The Beijinger – September/October 2018: Beijing's Pizzaiolos: What It Takes to Make the Capital's Best Pizza
Growing up in a quaint rural village in the north of England, it’s safe to say that my knowledge of the deep joy that only cheese sprinkled on tomato sauce spread on baked flour can bring would have been stilted had I been satisfied with the offerings of my one stuffy pizza chain in town. Alas, as good as their dough balls were, they cannot sustain a strapping young lad’s curiosity forever. And thus it is here that we, individuals driven to explore more than the offerings of our local pizza joint (among other things), find ourselves on the cusp of yet another pizza showdown in the most unlikely of locales.
Therefore, to get you in the mood for the 2018 Beijing Pizza Festival (Oct 13-14), our cover feature (p.12-23) is dedicated to grilling the top five contestants of last year’s competition to see what exactly it is that tossed their pizzas to the top. We also dive into the history of esteemed Italian explorers who landed on Chinese shores long before we were here to witness Pizza Hut sell its first durian pizza.
Just like those initial voyagers, we continue to marvel at the breadth and variety of Beijing’s offerings, a testament to the creativity and ingenuity of its people. We hope you enjoy riding the crust of what this fine city has to offer in the following pages and we look forward to seeing you with greasy smiles and cheesy palms at this year’s fest!
Tom Arnstein – Managing Editor, the Beijinger
Read the issue via Issuu online here, or access it as a PDF here. Otherwise, grab a hard copy at your favorite outlet around town!
Photo: Fang Yifei