When John Palmer wanted a piece of his hometown, he did his best to satisfy it.
An BC Transit employee sent a pile of pizzas more than 4,000 miles from a restaurant in Windsor, Ont., Where he grew up in the 1970s, to his home in Colwood, British Columbia, Vancouver.
Between the cost of the pies and the delivery, he says the whole venture paid him back more than $ 600, which he shared with his friend and colleague from Windsor, a former partner, Nigel Couch.
“It wasn’t an economical decision. It was an emotional decision,” Palmer told As It Happens presenter Helen Mann. “We will enjoy and enjoy every bite and every memory that comes with that bite.”
What’s so special about Windsor Pizza?
Palmer says there are many great pizzas to choose from on Vancouver Island – but it’s not Windsor Pizza.
The city of Ontario claims its own unique style of pizza, with local cheese, canned mushrooms and, most importantly, grated peppers – “to make sure you get peppers in every bite,” said Palmer.
Windsor Pizza has grated peppers, canned mushrooms and local cheese. Palmer also added red peppers to his order. (Submitted by John Palmer)
As for him, there is nothing better.
“That’s the consistency of every bite. I think we’ve all experienced, you know, a great bite of the first bite of pizza, and then when you pull the pizza, half of the toppings come off with it,” he said. You won’t get this with Windsor Pizza.
Palmer ordered five large pies from Antonino’s original pizza, but they were so large that the pizzeria had to split them in half and send 10 separate pies.
Friends sent them on Wednesday night via UPS. They arrived lined up in two separate boxes, packed, half-baked, and frozen.
Palmer says the UPS employee who delivered the food told him that this was not his first time delivering pizza to Windsor. He told Palmer he sent two pizzas from Windsor to Dubai last year.
Antonino’s original pizza says it is not responsible for the delivery in Dubai, but has previously delivered pies nationally.
“He’s always a Windsor overseas, skipping world-class pizza in his hometown, which he does,” the restaurant told CBC News in an email. This shows that there really is nothing like a Windsor-style pizza.
Palmer’s pizzas arrived on Wednesday via UPS. (Submitted by John Palmer)
Just last year, Windsor’s Madonna Bodett made headlines when she sent a few pies of the aptly named Windsor Pizza to her brother on Vancouver Island.
“The last time he was here was in 2004 and he took a pizza box in his suitcase, which didn’t end well,” she told CBC News at the time.
Sharing pizza and memories
Palmer says he is amazed at the positive reception he has received since then The Times colonist tells his story for the first time.
“I expected people to be like, ‘Here’s a man who has more money than a brain,’ but for many people it brought back memories of their food experiences where they grew up,” he said.
These memories, he says, are in question.
When Palmer’s pizzas arrived, he and his wife invited their father, his father’s wife, and his daughter-in-law — all of whom had once lived in Windsor — to dine with them.
His daughter-in-law’s children, who did not grow up in Windsor and are happy with Domino, were not invited.
“We sat around and drank Windsor pizza and talked about the good old days, and that was exactly what we remembered,” he said. “It was just a wonderful evening.”
But the rest of his pies, he says, are not to be shared.
“That’s it,” he said. “I just closed the door. No one comes in except my wife and me.
Written by Sheena Goodyear with files from CBC Windsor. Interview with John Palmer, produced by Paul McInnes.
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