Mama’s Pizzeria – There’s No Pizza On The Menu, But Have You Tried Their Cheesesteaks?

In my mind, it was the best pizza in the world. And also I argued with my friends because Philadelphians argue about such things, that they also made the best cheesesteaks. I loved the special cheese blend that they used. It was mozzarella, parmesan and a little cheddar – that was like their secret ingredient. And they used ample amounts of it on their cheesesteaks as well as on their pizzas.

The pizzas had a wonderful crispy puffy dough – with open bubbles and blisters that would kind of char and poke up here and there on the top of the pizzas. When I was 17, I even did a short stint as a delivery boy for Mama’s. And the aroma of hot pizzas and cheesesteaks filled my car and my senses with what now – writers call an indelible taste memory. 

Even after going off to college, and many years after that, I considered Mama’s Pizzas the benchmark of how great a pizza should be. All other pizzas I had during those years ranked against Mama’s. And much as I love pizzas of any type, Mama’s still reigned supreme. 

But then I grew up.