We Found the Perfect Crust at This West Suburban Pizzeria

(It’s a debate every Central New Yorker has had at some point: Who has the best pizza? This year, we’ll do our best to find out. I’m on the hunt for the best pizzerias in the area of Syracuse Throughout 2024, I will visit more than 50 pizzerias. In each of them, I will taste their most popular pizza, or what they recommend, as I go, I will note. each of them and will tell readers a little about the store itself.)

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Syracuse, New York — Walking into Johnny Mac’s Pizzeria & Deli in Lakeland during lunch hour can be intimidating, especially if you’ve never been here before.

The line forms at the counter shortly after owner John McIlroy unlocks the door at 11 a.m. The customers all know John and his employees by first name and already know what they are ordering. They place their order quickly to move the line forward. A guy at the G&C Food Distributors warehouse asks for a slice of pepperoni and a slice of chicken, bacon and ranch. The guy behind him, wearing a WB Mason shirt, gets the special (two slices of cheese pizza with a soda for $7.40).

This is where the line gets slightly uncomfortable. I’m the newbie who doesn’t know what to order, but I don’t want to interrupt everyone’s lunch break. I ask John to make me whatever he would like for lunch, as I have done on the previous 17 stops on my CNY Pizza Tour.

“Do you like chicken?” he asks quickly.

Yes, but please don’t make me chicken wing pizza. But I will have a side of wings.

“Do you like bacon?” ” he asks.

Mmmmmm, bacon!

“Do you like bourbon?” »

Oh my God, it’s true!

“OK, he’s got the chicken, bacon bourbon,” he said to the boys behind the counter.

Make it really big, please.

By the time the kitchen received my order, the gentlemen in front of me had already left with their lunches, and it turns out I didn’t hold up too much to the people behind me. That’s how Johnny Mac works. They get their loyal customers in and out quickly.

“If you surround yourself with good people, good workers, you will be successful,” John said. “Our customers know us and know what to expect. »

This pizzeria located 2 miles west of Gate 1 of the New York State Fairgrounds has been around for decades. John started working here when he was a freshman at Solvay High School. It was Cicci’s Pizza back then. In 1999, he bought it and made it Johnny Mac’s. He changed some recipes and updated the menu.

Speaking of which, let’s try this bourbon pizza…

Address: Johnny Mac’s Pizzeria and Deli, 894 State Fair Blvd. 315-468-4052

Do they deliver: Yes, and you can order online. They have a few tables if you would like to eat here.

What I ate: An extra-large pizza with chicken, bacon and bourbon.

Why this pizza? Because the owner said so. Plus, it’s one of the most popular slices served during lunch time.

RATINGS (out of 5)

Crust: 5/5. Shortly after putting his name to that restaurant, John went to school. The crust school, of course. He took a two-day pizza dough bootcamp at a culinary expo in Atlantic City. It was there that he learned about consistency, temperatures and proportions. Since then, he has not changed his dough and prepares batches one to three times a day.

When it comes time to make pizza, John dips a thick disk of “yeasted” dough in flour. He twists it 19 times on his knuckles to stretch it from about 8 inches to 16 inches.

“Wait, I’m not done yet,” he said.

After four more turns, the base had reached exactly 18 inches and was therefore barely touching the edge of the very large cardboard box. The pizza’s puffy edge ends at ¾ inch, just large enough to serve as a tasty handle for each of the eight slices. Everything he learned at bootcamp worked because the foundation is a little over a quarter of an inch, but it’s sturdy enough to hold all the toppings and it tastes like Italian bread.

John’s drill sergeant would be proud.

Toppings: 4/5. Johnny Mac’s traditional pizzas start with a tomato sauce made from two kinds of tomatoes that he blends. The Chicken Bacon Bourbon pizza, however, coats the dough in a sweet chicken wing sauce made with brown sugar, ketchup and, yes, you guessed it, bourbon.

John then places the Grande mozzarella cheese. He prefers Grande on his pizzas here because it has just enough salt and extra milk fat to suit his taste. He sprinkles 4 ounces of grilled chicken breast, which he seasons with garlic, salt, pepper and a few other spices before adding a handful of crumbled bacon.

After 8 to 12 minutes in a 550-degree oven, the pizza rises on a wooden paddle so John can give it eight orbits from a bottle filled with bourbon sauce to create a long ribbon stretching from the center to the edge, right. where the crust begins to rise.

ADVICE: If you like a little more spice in your life, ask John to add hot cherry peppers to this pizza. These little devils disguised as red and green vegetables will start a little fire in your pie. Don’t worry, the sweet sauce softens the blow.

Value: 3/5. This extra-large 18-inch pizza was $27.95. That’s $3.50 per slice. I wolfed down just a slice, and that would have been enough to take me to happy hour and/or dinner. It’s a decent price for a hearty lunch. That said, in the spirit of full disclosure, I had a slice of pepperoni, some sausage, and mushrooms. I wasn’t going to do it until John said he uses raw Gianelli sausage on his pizzas so that just enough fat seeps into the crust. (This pizza would have scored just as high, but we’re only making one at a time.)

Charisma: 4/5. It only took John a few minutes to prepare this pizza. He barely looked down at the dough as he answered my questions. Yet it was still as attractive as it was tasty. It was sweet, it was spicy, it was sweet. This pizza had personality. Hey Chicken pizza, bacon, bourbon… What are you doing Friday night?

Total: 16/20. The people who make pizza at Johnny Mac’s know what they’re doing. Their customers too. Yes, it helps to know what you want. I probably should have checked the menu in advance. But John quickly explained this problem to me and fed me pretty quickly.

And to the patient gentleman from United Auto Supply who was next last Thursday, I apologize for hitting the brakes during your lunch break. Your next part is for me.

Charlie Miller finds the best food, drinks and entertainment in Central New York. Contact him at (315) 382-1984, or by email at [email protected]. (AND he pays for what he and his guests eat and drink, just so you know.) You can also find him under @HoosierCuse on Twitter and on Instagram. Subscribe to its free weekly Where Syracuse Eats newsletter here.

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