It was early afternoon on a long Friday that I got my lesson on kosher pizza on Nostrand Avenue in Midwood. Pizza Palace was open but no pizza: “We ran out of pizza!” A customer joked: “Maybe Plaza Mall bought up all the pizza since they’re buying up all the property here anyhow, even closing two drug chains in the process.” I’d never heard of running out of pizza before because pizza stores are notorious for stocking all the dough they need. Next was Pizza Express which was simply already shuttered and finally there was Perizia which had taken over the Bash pizza store but was not open yet. This was Isaac Bijou’s fifth store in the area. Thankfully, there were many other options along Avenues J and M that were open.
Although they call themselves Pizza stores, most are dairy restaurants with some even offering party rooms for festive celebration. By one estimate, there are nearly 500 kosher pizza stores in the United States. One of my sources who claimed to be in the know put the number at closer to 300. Regardless, one must hope that when a craving hits, the pizza store will be open.
