When thinking about the experience of eating pizza, what comes to mind is a cheesy, saucy, garlicky, slice of pizza. But when you take the first bite, the pizza crust will either make or break the pizza. For example, the pizza at the SURC before they changed to a new pizza crust.

In 2006, when the new SURC opened, CWU Dining Services introduced a wood fire pizza oven to Taglianno’s Pizza.

“When the new SURC opened in 2006, I remember the pizza being good because it was a New York style crust, but in 2011 the[y] switched to a pan pizza and it was not as great as before,” said Mila Chavez, a 2015 CWU alumna with a degree in information technology and administrative management.

Even CWU Dining Services Supervisor Jim Clapper said, “Ten years ago, when the wood fire pizza oven was introduced, kids went crazy for the pizza and it was one of the busiest stations at the Central Market Place.”

When I started attending Central Washington University in 2012, I remember the SURC pizza not being up to par. Last quarter when I worked at the pizza station, freshman anthropology major, Destiny Towery said, “North Village Café has better pizza than the SURC, because North Village Café has cheese stuffed crust and a garlic butter crust.”

CWU Dining Services values  customer feedback and took these suggestions into consideration, which lead to a change in the pizza crust recipe. Spring is typically seen as new beginnings and fresh starts; that is why the new pizza crust was not introduced until spring quarter, even though it was decided midway through winter quarter that a change would be implemented.

For the past five years, the Central Market Place was using a pan pizza crust, which defeated the purpose of the wood fire pizza.The new crust is a New York style crust, which is traditionally thin, hand-tossed and is dense and bready. The New York style crust gives the wood fire pizza oven more of a purpose since the thin crust is cooked sitting in the oven rather than in a pan in the oven. Junior public health major Myrinda Wolitarsky said, “Before the new pizza crust, I would tell my friends that they could get anything in the SURC except for the pizza; but now the pizza is really good because of the crust.”

There are about 27 pizza recipes available at the Taglianno’s Pizza station with different daily specials varying each day. Typically, six different types of pizzas are offered each day that are sold by the slice or but can also be custom ordered by purchasing an entire pizza. The six types of pizza that are usually offered are cheese, pepperoni, chicken bacon ranch, Hawaiian, a dessert pizza, and a daily special that changes every weekday. The Central Market Place also switched to a new gluten free pizza crust as of this quarter. The new gluten free pizza crust is made of chickpea, rice and potato flour. The gluten free crust is thicker and bigger than the gluten free crust that was being used the past couple of years.

CWU Dining Services executive chef, Derek Smith said, “The responses about the switch have been nothing but positive and students seem to be really happy.”

Later this quarter, the Central Market Place will be introducing flatbread and cheese stuffed breadsticks to the menu and will be offered regularly as well. Keep your eyes peeled for the changes coming to CWU Dining Services throughout the quarter. Any suggestion, questions, comments, or concerns can also be submitted to the suggestion boxes located in the Holmes Dining Room and in the Central Market Place.