Ever hear of "Cold Cheese Pizza?" Here we have a peculiar animal indigenous to Oneonta, NY. Incidentally, Oneonta is also the home of the Upstate NY institution that is Brooks BBQ. I should probably do a post about that joint (and their church haunting) someday...
Anyhow, today we are talking about Cold Cheese Pizza. I have heard it told that this creation was born at Tino's Pizza on Main St., Oneonta and I have no reason to believe otherwise. Simply stated, a slice of "Cold Cheese" is your standard, work-a-day slice of pizza covered in (surprise) cold cheese (usually a normal pizza cheese, vaguely reminiscent of mozzarella). Ever since hearing about this concept I have been strangely fascinated and made a firm mental note to make a visit to Tino's the very next time I get out that direction.
Well, twern't I just tickled when I spied the "Cold Cheese" offered locally on our very own Murray's Pizza's (Deleware Ave., Delmar) menu. I am not the hugest fan of Murray's but ordered anyway, for science! This is what showed up.
Here we have a small pizza and a bag labeled "Cold Ch." I am sure you have already guessed, but the idea is simply that you heap a bunch of cold mozzarella onto your slice before you go to town.
You know what?, the "Cold Cheese" pizza experience is sort of intriguing. You have a lot going on in your maw when you are chewing away on a big hunk of this crap. You get the salty, cold punch of the pizza cheese along with the warm, crispiness of the slice. It is not an altogether unpleasant sensation. In fact, I could see very good pizza with very good cold cheese being fairly delightful. I always used to scoff at the "salad pizza" craze of a few years ago, but I kind of get the whole cold/warm on the same slice at the same time thing.
I recommend that every resident of Upstate America try this at least one. Everyone else, I don't really care what you do. But you should try this too.
Went to Oneonta state and cold cheese pizza was the 3:00am staple when staggering home from the bars on a Saturday night. Mmmmmm.....so good
ReplyDeleteJust wondered why many foodnatics love cold pizza? I preferred more hot rather than cold. Especially when i see that the cheese is slowly melting down in pie. : )
ReplyDeleteCold Cheese is also indigenous to Pizza Buono in Plattsburg...yum
ReplyDeleteI went to Cobleskill & Plattsburgh. Cold Cheese pizza with a side of blue cheese to dip into still pulls at my heart strings.
ReplyDeletewhat about a raw dough pizza? did anyone ever try one of those? I actually prefer a pizza with very little cheese, and I would rather no cheese than plastic 'pizza cheese' which is really not so tasty.
ReplyDeleteMan - I haven't thought of cold cheese pizza since working in Cooperstown. It's totally gross, except at 3am when it's close to godliness.
ReplyDeleteHmm. Mr. Dave, because of you, I will douse my next slice of pizza with some cold, unmelted cheese.
ReplyDeleteLived in Otown for 5 years, Frankie at Mama Nina's made the best cold cheese, put it together with a bucket of beer and few buddies, anit a better way to spend a cold winter night.
ReplyDeleteWell, maybe...
I went to Plattsburgh and Cold Cheese Pizza was THE eats of the town. A slice of Bono's Cold Cheese with a side of Frank's, excellent!
ReplyDeleteCold Cheese Pizza is a great way to end the night in O-town. Tino's does have that claim to fame (Frankie doesn't do a bad job, he's just not the original) and for awhile you could get it at Madison's in Albany if Dino was working (Oneonta guy himself.) It's very difficult to explain to those who don't get it and I'm thrilled that you get it!
ReplyDeleteLikewise Dan, Class of '04 here, but I'm pretty sure it was imported from Oneonta.
ReplyDeleteDeborah is right! I too went to SUNY Plattsburgh back in 2000 and would always get Cold Cheese Pizza from Pizza Buono when the bars closed at 2 AM.
ReplyDelete1990 Sovrana Pizza, Albany; cold cheese. Yes, I'm old.
ReplyDeleteSal's does it best!
ReplyDeleteIt's fantastic when drunk because you don't burn the roof of your mouth and can just MOW DOWN!
ReplyDeleteCold cheese has been eaten by drunk college kids in Oneonta at least back to '93...great stuff!
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure Sal's created the cold cheese and they have the best damn pizza. Plus they sell cigs, beer, dutches, and they're open till 4 am on weekends!
ReplyDeleteI've lived in Oneonta for most of my life, not counting college. I consider myself somewhat of a local pizza expert.
ReplyDeleteI remember getting cold cheese slices as far back as 1990 or so. The first place I had it was at Ruffino's - they actually didn't know what it was, but I was with a friend who swore by the stuff, and he instructed him to simply throw some cold cheese on a hot slice.
Oneontas love to debate the origin of the cold cheese, most think it was Tino's, some Sal's... doesn't matter much to me, as long as they keep serving it.
I went to Oneonta in the 1990's. I am from Troy, NY where putting cold cheese on was created. My friends and I would always get a slice of cheese from I Love NY in downtown Troy and cold cheese as a topping was pretty standard. I'm pretty sure that I started this tradition at Tino's in Oneonta. I'm not saying I invented it, I just brought it from Troy.
ReplyDeleteThis was the best back when i was there in 1993. Haven't seen a place that does this anywhere else.
ReplyDeleteBiz,
ReplyDeleteIt was around in Oneonta before the 90's as I was there in the late 80's.
Sals, Ruffino's, Mama Nina's, and the Black Oak to name a few in Oneonta that served this "pizza with extra cold cheese" - too good!
ReplyDeleteCold Cheese pizza is a "thing" on Long Island also...sorry to burst your bubbles! =)
ReplyDelete