2011 Oct 31 BJ Pizza Wars XI: Twilight v Bang! Bang! Pizza
Anyone fancy a burger? Don't know about you but I'm just about pizza'd out. Which is lucky, because these are the last two pizzas I'll for eating for our esteemed contest. In this week's dough derby we've got a south side battle for y’all. Two poulet pizzas raised on the wrong side of the tracks. Bang! Bang! Pizza is a rookie in the Shuangjing scene, but already boasts twice the exclamation marks of rival Gung-Ho! Twilight is the thinking man’s cocktail bar (it takes grey matter to find it down in Jianwai Soho) which just happens to bake pizzas on the side. But which one has the anchovies? Let's rumble.
In the red corner: Spicy Chicken, Bang! Bang! Pizza, RMB 60 (small)
Style Italian style crust balanced by doughy softness. It’s a hybrid look, but it works.
Crust Puffy and thin. Non-oily, with a smidgen of hot oven crackle.
Cheese 'n sauce Super-stringy cheese with generous coverage – molten mmm. Sauce a little sweet.
Toppings Chicken pieces pack a fiery, mouth-tingling kick. Generous, but coverage falls well short of the outer edge and could do with one or two other ingredients to make it more colourful.
Satisfaction? Indeed. Nice that this pie comes served with pizza slice AND Tabasco on the table. Impressed with the venue too, it's slick and stylish - oh, and try the fried squid. But please, sort out the music.
Morning after Breakfast of ... tramps. Actually, it's do-able.
Next...
In the blue corner: Grilled Chicken, Twilight, RMB 65
Style Fusion? Californian? Mini? It is certainly small for the price, but very cute ... nay, perfectly formed.
Crust Taste is great, but it's as if this crust didn't quite rise as planned, meaning there's a biscuit thing going on.
Cheese 'n sauce Tomato sauce is fresh, red and tasty, but the extra presence of halved cherry tomatoes ups the sweetness to just past perfect.
Toppings Loads of grilled chicken that has slightly sweet edge. Particularly like the sprigs of fresh rosemary, and the aforementioned cherry toms.
Satisfaction? Well it won't bust a gut, but if you think this pie as snack accompaniment to a couple of well-crafted cocktails, you're on the right track.
Morning after Provided you haven't drunk too many cocktails the night before...
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This is a tough one to call, with two different styles and approaches. Both venues are late night bar type affairs with pizza as the menu mainstay. I used to rave about Twilight's English Breakfast pizza (still on the menu), but the crust memory I have of that (yes, crust memory) was of something a little more hand-stretched and tasty than the experience this time around. I was very impressed with Bang! Bang! as a venue, with good service and decor, and generous pies, but for pure taste ...
Verdict? Twilight sneaks it.
Check us out Thursday at 2pm for our last installment in the Pizza Wars ... Meanwhile, take another look at matchups past:
Episode X: La Pizza v The Tree
Episode IX: Kro's Nest v Tube Station Pizza
Episode VIII: Alio Olio v Annie's
Episode VII: Alla Osteria v Cornerstone
Episode VI: Scott's Family Restaurant v Nasca
Episode V: Vineyard Cafe v Alba
Episode IV: Tavola v Pizza by LMPlus
Episode III: The Den v Pizza Buona
Episode II: Eatalia v Pyro Pizza
Episode I: Hutong Pizza v Pass-by Bar
For a full list of matchups, head here: http://www.thebeijinger.com/blog/BJ-Pizza-Wars
You might also be interested in :
The Kro’s Nest Victory Party: Everybody's Welcome
The Kro’s Nest will be celebrating their domination in the recent The Beijinger Pizza Cup. As a thank you to everyone that voted for them in the Cup, Kro is offering a special 12 percent discount on Monday, December 19 throughout the evening at the Sanlitun branch.
The Kro’s Nest Beats Gung Ho! in The Beijinger Pizza Cup
After three gluttonous weeks, five fierce rounds and 32 pizzas (ranging from traditional Neapolitan to the most re-imagined American slice), The Kro's Nest has come out on top. The final match pitted the crazy Kiwis in pink against the second-coming of the Kro in a nail-biting final that left The Kro’s Nest reigning victorious and serving up the best pizza in Beijing.
Kro's Before Ho's? You Decide In The Beijinger Pizza Cup Final
Beijing has had its say over the past three weeks and the final is here, and boy, have we got a heavyweight matchup for you? It's America versus New Zealand as long-term favorite Kro’s Nest is going to head-to-head with delivery upstart Gung Ho! Pizza in a match to decide who lifts The Beijinger Pizza Cup.
Kro's fought off a late surge from stalwart The Tree in the Final Four to earn its spot in the final, whereas Gung Ho handily dispatched Hutong Pizza to earn their berth.
Neither establishment had an easy path to those penultimate matches. Kro’s path included victories over Pizza Buona, Paddy O’Shea’s, La Pizza and finally The Tree. Gung Ho’s path meant fending off Vineyard Café, Annie’s, Sureno and Hutong Pizza.
No less exciting will be the third-place playoff match, which pits two great pizza spots with long traditions different styles, and different turfs – Sanlitun’s The Tree and Houhai’s Hutong Pizza.
The Beijinger’s Pizza Cup: Kro's, Ho's, The Tree & Hutong Pizza Reach Final Four!
A furious round of balloting over the past four days has resulted in the Final Four of The Beijinger’s Pizza Cup – a hearty crew of the new, the old and the reborn who go on to the next round. The most dominant victory of the Round of 8 was rung up by The Tree, which slapped its bar brethren The Den to the curb by winning 74% of the vote. The narrowest victory was achieved by Gung Ho! Pizza, who eked out a win over surprising challenger Sureno by a mere nine ballots. In a clash of pizza empires, the American-style Kro’s Nest whacked the Italian-style La Pizza, 59% to 41%. Meanwhile, Haidian’s last challenger, Eatalia, was knocked out by an ascendant Hutong Pizza, 54% to 46%
The Beijinger Pizza Cup: Who's In The Elite Eight?
In an exciting second round of the Beijinger Pizza Cup, local favorite Annie’s was ousted by a rising Gung Ho, Kro’s stomped all over Paddy O’Shea’s and upstarts Eatalia overthrew Pyro Pizza to claim Haidian supremacy. Kro’s Nest scored the most resounding victory of the second round, slaughtering Paddy O’Shea's by winning 79% of the vote. The second most dominating performance was by Opposite House basement-dwellers Sureño, which doubled up the votes over Sanlitun neighbor Ciro’s.
Cici.and.Company
Re: BJ Pizza Wars XI: Twilight v Bang! Bang! Pizza
Where's the jest on Lily's American Diner Pizza.? Come on guys, we all know how much you Beijingers magazine professionals love Lily's wanna-be American Diner. How dare you leave her pizza's out of the wars.
buy buy buy
badr
Re: BJ Pizza Wars XI: Twilight v Bang! Bang! Pizza
just a small correction guys: Twilight is in JIANWAI soho, not chaowai
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Jerry
Re: BJ Pizza Wars XI: Twilight v Bang! Bang! Pizza
Thanks for pointing that out, Bdar, and sorry for letting the mistake slip through. We've corrected the mistake in the text and here is the link to the directory listing with the correct adddress.
Jerry Chan, Editorial Director
panjialang
Re: BJ Pizza Wars XI: Twilight v Bang! Bang! Pizza
Tom,
I love your writing - it's always funny and informative, but could you make a encompassing list of all the pizza places, best to worst? It's a pain deciding when to go when you only sort them by pairs and seemingly randomly.
SteveW
Re: BJ Pizza Wars XI: Twilight v Bang! Bang! Pizza
Just one more small correction - bang bang pizzas are all RMB 60
tomomalley
Re: BJ Pizza Wars XI: Twilight v Bang! Bang! Pizza
Cheers, encompassing list would have to be a collaborative effort between me and my cheesy cohort Susan Sheng, but not until we put it to public vote in the Pizza Cup!
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