I tried a strange pizza trend in Mississippi and got hooked. Could it come to Columbus?
Want to get some funny looks? Walk into a pizza shop in the Columbus area and ask for some French or Catalina dressing for your slices.
Squeezed on top or poured in a cup for dunking, the seemingly odd combination traces its origins to the Mississippi Coast. Students at Biloxi High School began putting French dressing on their pizza at Hugo’s pizza parlor in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. It remains a Gulf Coast tradition.
For those who aren’t aware, American-style French dressing is a creamy, ketchup-based condiment that ranges in hues from light orange to red. Catalina is like French’s cousin. It’s more vinegar-based, sweeter and does not have a cream base. Folks down there call either dressing “liquid cheese.”
I’ve had limited experience with Catalina or French on my pizza. My first taste came in July 2019 while visiting our sister newspaper in Biloxi, the Sun Herald. After a morning of running around on the Coast, editor Justin Mitchell took me to Brooklyn Pizzeria in nearby Bay St. Louis.
I ordered two slices of pepperoni. On the table in front of me sat a bottle of that liquid cheese, and I figured I might as well do as the locals do. I drizzled the dressing, covering both slices before I took my first bite. It was a gamble, and it paid off.
The sweet, tangy condiment pairs well with the spicy elements of the marinara and the pepperoni slices. Am I ready to give up Ranch for good? No. But will I advocate for the dressing’s inclusion as an appropriate dipping sauce? Yes, for sure. Vive la French — dressing.
But you’d likely have a hard time finding anyone in the Chattahoochee Valley using French or Catalina on their pizza.
“We don’t have any French or Catalina dressing,” said Shaun Garnett, a pizza maker at Cerrone’s Brick Oven Pizzeria in Columbus who said he has used the dressing on his pizza before. “Here, I don’t dip it in anything. You don’t really need to put anything on it.”
A quick trip to the Your Pie location on Broadway in downtown Columbus was also unsuccessful. I built my own personal pizza with mushrooms and pepperoni as my toppings. The closest dressing they offered, according to an employee, was Greek. It was tangy but not nearly sweet enough to match what I craved.
Giovanni’s Pizzaria in Phenix City carries both dressings, but customers never ask to use them on their pizzas, said Levi Springer, the restaurant’s general manager.
“I have not had one person ever ask me for (them.) They ask for ranch around here,” Springer said.
Perhaps, I’ll be the first. Unless one of y’all beat me to it.
What do you like to dip your pizza in? Let me know at nwooten@ledger-enquirer.com.
This story was originally published January 15, 2020 at 5:00 AM.