We ordered a variety of Neapolitan pizzas, including a pair of the tomato, mozzarella and basil-based Margheritas. How fortunate we were.<\/p>\n
One person at our table, however, refused to try them. Her name is Jan and she\u2019s from New Jersey.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not better than New York style,\u201d she told a stunned table. \u201cI\u2019m sure it\u2019s fine, but my guy is better.\u201d<\/p>\n
We all know a Jan in our lives \u2014 or sometimes, it\u2019s us. We all have our favorites, whether it\u2019s pizza, tacos, draft beers or wines. But that shouldn\u2019t stop us from trying something different.<\/p>\n
And you don\u2019t have to travel to Italy for a great slice. My colleague, Food columnist Jenn Harris<\/a>, compiled a list of seven new favorite pizzas to try in Los Angeles<\/a>.<\/p>\n Harris takes readers from Hermosa Beach to Eagle Rock, and from Santa Monica to Los Feliz in search of a lovely pie.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s jump into a few selections from Harris\u2019 list \u2014 and remember, don\u2019t be a Jan.<\/p>\n A pepperoni pizza from Sonny\u2019s in Hollywood. <\/p>\n (Jenn Harris \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n Sonny\u2019s (Hollywood)<\/p>\n I have seen all the social media influencers proclaiming Sonny\u2019s<\/a> to be the best new pizza in Los Angeles. It\u2019s a giant pizza, with a diameter that seems like the size of a semi-truck tire. The crust is so crisp, the crackles are audible in every video of people munching on it.<\/p>\n A layer of bronze oil sits atop the pizza and settles in the many cups of pepperoni. It creates a sheen over the cheese. My fingers were shiny. The oil dripped down my chin. The cheese, sauce and crust coalesce into a slender slice that\u2019s sturdy enough, but flops at the tip.<\/p>\n Some of the crust was cracker-like and golden. Some of it was burnt. It\u2019s not a perfect pizza, but I appreciated the thin crust and the flavor of the grease-streaked mottled cheese. And if someone else is offering to go through the trouble of ordering the pizza, I\u2019ll happily eat it.<\/p>\n The D-Fresh pizza from Redwood Pie in Hermosa Beach. The pizza is topped with pickled serrano chiles and spicy sausage. <\/p>\n (Jenn Harris \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n Redwood Pie (Hermosa Beach)<\/p>\n I first encountered Erik Vose\u2019s pizza when he was operating Vivace Pizzeria<\/a>, a food truck that housed a 5,500-pound Acunto Mario oven. He made some of the best bubble-flecked Neapolitan pies in the city. Now he\u2019s creating his own category of pizza at Redwood Pie in Hermosa Beach.<\/p>\n He\u2019s making a sourdough crust with a blend of five flours from Central Milling<\/a>. It\u2019s bready and wonderfully chewy, a sheath of amber orbs and tight, tiny bubbles that create the ideal crunch.<\/p>\n The slice of pepperoni is textbook perfect from Redwood Pie<\/a>, with a well-balanced sauce, a blanket of cheese and pepperoni cups that transform into blistered meat candy in the oven. For the white pie fans, there\u2019s the \u201cD-Fresh.\u201d A rugged landscape of hot Italian sausage crumbles, frizzled basil and pickled Serrano chiles tops the mozzarella base \u2014 and leaves your lips humming with heat.<\/p>\n Pork-and-beef bolognese pizza at Bub and Grandma\u2019s Pizza in Highland Park.<\/p>\n (Stephanie Breijo \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n Bub and Grandma\u2019s Pizza (Highland Park)<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve been following Andy Kadin\u2019s career, you know that his breads can be found at restaurants around the city. So it should come as no surprise that his sourdough pizzas possess a wonderful tang and a durable crust that cracks with each fold and bite.<\/p>\n Kadin developed his pizza dough alongside chef Jeff Whittaker, who previously cooked at Hippo and Bar Monette. For the Bolognese pizza at Bub and Grandma\u2019s Pizza<\/a>, they slather the crust in a robust, meaty pork and beef ragu, with big boulders of meat protruding from the melted mozzarella.<\/p>\n The porchetta pie is painted with a decadent garlic cream and cloaked in ribbons of porchetta, charred broccolini and plenty of pepperoncini. It\u2019s finished with a drizzle of garlic oil and a sprinkle of fennel salt. Imagine all the makings of a stellar porchetta sandwich in pizza form.<\/p>\n For more pizza wonderment, check out this link for the entire list<\/a>.<\/p>\n You’re reading the Essential California newsletter The week\u2019s biggest stories (Allen J. Schaben\/Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n Blazes and large-scale firesTrump policies and reactionsUnpredictable, bizarre deathsRain, snow and wet weatherWhat else is going onMust readsOther meaty readsFor your downtime (Andrew Rae \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n Going outStaying inL.A. Affairs<\/p>\n Get wrapped up in tantalizing stories about dating, relationships and marriage.<\/p>\n Have a great day, from the Essential California team<\/p>\n Jim Rainey, staff reporter How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com<\/a>. Check our top stories<\/a>, topics<\/a> and the latest articles<\/a> on latimes.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/a> <\/p>\n
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Hugo Mart\u00edn, assistant editor, fast break desk
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew J. Campa, weekend writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters<\/p>\n