Is it rude to ask a pizza place for a side of Ranch?

[lockedoutofheaven]

Is it rude to ask a pizza place in NY for a side of Ranch?

[The Chowhound Team]

Folks, we're going to close this thread now, as whether or not something is rude is really a matter of personal opinion, and we've had to remove some mean-spirited posts from this thread.

[Bacardi1]

I don't know about NY, but one of our favorite pizza joints down here (VA) makes a "Ranch Pizza" as part of their "white pizza" repertoire. We tried it once & it was VERY good. A nice garlicy Ranch dressing, lots of mozzarella & a couple of other cheeses + your choice of toppings. I believe we had spinach, mushrooms, & fresh tomatoes. Anyway, while it certainly wasn't a NY pie (I'm originally from NY), it was darn good eating.

[kathryn]

Yes, Manhattan CHers it's a thing: dipping pizza in ranch dressing.

It has been for some time now.

Judging from the confusion here, it's not native to New York City. People all over the country put ranch on their pizza. Especially the Midwest and South.

Here's a mention of ranch dressing with pizza from 2004 on Slice from Serious Eats:
http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/2004/08/would-you-like.html

We're a bit more forgiving at Slice; half the staff here grew up in the Midwest, you see. And, after hours of pizza-related observations made in the Heartland, we can state with some authority that those Buckeyes were dipping their endcrusts in the marinara and the ranch, not the slice itself. Not that endcrust dipping is any more appetizing, though.

In Lawrence, Kansas, late-night pizza deliveries from Pizza Shuttle and Gumby's would often arrive accompanied by little containers of ranch dressing for endcrust dipping.

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From Slate in 2005:
http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/number_1/2005/08/ranch_dressing.html

And numerous Pizza Hut franchises in the South began offering cups of ranch alongside their pies, after a few franchisees discovered that teenagers were dipping their slices in the dressing. Although dunking one's pizza in ranch dressing is a culinary act best described as arterial suicide, the company took the concept nationwide earlier this year with the debut of the Dippin' Strips Pizza, which is precut into easily dippable ribbons and served with ranch "sauce." Short of being blasted in the face with a ranch-dressing hose, that's about as intense a fat rush as the human body can handle.

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And the Washington Post in 2008:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/27/AR2008052700821.html

The most popular pizza topping at Philadelphia Pizza Co. in Georgetown, especially after midnight, isn't sausage, and it isn't pineapple. It's ranch dressing.

"We go through three to four gallons on Saturday nights," says Mehmet "Matt" Kocak, 31, manager of the landmark spot the students call "Philly-P." "Half that during the summer, with so many students gone." Just a few squirts add 19 grams of fat, but even waifish Hoyas in miniskirts don't seem to mind. Customers love the stuff so much, in fact, that at least one industrial-size jug is snatched every weekend.

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One pizzeria in Texas run by NYers via Italy (naturally!) actually banned the practice in 2008:

http://blogs.houstonpress.com/eating/...

Romano’s on West Gray has outlawed dipping pizza in ranch dressing. The pizzeria’s owners, two cousins named Frank and Vinny, were born in Calabria, Italy. They spent 15 years working in New York pizzerias before coming to Texas. The cousins pride themselves on making one of the best New York-style pizzas in Houston.

Where Frank and Vinny come from, dipping pizza in ranch dressing is not done. “It's a crime against nature,” railed New York food writer Ed Levine, author of Pizza: Slice of Heaven, when I e-mailed him about the pizza/ranch combination.

[bnowell]

I went to college upstate, and it's very very common for people to dip their pizza in blue cheese. So much so that it's almost standard to have it given to you when you order pizza.

[ellenost]

Thanks for explaining this. I worked in Detroit for a few years, and no one talked about ranch dressing and pizza (of course this was 25 years ago, and tastes may have changed).

[coll]

I've always dipped my crust (aka pizza bones) in red wine, can't remember how it started though.

[bnowell]

If you're in Rochester, it's okay!

[bagelman01]

My 24 year old daughter does it all the time. Is it rude, not if you offer to pay for the dresssing and you know they carry it for use on salads that are on the menu.

Personally, I think the idea of ranch dressing on pizza is strange, but if daughter likes it, fine.

[EarlyBird]

Why would it be rude? Why would "rude" even enter the equation? You're paying for food. You're asking for a condiment that will help you enjoy it more.

[sal_acid]

Parts of the country that have good pizza do not do this. If all you have is Pizza Hut or Papa John's then...whatever.

[Huck]

Exactly right, in the places that serve bland pizza with processed cheap ingredients, lotsa tangy toppings add some interest to it. The pity of it is how much bad pizza has taken over NYC in recent decades, it's rare to just walk into a random pizzeria & get a good slice anymore, so why not ranch dressing or buffalo chicken?

[ellenost]

Obviously you are not a native NYer since most of us have no idea what you're talking about. Please clarify your question. I'm guessing that no regular pizza place will understand your question either.

[Jay F]

Why would a pizza place have a side of ranch?

[ttoommyy]

While I do not think it is rude, I think it is fruitless to ask since not many NY pizza places will have ranch dressing in the house.

[iluvcookies]

Ranch dressing? On pizza? That is just strange... why would you put that on perfectly good NY pizza?

[tacosandbeer]

Strange? At home in Texas, that's expected!! (also on cheese fries, fried pickles, onion rings, wings, fried okra, fried zucchini, steak fingers...)

[DuchessNukem]

Lol, seriously. You cut a Texan, and ranch dressing leaks out.

Not a fan of ranch myself but Texans do have the love.It's a rare place that doesn't have it available and no one would blink an eye. I can't imagine asking at one of the Brooklyn pizza places from my childhood.

[knucklesandwich]

Not rude, but probably pointless. Your basic slice vendor here probably doesn't feature salads, and won't have dressing of any sort available. Even a family-style place with a bigger menu might not not have ranch dressing as an option.

Have you tried pizza w/o ranch yet?

[latte4me]

I know what you're talking about, but I'm from the West Coast. Probably not rude, but you're sure to get a few stares...

[kathryn]

Not rude, but pretty weird to New Yorkers and I am guessing some of the more artisanal places won't have it.

[foodieX2]

not sure I understand the question? Is it for your pizza?

[Motosport]

To put on the pizza??? That's like asking for mayo on your pastrami sammich at Katz's!!