Pizza Vs. Bagels: Which Iconic New York Treat Do You Prefer?

CBS New York ^

[nickcarraway]

It's a double treat today for two New York culinary staples -- not only is it National Bagel Day -- it's also National Pizza Day.

So which one of these iconic New York City foods reigns supreme among locals? CBS2's Emily Smith took to the streets to find out.

In honor of National Bagel Day, Smith stopped off at Bagel Boss -- one of the oldest bagel chains to open on Long Island.

Benny LoPiccolo, of Bagel Boss in Roslyn Heights, says It costs about 30 cents to make it homemade, and they sell it for $1.25.

According to LoPiccolo, plain bagels are their top seller.

"We can't keep up with them," LoPiccolo said.

But it's far from the only option.

"Lox, tomato cream, cheese -- toasted," Gabriel Leviav said.

"I don't toast it -- I like it the way it is," Joe Cino, of Cino's Hot Bagels in Bethpage, said.

So if it's National Bagel Day and National Pizza Day in the same day, doesn't that make it 'National Pizza Bagel Day' too?

Joseph Pappalardo, of Pappalardo's Pizza Cove in Massapequa, has been in the pizza business for 43 years. On Tuesday, he shared some of his tips:

"It starts out with making your pizza dough fresh every day," Pappalardo said. "You've got to buy the top ingredients -- tomatoes from Italy, pizza cheese from Wisconsin."

Pappalardo says it costs about 95 cents to make a slice and it sells for $2.25.

The long-time pizzeria owner also shared his love for Lombardi's, on Spring Street. The Manhattan pizzeria was the first in America, established in the early 1900s.

"They had a great calzone and slice of pizza," Pappalardo said. "And they really are the original and the first."

Brooklyn's Spumoni Gardens opened in 1939. Fourth-generation owner Louis Barbati says people travel from all around the world to have one of their famous squares.

"We put the cheese on then the sauce it's a different style," Barbati said.

But which is better -- pizza, or bagels?

"I did both for a long time, and I think bagels is the king of New York," LoPiccolo said.

"I like the pizza, I like the pizza," said Dan Cheshire of Shirley.

However you slice it, bite it or top it, there's clearly room for both here in this big city.

[DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis]

But which is better -- pizza, or bagels?

If you can't decide, have both....

[r_barton]

Have you ever made a Chinese take out pizza? If anyone is interested, I will post a recipe.

[nickcarraway]

Please do.

[trisham]

I can’t choose. Both are amazing.

[RayChuang88]

Actually, both. With good reason: the Italian immigrants and Eastern European Jewish immigrants arrived almost at the same time, and as such both began to be made in the New York City region late in the 19th Century.

[Mark]

Ant Bloomberg tobacco flavored pizza available?

[pieceofthepuzzle]

“Have you ever made a Chinese take out pizza?”

General Tso’s peperoni?

[NYAmerican]

That was before they understood their white privilege.

[r_barton]

Chinese Five-Spice Flavored Pizza

One of my family members challenged me to make a pizza with Chinese flavorings. This makes a saucy, crunchy pizza that has the flavor of a Chinese BBQ Pork Bun. It turned out really good and now I have to make it frequently for my family.

Makes one 14 inch pizza

Total Time: about 7 hours (6 hour dough rise, 25 to 35 minutes baking)

Pizza Crust
3/4 cup Water (room temperature- about 70-F to 80-F)
3/4 teaspoon White Granulated Sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons Active Dry Yeast (or 1 packet)
2 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour (don’t use bread flour, we want a biscuit like dough)
1/3 cup Yellow Cornmeal
3/4 teaspoon (0.25 oz) Table Salt
1/3 cup Cooking Oil ( 5 Tbsp Corn or Canola oil and 1 Tbsp Olive Oil)

- Add sugar and yeast to water, stir well. If not using instant yeast, allow the yeast to bloom in water for about
15-minutes. If using instant yeast, you can use the water mixture right away.
- Stir in flour, cornmeal and salt. Mix well.
- Stir in cooking oils.
- Mix for 1 minute then knead for 3 minutes. You can use a stand mixer or by hand. Add more flour or warm
water, a Tablespoon at a time, as needed, to make a workable dough.
- Don’t over-knead, we want a biscuit like dough.
- Form dough into a ball, place in a large mixing bowl, coat dough lightly with oil, cover bowl and let dough rise
in a warm place for 6 hours. This long rise time develops a rich flavor in the dough that comes through in the
baked crust. You can use the dough after about 1 hour of rise, but it won’t have the deep flavor.
- Punch down dough and allow it to rest 10 to 15 minutes.
- Press dough into pizza pan.
- Coat pizza dough evenly with Chinese BBQ Pork Bun Flavored Pizza Sauce.
- Add toppings evenly in the order listed.
- Bake at 425 F for 25 minutes

Chinese Five-Spice Flavored Pizza Sauce:

1 1/4 cups Hunts Garlic and Herb Pasta sauce
1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp Sweet Baby Rays BBQ sauce
1 Tbsp Hoisin Sauce
1 Tbsp Honey
1 1/2 tsp Oyster Sauce
1 1/2 tsp Soy Sauce
1 1/2 tsp Toasted Sesame Oil
1 1/2 tsp Seasoned Rice Vinegar
1/2 tsp Chinese five spice powder
1/2 tsp Hickory flavored liquid smoke

Combine ingredients and mix well. Spread on pizza.

Toppings:

2 cups Shredded Pulled Pork, drained of any liquid
1 cup finely diced cabbage coleslaw mix
1/2 cup Water Chestnuts, Diced (from canned, drained)
1 cup French’s French Fried Onions (the ones used on a green bean casserole)
1 cup La Choy Chow Mein Noodles, slightly crushed
3/4 cup shredded Walmart Great Value Fiesta Blend cheese (Monterey jack, cheddar, Queso Quesadilla, asadero cheese)

[Secret Agent Man]

I eat pizza bagels.

[who_would_fardels_bear]

If I reheat my take-out does that count as “Twice Cooked Pizza”?

[Larry Lucido]

Alex: You know when you make a pizza bagel, you really shouldn’t use cinnimon rasin.

Jerry: You also shouldn’t use a donut.

[RayChuang88]

And the Italian and Eastern European immigrants were heavily discriminated against, though not to the scale of what happened to the Irish that escaped the Great Potato Famine of the 1840's (that group of Irish immigrants couldn't speak English, let alone literate in even Irish Gaelic). Indeed, the very fact one Thomas Edison went after Jewish filmmakers and movie theater operators at beginning of the 20th Century in New York City was why just about every major Hollywood studio founded between 1910 to 1925 were all founded by people of Jewish descent.

But getting back on topic, pizza became popular nationally first. It wasn't until the 1970's that bagels started to become nationally well-known.

[surrey]

Being a native New Yorker. I love them both but if I had to choose give me a bagel with cream cheese and lox.

[Vendome]

Best Bagels are at Eli’s Bread Factory, uptown.

[dp0622]

My grandfather would tell me of fierce battles between the two with bagels and pizza flying like missiles through the air.

didn’t matter...pepperoni, sausage, eggplant would be used, and on the other side salt, onion and even sesame.

it was carnage :)

[kearnyirish2]

Pizza all the way; I’ve been around both all my life, but you can just do more with pizza (in terms of toppings - sausage, onions, garlic, red pepper, the list is endless). We still have a lot of family-owned pizzerias (about a dozen miles west of NYC), and they top any other kind.

Best bagel: Toasted garlic bagel covered with butter with sausage patties...

[StoneWall Brigade]

I’ll gladly take New York Style, Pizza.

[lee martell]

Bagels (Poppy Seed!) are great snacks.
Pizza’s (Ground Beef, Canadian Bacon,Green Bell Pepper,Onion& a Spot of Cheese) are great meals.