Can pizza be improved? Yes, especially when given a Mexican twist. Philadelphia pizzarias are creating a new fusion food that's taking off like crazy.It's a new and international spin on a Neopolitan favorite.
Regan Stephens,a freelnace food and travel writer wrote about this in yesterday's New York Times Food section.It's not just a fusion of different cusines but of cultures. South Philly's traditional Italian neighborhoods have now been welcoming Mexicans since the early 1990s. This means Mexican restaurants and groceries are also coming in with this new wave.It comes as no surprise that Italian dishes will be influenced by them. The pizza is not what Taco Bell offers on occassion., Tostadas layered with spicy beef and beans and shellacked with a top layer of cheese.Nor is it the Midwestern taco pie which is a pizza topped with deconstructed taco. This is a pizza with tomatillo (tomato's cousin) chorizo, corn, fresh poblanos - mild chili peppers and fresh avocados. The makers of this, Margarita Jeronimo and Adam Del Rosario make this kind and others at their Philly eatery Rosario, People are liking it as they're liking their ElPastore, a pizza topped with pineapple chunks, achiote marinated pork ,onions and covered with guajillo pepper sauce.
Other Mexican restaranteurs are following suit. Three blocks south of them, San LUcas Pizzeria has been selling Mexican pies since a few months after opening in 2005. Valentin Pallilero and his wife Eva Mendez spent years managing other peoples' pizzarias (Most Mexxican immigrants work at other ethnic restaurants before opening their own according to Professor Stephen Alvarez who teaches a taco literacy ?? course at St John's UNiversity ). They named theirs after the town they both grew up in and have made a brisk business of selling the traditional kind of pie. Yet Chef Pallilero wanted his own signature one.His daughter Jacqueline had said that he wanted to make one with the feel of a taco.A slice of the Mexican pie went out with every Italian one. Customers raved about it and it became a number one seller. Another pizzeria, Mr. Taco onwed by Carlos Gomez opened. Chef Gomez who worked at various pizzerias before opening his wanted a Mexican eatery to reflect his Hildalgo upbringing. New York has this too.Italian restaurants in Jackson Heights sell tamales. LA and Washington DC also have Mexican pizzerias with LA having Asada Pizzeria.
Will Mexican pizza bemore popular than the original? Yes.People love fusion foods and this includes two of the countries most popular cuisines.
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