Iron Chef Pizza Wars: Batali vs. Puck

By JULIETTE ROSSANT When I interviewed Wolfgang Puck for Super Chef shortly after the launch following the sale of his frozen pizzas under ConAgra, he had spent some time in Canada at the new ConAgra bakery trying to get his frozen pizza to come out right. He wasn't happy. It was tricky to get the crust right and just as tricky to get the sauce to taste right. Dealing with a huge conglomerate like ConAgra must not have been easy –- but he did make a reported $20 million selling his pizza to them, so who's complaining? Todd English got into the game a few years back, from the parlor end with the Figs concept. Unfortunately, he sold the majority of shares, so he could not expand it from its Boston home beyond New York. Well, move over, Todd -- and look out, Wolf: Iron Chef America's Mario Batali is getting into the game. This morning, Florence Fabricant reports in her New York Times Off the Menu column that Mario is introducing a do-it-yourself pizza kit. You assemble the crust and toppings at home and pop the two dinner-plate size pizzas in the oven for a quick meal -- to avoid the soggy crusts that have plagued frozen pizzas. Choices include Pizza Romana, with a spicy sauce and smoked mozzarella; Margarita, with tomato sauce and good mozzarella; and Pizza Pantesca, with provolone and pesto. Batali is selling them exclusively at Whole Foods (click here to see store calendars). Hey, who needs Reality TV, when reality itself is so good? (Coming soon to a supermarket near you.) Previous articles: Todd English: Pots and Pans Pucked? Wolfgang Puck: Eastern Empire Nancy Silverton & Mario Batali's Mozza Iron Chef America: Running on Empty --> back to superchefblog