PIZZA WITH A PEDIGREE

Recently friends gave us a gift certificate to a pizza place in Woodbury called “The White Rock”. We had never dined there before, and quite frankly, were not even aware of the existence of this eatery. So last Saturday we jumped in the car and headed out on a culinary adventure.

The weather was wonderful—not too hot, not too cool, not humid. It was just right to paraphrase baby bear. In truth, the weather could not have been more to our liking had we ordered it directly from the menu. We arrived in Woodbury and began looking for the restaurant. To our right we saw a rambling old farmhouse with a wide, inviting porch.

We were greeted warmly and chose a table outside on the porch so that we could enjoy the lovely weather and the wonderful view of the lake which is right across the road from the porch. We watched the kayaks and canoes as they danced their way through the placid water, some as tiny as a speck and others growing larger as they made their way to shore. Then our enthusiastic young waitress came to take our order. We then sunk back into a cozy conversation as we enjoyed the tranquil lake scene. But soon our attention turned to the beauty of the bold, prolific blooms of the blue hydrangeas in the flower beds lining the front of the porch.

Soon our appetizer arrived, a generous serving of artichoke dip and chips that we both shared. We munched contentedly, returning to our former conversation, this time punctuated by comments about the savory dip and chips. Before long the pizza arrived. The crust was amazing and the toppings flavorful. It was exceptional pizza.

As we were enjoying our meal, the owner Maggie came out to visit with us. She is a warm, engaging woman, who made us feel as though we were all old friends. As we enquired about her business, she explained that she’d lost a good job due to a downturn in the economy. She was unable to find a job with a comparable wage, and soon she found herself having difficulty making ends meet. She knew she needed a change. Her mother served as the inspiration for her new career as an entrepreneur when she remarked “You ought to do something with the yeast that you grow.”

As we soon learned, Maggie’s grandmother had immigrated to Vermont from Italy. She was an excellent cook, as so many Italian women are. She could not bear to part with the wonderful strain of yeast that her mother had handed down to her, so she brought a culture with her when she came to Vermont more than 100 years ago. Maggie’s mother carried on the tradition of growing yeast from that original culture and handed the tradition down to Maggie, who was quick to add, “but it’s Woodbury yeast now, a good blend of Italy and Vermont.”

She specializes in sourdough crust, but offers others. We had the sourdough—it was great!  And the toppings are fresh as well. The meats come from a local farmer. She grows her own herbs; in fact, she had to excuse herself and then return to our conversation later so that she could pick the basil for our pizza. She went on to say “I don’t slice a tomato until the order has been placed.”

So if you are looking for fresh, flavorful pizza that has a great Italian-Yankee blend heritage, do plan to visit White Rock in Woodbury when you are visiting Vermont. 

To learn more, please visit the link below:

http://www.whiterockpizza.com/