The Vancouver Foodster 5th Pizza Challenge was a great success featuring unique creations at restaurants around Metro Vancouver.  Each restaurant featured their creation on their menu from April 4-28, 2019. and their customers voted for their favourites daily throughout the challenge for their People’s Choice favourites.

Our media judging panel determined the ultimate winners of the challenge, and this was quite the task as each judge who tasted each creation with a rigorous process based on taste, originality/uniqueness and presentation/appearance.

Each media judge scored each creation with a maximum of 40 points as follows: Overall Taste 20 points, Originality and Uniqueness 10 points, Presentation and Appearance 10 points. The highest number of points a challenge creation could have been awarded is 120 points.

Our Media judges for this challenge were: Tara Lee, Maggi Mei, and Andrew Chan.

The Winners are:

1st Place:

{1o1 points}

Pizza Carano

Leek with Saffron Cream Pizza

Price: $20

Created by: Chef Trevor Hagenbuch

Description: Our White Sauce base of Grana Padano and Mascarpone Cheese mixed with the addition of a Saffron Tea, match-sticked roasted Leeks, Gelderman Farms Bacon, Calabrese Peppers, and topped with fresh Dill.

Ingredients: White Sauce base of Grana Padano, Mascarpone Cheese, a Saffron Tea, match-sticked roasted Leeks, Gelderman Farms Bacon, Calabrese Peppers, fresh Dill.

Offered: Daily 5-10pm

Pizza Carano

4241 Fraser St, Vancouver

Tel: 604-877-1270

Web: http://www.pizzacarano.com/

Twitter: @PizzaCarano

Instagram @PizzaCarano

2nd Place:

{97 points}

Backcountry Brewing

I pity the Falafool

Price: $17

Created by: Chef Artie McGee

Description: Inspired by the classic falafel sandwich, roasted garlic tahini sauce, falafel feta, halloumi cheese, pickled vegetables, mint yogurt

Ingredients: Roasted garlic tahini: tahini sauce, roasted garlic cilantro, cream, Feta, Halloumi, Pickled vegetable: champagne vinegar, tomato, red onion, cucumber, sugar, Mint yogurt: greek yogurt, mint, lemon, Falafel: English peas, chic peas, parsley, lemon, garlic, cilantro, cumin, smoke paprika. Garnish: toasted sesame seeds and mint

Offered: All the time

Backcountry Brewing

405-1201 Commercial Way, Squamish

Web: https://www.backcountrybrewing.com/

Tel:(604) 567-2739

Twitter @Backcountry604

Instagram @backcountrybrewing

 

3rd Place (tie):

{95 points}

AJ’s Brooklyn Pizza Joint

Detroit Red Top

Price: $33

Created by: Chef Anthony Caridi

Description: Detroit-style pizza was invented in the 1940s by Gus Guerra, the owner of Buddy’s Rendezvous. It’s rectangular, thick, and fluffy like a Sicilian pizza and is framed by a border of crispy golden brown cheese that tastes like the best part of a grilled cheese sandwich — the stuff that leaks out of the edge and gets toasted in the pan.

What makes this style unique are the two cheeses, white cheddar and mozza, which are piled extra high up the sides of the pan to encourage that charred effect; the butter used to grease the pan; and the pan itself. Legend has it that Gus came up with the idea of using heavy, square blue-steel pans originally designed to clean the oil from tools in high-pressure gas ovens in factories. How Motor City is that?

Ingredients: AJS ground tomato sauce ( Sauce is applied after the pizza is cooked), Pinch of fine sea salt, Pinch of dried oregano, 7 ounces Mozza Cheese, shredded, 7 ounces  white cheddar cheese, Grated Pecorino Romano cheese, for dusting, Dried oregano, for dusting, Garlic oil for drizzling, Pepperoni Cups to top it off.

Offered: All the time

AJ’s Brooklyn Pizza Joint

325 E Broadway, Vancouver

Tel: (604) 428-5805

Web: http://ajsbrooklynpizzajoint.com/

Twitter @Ajsbklynpizza

Instagram @ajsbklynpizzajoint

3rd Place (tie):

{95 points}

Mordimi Bite of Italy

Boscaiola

Price: $20

Created by: Chef Luca Colasanti

Description: A walk in the Italian Forest

Ingredients: Italian Black truffle, potatoes, mushrooms, Asiago cheese and fior di latte. Garnish with rosemary and pea shoots.

Offered: all the time Tuesday – Sunday.

Mordimi Bite of Italy

2638 E Hastings Street, Vancouver

Tel: (604) 253-0765

Web: http://mordimi.ca/

Instagram @mordimibiteofitaly

In the People’s Choice Awards category, the public who tried the Pizza Creations were the ones who had the opportunity to cast their vote throughout the challenge.

The Winners are:

1st Place People’s Choice:

Pizza Carano

Leek with Saffron Cream Pizza

Price: $20

Created by: Chef Trevor Hagenbuch

Description: Our White Sauce base of Grana Padano and Mascarpone Cheese mixed with the addition of a Saffron Tea, match-sticked roasted Leeks, Gelderman Farms Bacon, Calabrese Peppers, and topped with fresh Dill.

Ingredients: White Sauce base of Grana Padano, Mascarpone Cheese, a Saffron Tea, match-sticked roasted Leeks, Gelderman Farms Bacon, Calabrese Peppers, fresh Dill.

Offered: Daily 5-10pm

Pizza Carano

4241 Fraser St, Vancouver

Tel: 604-877-1270

Web: http://www.pizzacarano.com/

Twitter: @PizzaCarano

Instagram @PizzaCarano

 

2nd Place People’s Choice:

AJ’s Brooklyn Pizza Joint

Detroit Red Top

Price: $33

Created by: Chef Anthony Caridi

Description: Detroit-style pizza was invented in the 1940s by Gus Guerra, the owner of Buddy’s Rendezvous. It’s rectangular, thick, and fluffy like a Sicilian pizza and is framed by a border of crispy golden brown cheese that tastes like the best part of a grilled cheese sandwich — the stuff that leaks out of the edge and gets toasted in the pan.

What makes this style unique are the two cheeses, white cheddar and mozza, which are piled extra high up the sides of the pan to encourage that charred effect; the butter used to grease the pan; and the pan itself. Legend has it that Gus came up with the idea of using heavy, square blue-steel pans originally designed to clean the oil from tools in high-pressure gas ovens in factories. How Motor City is that?

Ingredients: AJS ground tomato sauce ( Sauce is applied after the pizza is cooked), Pinch of fine sea salt, Pinch of dried oregano, 7 ounces Mozza Cheese, shredded, 7 ounces  white cheddar cheese, Grated Pecorino Romano cheese, for dusting, Dried oregano, for dusting, Garlic oil for drizzling, Pepperoni Cups to top it off.

Offered: All the time

AJ’s Brooklyn Pizza Joint

325 E Broadway, Vancouver

Tel: (604) 428-5805

Web: http://ajsbrooklynpizzajoint.com/

Twitter @Ajsbklynpizza

Instagram @ajsbklynpizzajoint

 

3rd Place People’s Choice:

Mordimi Bite of Italy

Boscaiola

Price: $20

Created by: Chef Luca Colasanti

Description: A walk in the Italian Forest

Ingredients: Italian Black truffle, potatoes, mushrooms, Asiago cheese and fior di latte. Garnish with rosemary and pea shoots.

Offered: all the time Tuesday – Sunday.

Mordimi Bite of Italy

2638 E Hastings Street, Vancouver

Tel: (604) 253-0765

Web: http://mordimi.ca/

Instagram @mordimibiteofitaly

Thank you to all the chefs and restaurants that accepted my invitation and featured the Pizza Challenge creations on the menu for the past few weeks during this challenge.

I encourage you to visit the winning restaurants to try their Pizza creations! See all the Pizza Challenge Entries Here.

By: Richard Wolak