Red's Savoy proclaims it's home to 'Minnesota-style' pizza

If you're envisioning a pizza topped with lutefisk and lefse, think again.

December 15, 2017 at 9:25PM
Minnesota-style — according to Red's Savoy — is a thin-crust, square-cut pizza with loads of cheese and toppings and a signature spicy "passive aggressive" sauce.
Minnesota-style — according to Red's Savoy — is a thin-crust, square-cut pizza with loads of cheese and toppings and a signature spicy "passive aggressive" sauce. (Aimee Blanchette/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

New York has its thin, floppy, foldable pizza sliced bigger than the to-go paper plate it's served on. Chicago's signature deep dish 'za has a thick crust with an inch-deep smothering of sauce, cheese and toppings, and requires a plate, a fork and an hour to eat.

But what about Minnesota? What kind of pizza is the Land of 10,000 Lakes known for?

Minnesota-style — according to longtime Twin Cities pizza chain Red's Savoy — is a thin-crust, square-cut pizza with loads of cheese and toppings and a signature spicy "passive aggressive" sauce.

"If your slice is shaped like a triangle, it's not Minnesota-style pizza," said Red Savoy's president Reed Daniels. "If you take a bite and nothing falls onto your plate, it's not Minnesota-style pizza."

The award-winning pizza shop decided to do some re-branding and stake a claim on serving pizza "Sota-Style since 1965."

Upon hearing the news, some Minnesotans felt justified that our fair state had earned a spot on the pizza style map

Alexander Kuehn tweeted: "So I just found out that there is a 'Minnesota Style' pizza which is traditionally heavily cheesed, thin crust and cut into squares and life makes sense a bit more."

Another Twitter user exclaimed: "I've been talking about MN style pizza for years! Square cut, thin flexible crust, thick spicy sauce, and a TON of Midwestern cheese. Minnesota style pizza."

Others disagreed with the pizza proclamation entirely.

"It's just pizza," Max Sparber wrote on Twitter. "Minnesota pizza has a cracker crust, is very flat, is cheesy and greasy, and is square cut."

You can't argue with this Twitter user, who makes the best point of all.

In addition to trademarking the slogan "'Sota-Style since 1965," the Twin Cities pizzeria completed a quintessential Minnesota makeover. At its 15 Minnesota locations, new pizza boxes are plastered with the words "hot dish" across the top, the meat lovers pizza will now be known as "the meat raffle," and delivery vehicles will display phrases like, "Comin' in hot."

Despite the changes, Red's Savoy promises its signature pizza is the same as it's ever been.

Before Red Savoy's original owner, Earl 'Red' Schoenheider, passed away in August, Daniels promised him he would never change the recipe.

"He had other choice words, but he basically said, 'Whatever you do, don't mess with my pizza.' " Daniels said. "I promised him we would never deviate from the quality pizza he created."

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Aimee Jordan

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