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No more pizza... but just for a few weeks

Yes - I have "pizza'd" myself out. I have had enough, for now :)

It was so nice to go out o regular basis and eat what we wanted and not worry abut the cleaig up or anyting, for that matter.

It needs to be said that people don't have such optios always. It's all about the moey, and access to food... And looking back the fact that so many of us could enjoy it can prove a point we do not thik or notice those that can't.

The thing is that our enjoymet was someone elses had work. We experienced last week how not that easy and fast is the art of making pizzas... And yet we were servd this food efortlessly for few weeks. I do hope that all the working staff at the restaurantskow they are appreciated and are rewarded for theur jobbs! We did leave tips, of course!

Emily

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Is this the end...

I really enjoes the pizza experience.

We visited really different places, tastes amazing pizzas, safe and known, new and exciting and even some from placs we did not associate with pizza. And then we also made our own!

One can say we traveled through food. I find myself really lucky having people arounf that we can enjoy such endavours with.

But looking at the experience there needs to be a reflection on people that are not as priviledged. People that ca't travel, because of financials, or accesibility reasons. Or much more simple reasons but nontheless important - like food allergies or intolerances...

We had options for gluten free, but not everywhere, in fact only 1 place really let people with glute intolernce be equal in their ability to enjoy the same flavours.

This for sure is where the offer of restaurants can be mproved!

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The End of Our Journey - A Reflection on Pizza and More

What a journey, right? I can't believe this project has come to an end! It feels like it lasted only a moment, on the other hand, I am well aware a few weeks passed, it's kind of funny. During this project, we visited so many restaurants, with so many different kinds of pizza, and with many different aesthetics, different interpretations of this supposedly simple meal… I think throughout the whole span of this blog, I noticed some important aspects of these restaurants that I believe are important to share!

~ Alex.

There are many aspects, and criteria of sort, by which our group, so me as well, of course, considered these restaurants and decided if we liked them or not. However, I think it goes further than that. After all, the subjects which we covered can't just be equaled to likes/dislikes, as they're deeper than that.

Say, dietary restrictions related to the menus; I am not a person with a celiac disease, so I don't need to search through the menus carefully, because if I pick a wrong dish, it will make me seriously sick. Still, few restaurants that we visited had such information, or we had to figure it out based on the ingredients, which isn't even always safe! Something that I think more restaurants should took into consideration, is clearly marking their options according to particular diets (not only gluten-free, but also lactose-free, vegan, vegeterian, and etc.), due to the safety of their customers. I think it would be highly appreciated by everyone, as well as would make things simply easier! After all, it can't be that hard, right?

Another thing I wondered about, and which I think should be considered, is accessibility of these restaurants. Even though decor is important and it's really nice to sit in a gorgeous restaurant, eating delicious food, it would also be nice if these were accessible to as many people as possible, and sadly mobility was sometimes the issue in the places we visited. I don't mean that from the standpoint of correcting every single place I went to over the course of the past month (and more), what I'm trying to say is, if these restaurants can, they could make the interior more spacious, simply by changing the placement of a few tables, or could inform of the amount of space the restaurant has to offer (and in what way!)! This could be very useful to people struggling with mobility on daily basis.

What I also mean by the restuarants' accesibility is financial accessibility - not everyone can afford to go to a good, italian restaurant or just a pizza place that often, and to some of them even at all. I think it's important to talk about this, and I believe we should have focused on this aspect more - especially that we visited restauarants that were both great and easily affordable!

The last thing I wanted to mention is the approach of these restaurants to the culture of making pizza, and along those lines, that of Italy. Some of the restaurants we visited leaned into the "italian aesthetic" more than the others, some decided to go for their own, unique design, and some seemed to overlook it for the sake of simply developing their own, recognizable pizza-look that would invoke both them and the aesthetic in some strange, yet attention-grabbing way. I wanted to mention that, because this marks a, very intriguing to me, form of appreciating cultures of pizza and Italy, in a way!

(One last thing I hope for is that these don't sound too judgemental, I'm only trying to share my thoughts; hence, if you have any insight into this discussion you're invited to share it here <3.)

So, I think this food blog-project was a huge success for us! Thank you to every person reading this for being on this journey with out group. Goodbye, I wish you a good day/night, filled with pizza of all kinds to the very brims, wherever you are, haha <3.

~ Alex.

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What a journey

Looking what we have achieved. I love pizza, no question. I love pizza with white sauce best. That is for sure.

We are very lucku to be able to choose where and what we eat. As well as discover new things and new cultures when eating -learning about diferent countries through food.

It is quite something we could do it. Some people can't. We did no travel but we explored through food. Nice we had this option. But there are people that can't do even that. Because of food allergies... or because they cant go out. This is why making food at home was a great idea. Shows things can still be experienced, no matter the place. And taste good.

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SUMMARY by NINA

Wow, I cannot believe this project has already come to an end. We've spent the last few week trying different pizzas from various places and I feel like this project has just started even this is my last post here.

I personally have learned to distinguish different types of pizza because I used to think of pizza as a quick snack and never really cared about its variations.

While doing this project, I was pleased to learn that there are some places that accommodate people with different needs (mostly disabilities and food allergies (intolerances)). It's rare to find places that take all of these into account at once, but I think as time passes, there will be even more accessible restaurants.

To sum up all of the places I've decided to make some rankings(not including home):

Ranking by accessibility for people with physical disabilites:

Bottegas (easy access to several tables close to the entrance)

Pizza Hut (the one where we went to was in the shopping center with elevators inside, but the aisles were narrower compared to Bottegas)

La Cantina (3 levels, but only one is accessible)

Ti amo (small surface, extremely narrow aisles and some tables are on the platform)

Ranking according to the number of choices for people with food allergies and on a diet:

La Cantina (almost all dishes can be done gluten free and many vegan dishes)

Pizza Hut (allergens already written on the menu, vegan options) and Bottegas (vegetarian options, gluten free penne pasta) - I couldn't choose between these two

Ti amo (you have to ask the waiter if you want to find out whether the dish you are about to buy contains an ingredient you are avoiding)

Ranking by affordability from cheapest to most expensive (I am comparing prices of most available types of pizzas):

Ti amo

Bottegas

La Cantina

Pizza Hut (surprisingly, but the offer discounts often)

I hope you enjoyed our little blog (I surely did😁), because we've worked extremely hard on it.

Goodbye 🥲

Nina's last post

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Our Own Place - Our Own Homemade Pizza!

This week, I invite you to come with us on a very special kind of pizza-journey, one to be the top-of-it-all for our project - we made our own, homemade, pizza! You can see everything about it under the cut <3:

~ Alex.

Well, this isn't going to be a usual entry, but I will do my best to show you how we made our own pizza from start to finish! First of all, we gathered up at one of us' house - obvious, but you'd rather know we didn't make these pizzas in the middle of the street or another completely random place, right?

I think it's also important to note here whose pizza recipe we used! It was the one we found in the book by Jamie Oliver at one of us' house. I think it turned out really good, so I guess we can sort of vouch for this particular recipe by this particular chef!

Here we made a particular distinction betwee ingredients we used for the pizzas, as we intended to make two kind of pizzas: gluten-free pizza and pizza with gluten. You can see the ingredients we used to make the dough for the gluten pizza in the picture below - we made the gluten-free pizza first and were so excited about this, that we only have last shots of it >_<. But you can see the other ingredients here, which I think is just as fun! In order, we added sugar, oil, water, special kind of flour used to make pizza, and yeast. I think all of them combined looked great!

Thank God we didn't have to spend so much time mixing the pizza, instead we used a machine! This made it easier, and you can see the process of its working below <3:

Still, I had the pleasure to work on the dough myself too - I've never done it before, so it was a really fun experience for me, which again, you can see below:

Now, that we had the dough prepared, it was time to choose the ingredients. I'll keep those a secret until I reveal the final results of this pizza-making. For now, maybe you'll catch a glimpse of them in the photos below, hehe:

Next. we just had to get the pizzas right into the oven, so they could be baked! Obviously, the gluten-free pizza went in first, for safety precautions!! It's really important that it was made first, so the gluten from the other pizzas wouldn't get on it. Here's what this part looked like, and yes you can see the ingredients now!

Finally, here are the pizzas! As one of us happily called them (psst, it was Nina), these were meat-eater, save the animals, full-out, and say no to gluten. The results of our hard work looked great, didn't they? They also tasted that way! We also added some fresh arugula to the pizzas after they got out of the oven, which is worth to note!!!

So, as per usual, I shall share my thoughts about the particular pizzas right now <3!

Meat-eater - the first one we made, and which had meat only: tomato sauce, mozarella with ham and salami! Yep, nothing more. Looking back on it, I'd add something more on it, because this much meat with no other ingredient on it felt too much for my taste buds, it was really salty... So I think, but hey, that only means I found it the least tasty! I was still happy to eat it after all, haha <3.

Save The Animals - this ones ingredients were tomato sauce, mozarella, as well as yellow and red tomatoes. It was probably my favorite one, because of how soft and full-of-tomatoes it was, and I love that in a pizza!! Seriously, it was delicate and delicious <3!

Full-out - oh, this pizza had almost every ingredient we found on it. And it's almost, only because we didn't add any ham on this one! Yes, this one consisted of all, tomatoe sauce, mozarella, salami, red and yellow tomatoes, champignons, and pesto! Due to the very presence of the pesto, the basil was one of the most noticable ingredients here, followed by all things tomato on the pizza! It felt confusing at times, there were so many good things on it I didn't know which ingredient and its taste to focus on as I was eating! Still, it was great, even if it was a lot <3.

Say No To Gluten - a special pizza we made, that was gluten free! It had ingredients such as mozarella, tomato sauce, camembert, curry ham, and champignons - all of which were gluten-free, obviously! I found this pizza to be soft, delicate, melting as I ate it, and cheesy. Not to my usual pizza-preferences, but I think it was really good!

I have to say, even though I had so much fun decorating the pizzas, some of them I think we could've thought through much more. That is particularly about the meat-eater pizza, or maybe just that I do just prefer pizzas with vegetable-ingredients - hence my pure, unfiltered love for save the animals and full-out pizzas <3. Overall, I enjoyed all of the pizzas, even if I do have favorites, haha!

To summarize the whole journey, making the homemade pizza was incredibly exciting. It really showed us how much effort goes into making pizzas, while the process of it, being extremely fun, made it all seemingly effortless (even though the tired-ness and sleepy-ness did come for us right after finishing our food). So, you could say this sparked a new appreciation for pizzas in me!

This also the last post in which I'll be sharing my pizza-related post. Next in line, conclusion to the project and the reflections upon this pizza-journey of ours! See you there <3.

~ Alex.

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Home made!!!

So all is well that ends with PIZZA!!

Nothing is better than a home made pizza, when everything ca be made exactly how you want it!! Or is it?

Home made pizza, from scratch, is not easy. The Gough is a complicated, living thing. Then the sauce.... then the toppings - the way yo need to not only choose what you like but how to combine it and then hope for the best that it will tase right the first time round!

But - WE DID IT. Despite no white sauce, we managed 3 great pizzas. And we played with different shapes! After all we saw that pizza can come in different shapes, not just different sizes! Yay for inclusivity in pizza!!!

It is fun to make your own food! And fun to throw enough cheese on pizza!!!

Charlotte

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Home cooking!

I love home cooking. We had so much fun.

So little is needed to make such great food.

Flower, yeast and a bit of salt and sugar make for amazing dough and then we can just go wild with the toppings!

Having a restaurant choice of food is nice, but being creative with the shopping and then cooking is even nicer. It really speaks o me how we can show our individual tastes working togetherm and then eating together!

Victoria

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FIFTH STOP - HOME pt.1

9th February 2024

Our last destination was home, where we made pizzas from scratch.

We started by preparing necessary ingredients and tools to make a pizza dough:

INGREDIENTS:

Flour

Water

Salt

Yeast

Sugar

TOOLS:

Big bowl

Measuring cup

Teaspoon

Kitchen scales

Then, we added and mixed all of the ingredients together accordingly to the recipe and left the dough for half an hour to grow.

Afterwards, we spread the dough on a tray, added additional ingredients and baked everything.

I will show the results in part 2!!!

Nina's post

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Too much waiting

The nice thing about gong out to eat is that you sit and are served. Pizza is a fast food, so you get served fast.

Making pizza at home is soo much more time consuming... Yes nice but not really fast food.

Mixing the dough took ages - ans we had a machine! Dong it in hand... wow it would be even longer! And then time for it to prove... and then the sauce and the toppings and waiting for the final ready pizza... you have to not start hungry to be able to endure waiting time like this...

And then there is the cleaning up...

But, it has o be said, the ability to create our own food, and getting only exactly what you wanted o your own pizza.. well - it is nice!

And sooooooo tasty!!!

Emily

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The Pizza Poll!!!

So, as we are soon ending our pizza journey, we need to decide which pizza restaurant, and by that which type of pizza, we liked the best!

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Bottega's

Vibrant, loud, Italian. A real pizzeria. With a modern twist.

We really had a very nice time and the 3 pizzas that arrived were, simple, well made and just like in Italy.

I may question the lavender and mushroom proposition, but in fairness the balance of flavours was there and it worked. Not my favourite but not bad and, indeed very Italian, modern, but still Italian. The real forrest mushrooms made sure of that.

I have to say this was one of my favourite venues and I really enjoyed it. We spend a good amount of time there and the hustle and bustle of the place made up for a really pleasant atmosphere. Yes it was a bit loud, but this is only to be expected in such a large and such an Italian place. Solidly good rating!!

Victoria

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QR Code in stead of menu!

Ok - this is fun! A restaurant that keeps up with technology. Disappointed that no robots were serving though LOL!!!

But, despite tech- my least favourite pizzas... Especially the one with mushrooms. I like textures in food, and if they fit I like the food... Here - a "no-no"! A big no-no! Me no like slimy food!

The 2 other choices were ok. Best was the Italian mortadela! Nicely loaded pizza that really is a pizza and does what it should! Cheese, meat and pizza base!! YES!

Charlotte

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Napoli, Naples, Neapolitan pizza!

Bottega's! Such a nice place!

I really felt good in this restaurant. Very easy to be in, fun ordering system with QR codes- all online no need to with for the waiters!

And pizza!! It did not come cut... so we needed to struggle a bit, but it was worth it. 2 out of 3 were really yummy!! I enjoyed Antica Napoli and, of course! Mortadella - it was with a white sauce!

But the third pizza... with mushrooms and lavender... no... Not even the white sauce could make me enjoy the mushrooms, that were slimy... and it was a funny taste.. a bit like soap in grandma's bathroom... I guess lavender is not my thing for food...

Emily

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FOURTH STOP - BOTTEGAS

23rd January 2024

The fourth restaurant we visited was Bottegas, the place where authentic Neopolitan pizza is served.

Bottegas's speciality is Italian cuisine, their menu consists of Neopolitan pizzas, pastas, Italian alcoholic beverages and international dishes made in Italian style. The owners claim that the prices of their dishes correspond to their quality. The restaurant's located only 20 minutes away (on foot) from the Warsaw's Old Town.

This time we ordered 3 pizzas (in the order from top left):

Mortadella (mozzarella, mortadella di Bologna, ricotta cheese, grana padano cheese, lemon peel, pistachios, basil)-

Porcini & Lavanda (mozzarella, porcini mushrooms, lavender, thyme and basil) - the taste of lavender is surprisingly intense, overall untypical

Antica Napoli (San Marzano DOP tomato fillets, bufala mozzarella, parmesan, basil tomato fillets)- basic, perfect for those who don't fancy unusual tastes

Surprisingly, that orders must be placed by scanning the qr code that leads to the online menu. For some people that might be an advantage, but for others disadvantage. When it come to people with food restrictions this place offers vegetarian dishes and gluten free pasta (if indicated when placing the order and it applies to four types of pasta). I am pleased with the overall experience.

Nina's post

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Bottega's - Neapolitan Pizza

This week we came back to restaurants - we found Bottega's, a lovely restaurant I'd like to tell you more about - and discovered Neapolitan pizza!

~ Alex.

The restaurant we visited for our fouth meeting, so on 23rd January 2024, was Bottega's, a restaurant serving neapolitan pizza on Nowy Świat (in Warsaw) - hence, it's easy to get to and easy to find! Another thing that they made easier for their clients, is that the restaurant has gluten-free and vegeterian options in the menu, which I found nice and obviously helpful to those who need to know about the food being available for these diets! I found the decor of the place very interesting - colourful, with art everwhere and the surrounding feeling of freshness combined with really nice music playing in the background; I appreciated the calm and positivity stemming from this place (by the way, you'll see the pictures of the restaurant below!). One of the things that I think were really absolutely great about this restaurant too, is that there is a lot of space in it; I think I can evaluate from that, that mobility isn't an issue in this place!

For context, Neapolitan Pizza originates in Italy, particularly Campania, Naples. The main characteristics of this pizza are the special types of tomatoes used - either san marzano tomatoes or pomodorino del Piennolo del Vesuvio - mozarella di buffala campana (so, clearly a special kind of mozarella!), and the dough made with wheat flour, that consists of Neapolitan or brewer's yeast, and is fat and sugar-free. This makes it sound very soft and fresh, doesn't it?

Among many interesting choices that Bottega's had to offer, we decided upon three pizzas - antica napoli, mortadella, and porcini & lavenda. I think these were really interesting choices!

I don't think we waited for the pizzas very long, which I'm very happy about! (I was hungry after the whole day.) I think the pizzas looked even better in real life, but here are the pictures of all of our orders:

Now, after seeing them all together, let me tell you my particular thoughts about each of the pizzas! And before I start, I do have to note here that the dough was so incredibly soft in all of them I could have died from happiness!!!

Antica Napoli - the only pizza with tomato sauce out of all that we ordered! Besides that, for ingredients it had san marzano dop tomato fillets, mozarella di bufala, parmesan cheese, and basil! I found it to be classicaly tasty, calm and comforting, and as a lover of all things tomato, I really, really liked it! It's the kind of pizza you expect to love eating, and get exactly that <3.

Mortadella - the first pizza we ordered with the white sauce, as well as the ingredients of mozarella, mortadella di Bologna, ricotta and grana padano cheeses, lemon peel, as well as with pistachios and basil! I'm gonna be honest, I found it weird. It was salty-sweet, the cheeses made it even softer, and that I found confusing (also because I'm not a huge fan of dairy). Overall, not my kind of thing, but I did appreciate the presence of the pistachios!

Porcini & Lavenda - another pizza with white sauce, and mozarella, porcini mushrooms, lavender, thyme, and basil! I have never eaten a pizza like this one before, and it was sooo good. It was a very unconventional kind of taste, with the herbs making it soft, but very expressive and noticable, while the porcinis added a bit of weight to our meal. I found it really intriguing to eat, haha!*

All in all, I really appreciated the freshness of these pizzas, and especially that of Antica Napoli, while mushrooms and herbs on Porcini & Lavenda made for an interesting dinner. The finale of this project is soon, so I'm excited what will come next for us in our little journey!

~ Alex.

*All ingredients come from the website of the restaurant.

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Pizza Hut

McDonalds of pizzas.... always the same. Always reliable, but all about fast food, the unhealthy kind.

I was never a fan of it and no amount of cheese in crust can convince me otherwise.

All the pizzas we had were ok. As expected. But nothing to write home about.

The restaurant ambience is pretty much the same... nothing that makes it in any way interesting, special or different.

Victoria