ovens that look like they date back to the patriarchal days. I went to one place like this -- Yeminite Food Bar in Safed.

2) Modern slice joints, similar to what you might find on the street corners of New York City. The main difference is that most of these places are inferior to your average pizza place in the city. They often have tables outside (space is more abundant in Israel and the weather is better) and rather than making pies with a single topping they will cook up pies with four different topping combinations, each relegated to it's own quarter of the pie. Many are also kosher and do not serve meat on any pies. I tried four such places -- Tito Bravo, Big Apple Pizza, Pizza Sababa, and Chili Pizzeria -- all which were located in Jerusalem. Tito Bravo was easily the best. Reviews are also forthcoming.

3) Upscale, artisinal pizza joints that make pies similar to what you might find at Co and Motorino. These are few and far between, but while the first two types of places have been abundant in Israel for decades, the third is just beginning to make it's mark on the Israel pizza scene. It is this category of pizza places that I believe has the most potential to expand its reach throughout urban areas of Israel over the next five years. I tried one such place and it was the best pizza I had in Israel. It was at a modest restaurant in the heart of Tel Aviv simply known as The Pizza (or in Hebrew, HaPizza).

There's little that The Pizza (51 Bograshov) doesn't do right. The majority of the seating -- about 8 tables -- are located outside on the corner of Pinsker and Bograshov Streets. Another 10 people can sit inside -- half on bar stools overlooking the oven. They have a lunch special that runs until 5PM on Sunday-Thursday which can almost be taken advantage of for an early dinner. A mere 51 shekels (that's about $14) will get you a personal pie with two toppings, a juice, and a soup or salad of your choice. But considering their pies only cost 41 shekels to begin with ($11), heading there for dinner won't break the bank either.

The Pizza is always crowded. We went around 3:30 PM on a Thursday afternoon and waited about 15 minutes for a table for five. There are nine pies on the menu and we got four of them. I like the limited menu because it gives them a chance to focus on making each pie exceptional. I've already drawn comparisons to Motorino and Co -- each which have 11 pies on their menu. We ate:

Bianca: Mozzarella, parmesan, feta, olive oil and parsley
Aglio Olio: Olive oil, garlic, mushrooms, parsley, and parmesan
Classic: Tomato sauce, white mozzarella, fresh basil
House: Tomato sauce, mozzarella, mushrooms, parmesan, parsley, garlic

I always write about the importance of fresh ingredients, but it doesn't get much fresher than at The Pizza. A pizza place in New York might have ingredients shipped from California and Italy. Di Fara even imports their basil directly from Israel! Well Israel has some of the freshest produce I've ever tasted and only a 10 minute walk from the restaurant is Shuk HaCarmel Market -- one of Israel's largest and arguably most well known outdoor markets.

My favorite pie was the Bianca. It was essentially a mix of really flavorful cheeses on bread with a touch of olive oil and parsley -- a tres formaggi of sorts. So simple, yet so delicious. Six of the nine pies on the menu at The Pizza lack tomato sauce and I think they're better off for it. The House pie and Aglio Olio pie, for example, are very similar, but the tomato sauce takes away from many of the other flavors on the House pie.

Bianca
(Mozzarella, parmesan, feta, olive oil and parsley)



Aglio Olio
(Olive oil, garlic, mushrooms, parsley, and parmesan)

Classic

(Tomato sauce, white mozzarella, fresh basil - 1/2 with olives)

House
(Tomato sauce, mozzarella, mushrooms, parmesan, parsley, garlic)

A noteworthy difference between The Pizza and comparable places in New York City is that that there is no meat served on any of the pies because the restaurant is kosher and regulations don't allow for both meat and dairy items to be served together. As someone who doesn't typically get meat on his pizza, I found this quite accommodating. Anyone who eats pizza with me on a regular basis is certainly accustomed to me asking "...and can you leave the sausage off of that?" No such requests had to be made at The Pizza.

I mentioned how fresh the ingredients were. Well even the condiments on each table were worthy of salivating over. At upscale pizza places in New York, you are still often confronted with a glass shaker of uninspiring garlic, parsley, or pepper. Leave it to The Pizza to present you with what appears to be fresh cut reds and greens for your liking. Whether or not it tasted any different is debatable, but it certainly makes for some nice eye candy.

40 Gut-Busting Restaurant Challenges for Free Food

Coupon Sherpa has compiled a list aptly titled: 40 Gut-Busting Restaurant Challenges for Free Food. The photos on their website are what you might find on a site like thisiswhyyourefat. There are two pizza places that made the list: Pizza Party in California and Beau Jo's Pizza in Colorado.

At Pizza Party here is the challenge: Eat one Belly Buster 20-inch pizza with cheese and two toppings in one hour or less. Unlimited water is included with the pizza, however you may not dip your pizza into the water (or any other drink). You have to keep down all the pizza and clean up your mess if you vomit. Finish and you'll receive your entry fee back (equal to half the cost of the pizza), a T-shirt, your picture on the wall of the restaurant, and a free extra-large pizza every month for a year.

At Beau Jo's Pizza here is the challenge: Finish a Grand Sicilian Pizza made of 12 to 14-pounds of hamburger and sausage on a loaded 16-inch thick crust pizza. You and a friend will have one hour to complete the challenge. If successful, the pizza is free and you'll receive $100 and two free T-shirts.

Okay -- let's start with Pizza Party. Clean up your mess if you vomit? Haha. Yuck! And all you get for downing it is more pizza? Not worth it if you ask me. But I will say that looking at the pizza it doesn't seem so unfathomable that someone would be able to finish it.

At the second place -- Beau Jo's Pizza -- success seems more difficult. Even though you can team up with a friend, that's still about 7 pounds of hamburger and sausage each. Look at the size of this pie! And splitting the winnings will land you with $50, not to mention some clogged arteries.

As much as we like to see people indulge themselves, I Dream Of Pizza kindly advises you to to consider your lifespan before taking part in one of these challenges.

Star Pizza Deliveries

Stars!! Are they just like us? Maybe. Maybe not. But last month US Weekly published a feature of stars delivering pizza to their fans.

First we learn that Lady Gaga (as a former NYUer -- she should know good pizza!) sent $1,000 worth of pies to fans waiting in line for her autograph in L.A., although no pizza photos appear.

Taylor Swift was captured delivering Domino's to fans waiting for her autograph in London. C'mon, Taylor. You're telling me there is no better pizza in London?

And finally, Anne Hathaway made headlines in NYC this summer when she delivered pizza to those waiting in line for tickets to Shakespeare In The Park. At least she opted for Ray's Pizza over a chain. Although take it from me, Anne... there's better pizza in the city! But when you're waiting outside at 3AM... well, just about any pizza would taste good then.

Pizza At Accademia Di Vino Featured On NBC

Last month, NBC featured a 90 second piece on Accademia Di Vino, an Italian restaurant on the Upper West Side. During the segment, chef Kevin Garcia takes us through how to make a pumpkin pizza. It's interesting to note that they grill their pies. They don't look particularly appetizing, although after digging in, the segment's host says: I have no words. This is so incredible. You have to come and check this out.

Seems more like an infomercial to me. Check out the segment below.

Anselmo's Owner Lashes Out Against Landlady

Anselmo's Coal Oven Pizzaria in Red Hook has closed because apparently they've been swindled out of their lease by their landlady. That is, if you believe the tirade unleashed on their website recently (www.anselmosbakery.com). In case it gets taken down, I'll post the whole thing below for your personal reading pleasure, but please take particular note of my favorite excerpt:

My landlady is telling the people of Red Hook that i have been in prison and jail. She's right. I was in prison for manufacturing explosives. It's public record and I'm not proud of it but i got out and moved on with my life thanks to my best friend and business partner. And I did go to jail this summer over a fight at my restaurant at 3am in the morning when Craig (i refuse to say full name) an ex drug dealer and (suspected child molester) that lived in one of my landlords building across the street was mad that i took his girlfriend from him after he came from a bar went in and pushed and hit one of my employees asking where i was. A friend of mine beat him up by the time i got there (Charges dropped on my friend). But he told cops two months later i beat him up .So after realizing his girl wasn't coming back to his physical abuse they arrested me two months later.

Not quite sure I followed that. You? Anyway, if you're going to post a rambling message on your website, how about some proper English and grammar? A copy editor could have a field day with this. I never made it to Anselmo's, but to be honest... I'm kind of scared to go if it ever reopens!

Here is the tirade in it's entirety:

WE ARE CLOSED. WE WILL CONTINUE MAKING GREAT PIZZA SOMEWHERE ELSE. WE ARE LOOKING FOR ANOTHER LOCATION..

EVERYONE WANTS TO KNOW WHY WE SHUT DOWN. IT WASN'T THE FOOD OR MONEY.

OUR LANDLORD SWINDLED US OUT OF OUR LEASE. EVERYONE IN RED HOOK KNOWS WHO OUR LANDLADY IS AND THE PEOPLE OF RED HOOK WARNED US OF HER AND HER SISTER WHEN I WAS BUILDING MY PLACE BUT I TRUSTED THESE TWO WOMEN.

I have more proof then i need to prove my case. Anyone who wants to see my proof to show what kind of women these are can contact me. They are telling the people of Red Hook that i haven't paid the rent in four months. That's right i haven't because she broke her promise to give me a lease 9 months ago. Four months ago the city came in asking for a Certificate Of Occupancy or i will be shut down. I need a lease to get this but after taking the paper work to my landlady she said she will not sign anything. So i cut the rent payments off.She started against me after hiring black and spanish workers from the neighborhood after telling me from the beginning it will ruin my business if i let black and spanish people in my restaurant. This is a women that goes to church telling me the projects are going to ruin me once i hire one black person because they will hang around in front.
My business partner and i had spent over $260k in the building and one year working on it. She gave me 9month free rent while building it but she doesn't tell people i spent $260k bringing the value up 500%. I pay $3,200month, times that by 9months is $28,800 in free rent. That's a long way from my $260k in the building and with no lease. Everyone ask me why would i put that kind of money in a building without a lease. Because
I'm from the country where we trust our elders on a handshake. Never in a millions years i would think she would do this to me. I had to close my restaurant down last summer for two weeks losing $$15k in sales because her pipes busted in her garage connected to the restaurant flooding my kitchen but my business partner and i fixed it for her for free which would had cost her $3k in labor and a violation from the city. Then a big tree fell on her garage and she asked me to fix that which i did costing out of my pocket $150 and a whole days work and she never said thank you or offer to pay. All summer my business partner and I helped her with her buildings fixing them not charging her. These women care only for their money. They don't fix their buildings for nothing putting tenants in danger while the greedy landlord keeps thousands of dollars of cash in their house instead of fixing dangerous buildings that are falling apart.
Another thing. My landlady is telling the people of Red Hook that i have been in prison and jail. She's right. I was in prison for manufacturing explosives. It's public record and I'm not proud of it but i got out and moved on with my life thanks to my best friend and business partner. And I did go to jail this summer over a fight at my restaurant at 3am in the morning when Craig (i refuse to say full name) an ex drug dealer and (suspected child molester) that lived in one of my landlords building across the street was mad that i took his girlfriend from him after he came from a bar went in and pushed and hit one of my employees asking where i was. A friend of mine beat him up by the time i got there (Charges dropped on my friend). But he told cops two months later i beat him up .So after realizing his girl wasn't coming back to his physical abuse they arrested me two months later.

I have made mistakes in life and i have paid for it but my biggest mistake was trusting this landlady.

A Look Back At The Best Pizza Videos Of 2009

And you thought my look back at 2009 was over (we're almost two weeks into the next decade, dammit!). Well I'm out of town, and this is what you're getting today!

It's a look back at my favorite pizza related videos that appeared on IDreamOfPizza in 2009. From rats at Vinny Vincenz's pizza truck to pizza tossers on Jimmy Kimmel Live -- 2009 was a great year for pizza in front of the camera. There was Pizza: The Movie, a great documentary short about Anthony Mangieri, and Madonna eating her first ever New York slice of pizza with David Letterman. Enjoy the clips below!

Trailer For Pizza: The Movie

Pizza Vending Machine

Pizza Segment From The Food Network’s Food Detectives

How To Order A Pizza From To Be Delivered To You
From One Pizzeria While You're At Another Pizzeria

Fake Commercial From UCB Comedy About Domino's Stuffed Crust

Charles Curtis Tells Us Why Di Fara Is So Great

Dom DeMarco In Action At Di Fara

Scott's Pizza Tours Takes The Wild Yaks On A Pizza Trip

Madonna Tries Her First Slice Of NY Pizza On David Letterman

Competitive Pizza Throwers On Jimmy Kimmel Live

Chris Bianco Makes Focaccia On Jimmy Kimmel Live

Vinny Vincenz Pizza Truck Has Rats

Billy Mays Pizza Stone Commercial

The Eco-Friendly Pizza Box

Nomad Pizza Meet Up

The Year In Photos: The Best Of The Rest

The day has arrived -- it's the final part of my 2009 photo recap. None of the photos below were taken by me. Thank God. They're all much better than anything I shot this past year. All of these photos appeared on my blog at some point over the past year and they reflect the pizza trends and (dare I say) revolution that took place in 2009. New shops were opening left and right. New styles were being invented and new ingredients mixed together. These photos represent what it was like to love (and dream!) about pizza in 2009.

I should note that I did my best to credit the publication or website from which these photos came when they originally appeared on the site. I did not, however, do so below. For the love of pizza... it's just a photo! So I tip my cap to all of the great photographers out there that have done a wonderful job at showing the world their own perspectives on pizza.

Pizza, after all, is in the eye of the beholder.

Co. Opens In Chelsea

L&B Spumoni Gardens in Brooklyn

Pizza Tossers

Spunto Opens In The West Village

Pizza 123 Burns Down In Harlem

Mario Batali And Jimmy Fallon Take A Pizza Tour

Oven At Keste In The West Village

Four Foot Long Pizzas At Farinella In Tribeca

Pizza Vending Machine

AlwaysHungryNY's "Triple" - A Falafel & Pizza Sandwich

Pizza Obama In Israel

Pizza Cone

Matzah Pizza

Susan Boyle Pizza

Mega Pizza From thisiswhyyourefat.com

Dave Sclarow Of Pizza Moto

Pizza Eating Competition

Pizza In A Pizza

Pizza Wine Sign

Assortment Of Pies From New York Magazine Pizza Issue



Line At Grimaldi's In Brooklyn

Pizza Maker At Roberta's In Brooklyn

Jim Lahey Of Co.

Breakfast Pizza At Motorino

Zombie Pizza Costume



A Passive Aggressive Pizza Note



Chanukah Pizza From Paulie Gee

Totonno's Reopens On Coney Island

Building A Brick Oven

Halloween Pizza Costume

Jay-Z Loves Pizza

Motorino Opens In The East Village

Santa Decoration At Nino's In The East Village