From Festival Promoter to Detroit Pizza Maker: Underground Pizza Co’s Journey to Deliver Great Pizza
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| Underground Pizza Company’s Detroit Style Pizza with pepperoni shipped frozen and reheated to perfection at home! |
UPC Ships to You or Stop in their Power Plant Live! Spot in Baltimore!
I find and meet a lot of really cool people and pizzerias on social media. Recently, an instagram account featuring awesome-looking Detroit style pizzas caught my eye and I got to talking with the owner, who shared some of his amazing journey from festival promoter whose business was shut down due to the pandemic, to learning how to make pizza at home, to opening up a full service bar and restaurant in Baltimore.
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| Crumb shot of the light, airy crust of UPC’s Detroit Style Pizza. |
Their website summarizes by saying: “UPC is a pandemic born start up created by Evan Weinstein. The concept started as a hobby and quickly grew from home bakes, to purchases from friends, to ghost kitchens & pop ups, and is now open for business at their first brick & mortar in Power Plant Live! in Downtown Baltimore Maryland.”
For more on their amazing story, I highly recommend reading this article in Baltimore Magazine. For an even deeper look into UPC, check out this podcast interview on Live From the Studio with Jimmy and Eric.
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| Cup n Char Pepperoni DSP from UPC! |
Although I haven’t yet visited in person, UPC does ship their frozen pizzas around the country. I received a cheese and a pepperoni Detroit Style Pizzas along with their house-made hot honey and pesto sauces. The pizzas come neatly packed in an insulated sealed bag, with ice packs, and vacuum sealed packaging.
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| Jim Mirabelli, Chief Pizza Officer of NEPA Pizza Review opens his frozen shipment of Detroit Pizzas from Underground Pizza Co. |
Unboxing the Frozen Pizzas
The pizzas come parbaked approximately 95% of the way with a light bottom. The sauces come in separate containers to be spooned on either prior to baking or heated in the microwave and applied after baking. The reheating method they have devised is genius and creates some really excellent results. It involves preheating your oven (and preferably baking stone), then inserting the pizza and shutting off the oven to heat it through and crisp up the bottom. When you receive your instructions be sure to follow them carefully!
Check out my video review and how-to reheat UPC’s frozen Detroit Style Pizza below!
This method of reheating created a crust that was crisp, light, and mimicked the experience you would have eating a fresh DSP. The dough had a beautiful crumb with large bubbles and great structure and variation – my preferred type of DSP crust (more similar to a higher hydration Sicilian dough than a spongy tighter crumb found on some Detroits). The cheese was fairly neutral in flavor and reheated nicely, particularly around the caramelized edge which was crisp and flavorful. The sauce, which I elected to defrost and spoon on prior to baking was smooth, sweeter, and with a touch of spice to it.
Overall, this pizza was well executed and quite tasty. You really would never know that it was a frozen pizza if you didn’t reheat it yourself! I was very impressed with the results and look forward to stopping by their brick and mortar spot next time I’m down in Maryland!
Check out the List of All Places to Find Detroit Style Pizza in NEPA
UPC Pizza Review Details
Restaurant: Underground Pizza Co. – Located in Power Plant Live!
Location: 30 Market Pl, Baltimore, MD 21202
Date: May 2021
Eat In/Take Out: Shipped to Me
Pizza Ordered: Detroit Style Pizza
Similar to: Detroit Style Pizza Co, Buddy’s Pizza, Nearra’s, Vesuvio’s
Pizza Rating Scores
| Rating Category | Rating Score |
|---|---|
| Crust | 7.5 |
| Sauce | 7.3 |
| Cheese | 7.9 |
| Taste | 7.8 |
| Crispy/Cooked Properly | 7.7 |
| Value | 7.5 |
| Overall Rating | 7.7 |
