Our Favorite Pizza

Yesterday we attended “Slice of the Valley”, an annual Youngstown, Ohio pizza contest. This pizza challenge featured nineteen local pizzerias, all vying for the award of number one pizza in the Mahoning Valley. 

I feel we should be honest from the get go in this post. If it were up to us, there would be no need for a pizza contest.  Our favorite pizza by far is Wedgewood Pizza! Wedgewood is a locally owned pizzeria that was founded years ago by Fernando, who can still be found working at the Austintown, Ohio location. Don had two slices of the Fernando Special – a delicious heap of meats and peppers and onions and cheese on a thick but delightfully crunchy crust. No pizza can come close to this extraordinary concoction of Italian goodness!

Local celebrities judged the pizza contest. Youngstown State University President, Jim Tressel (former coach at The Ohio State University and Youngstown State University) and Boom Boom Mancini (WBA Lightweight Champion from 1982-84) were chatting with attendees, signing autographs and posing for pictures after their judging duties were complete. I talked with them for a few minutes and was impressed by their passion for the Youngstown area. They were both thrilled with the turnout for the event, especially since it was a fundraiser for several worthwhile organizations.

Another notable local celebrity judge was Hanford Dixon, a former Cleveland Browns player. Dixon played for the Browns from 1981-89 and was responsible for coining the phrase “Dawg Pound”.

Radio hosts and a local musician who plays guitar for the TV show “The Voice” rounded out the row of judges. The variety of judges gave the event a wide appeal for all ages.

Providing a background of Frank Sinatra music was Bo Wagner and his 13 piece orchestra band. The entertainment was exceptional and Wagner connected with the crowd, singing the hits of Ol’ Blue Eyes.

We will definitely go to this event again next year. It was a fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon in between football and baseball seasons, when the weather is typically too crummy in our neck of the woods to do anything outdoors.