"...and the gloves come off..." (Part 1)

My brother, Toby, loves hockey. We speak two or three times a week by phone, and during hockey season Toby keeps me regularly updated on all the important hockey-related topics, including which teams are playing well (and thus, at least for the moment anyway, looking particularly cup-worthy), which goalies are making the acrobatic saves, who is the league’s hot new phenom (of late, one Sidney Crosby), and that magical question which intrigues and fascinates hockey fans to no end: Who is the league’s fastest player (the fascination stems from the sheer God-given talent; you can teach hockey fundamentals such as stick handling and cross-checking, but you can’t teach speed).

Invariably, our conversation turns to Toby’s favorite hockey topic: the fights. Now hockey fights are as old as the game itself, and still have a huge following today. (There's even a web site devoted to everything hockey fight-related). They all start basically the same way. The Really Good player on team A scores a goal. The Goon on team B then gives Really Good player a cheap shot, enraging the Goon on team A and setting up a Goon A vs. Good B showdown. Toby was friends with a hockey player once, and Toby swears that the player told him that 98% of the hockey fights start this way:

Goon A: Wanna go?
Goon B: O.K.

“When they drop the sticks and the gloves come off,” Toby likes to say with that particular anticipation in his voice, “it’s time to do the man-dance.”

I think that time has come for this blog regarding a topic of critical important to Sonoma Country eaters: Which Sonoma County restaurant makes the best pizza?

Now granted, this is a huge topic, one which, if given its proper treatment, might take years to research and cost several million dollars (and maybe a life or two along the way). To save that time and potential loss of life, EMAF has been diligently studying this topic for the past six months. Our researchers have been canvassing the pizza joints throughout this fine county, conducting random eater polls, even combing through grease-coated menus studying styles, ingredients, and names.

The results? We’ve narrowed this challenge down to two contenders: Mombo’s Pizza and Pizzio’s Cucina Italiana.

This week, we’re going to provide an in-depth look at both. Feel free to comment, vote, even offer other contenders. Then on Friday, we’ll announce the Every Meal A Feast Pizza Grand Prize Winner. It’s surely—surely—something not to be missed.