this post was submitted on 15 Sep 2025
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xkcd #3142: -Style Pizza

Title text:

If you want to see true audacity, do an image search for 'Altoona-style pizza.'

Transcript:

Transcript will show once it’s been added to explainxkcd.com

Source: https://xkcd.com/3142/

explainxkcd for #3142

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[–] PunnyName@lemmy.world 39 points 1 week ago (5 children)
[–] ChicoSuave@lemmy.world 32 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Altoona-style pizza originated at the Altoona Hotel, which was noted as serving "a unique pizza" in 1996 by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.[6] Following the destruction of the hotel in 2013 by fire, other local restaurants began serving Altoona-style pizza.

The place that created was destroyed by natural disaster and it wasn't enough to stop the pizza. This is a food that exists in defiance of God

[–] felbane@lemmy.world 6 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

If they called this anything other than pizza, it'd just be weird quirky regional meme food.

It's the fact they're trying to pass this off as pizza that turns it into an abomination. An affront to all sentient and/or a̴l̵g̴o̸r̸i̵t̶h̷m̸i̸c̴ creators of this universe. A blasphemy so heinous that ȩ̷̛̖́v̶̘̥̭̤͚̝́͜i̷̭̳͐̇̎͒l̸̲͓̒͛ ̸̞̪͍͈̖̲̓͗̑̈́́̃̐î̶̥̣̮̦̥̽̈́̔͜͠ͅt̶̞͎̉̐̍̑s̵̪͎͖̄̿͑e̶̲̲̪͋̏̊̈́ḻ̸̥̘̩͉̉̂̀͐̏͠f̴̘̦̼̾͗̈́̿̆ shies away. Ș̶̡̧̢̻̳̖̙̲͍͓͍͚͌̓̉͒̐̾͗́̀͘Ť̴̗͊́͗͋̐̓̔̃̄͆̐̒͝͠A̶̩͙̤̠͍͔̰͈͎̠̜̞̪͈̺̅̑̀̈͑̓͌̐͆͂̐̚̚̚͜N̵̨̹̞͍͍̅D̷̡̨͇̯̙̪͚̜̜̝̀͜͜ Y̶̧̛̛͙͚̬̣̣̬̞̮̯̬̝͎͖͔̰̻̪̱͐͒̅͌̈̓̂̀̐͗̏̌͆͑͆̀̂̔̊͋̔̉͑̆͑̓̎͐̚̕͜͜͝E̷̡̧͍̦͖̻̘͍͚̩̼̰̯̮̪͓͚̣͑̈́́͌͑͋̽͗̓́̍́̍̇̒̇̑̿͋̀̿̏͗̀́́͗̀̊͋̽̔́͊͋͌͐̂̍͘̕̚̚͜͜͜͝͠͝͝͠͠͠͝ ̷̧̨̨̢̡̨͎̬͖͍̝̠͚̦̥̬͙̮͈̻̙̘̰̹͕̥̦̦̦̞̹͈̤̹̘̟̳̖͙̞̖͖̬͕̯̖̘͉͍̗̹̘̹͔̜̳̤̂̎̄͋̍͆̈́͌̎̇̈́̑̑͊̓̀̿̅̂̅̄̿̎́͂͑̅͒̀̃̔̄̃̆͊̇̈͘͘̕͜͠͝͠ͅM̷̢̡̡̢̢̡̢̛̼͚̮̻̦͔͚̠̦̥͉̺̥̻̠͔̦̭̬̹̠̲̥̟͕̺̫͉̩̗̮͇͇̬̱͉̯̞̦̱̬̼͔̘̝͛̋͂͌̓̅́͜͜͜ͅO̷̧͙̩̱̿̈́̏̒̓͋̈́̀̇̆͘Ŗ̴̛̛̯̗̅̈́̉̏̓̅̌̓̎̔̽̌͑͋͐̈́̌̌̀͒̂̋̐̌́̈̏̍͂̋̇̽͛̿̏̉̇͊̈́̏̕͘̕͘͘͠͝Ţ̴̨̧̛̛͚̳̖̞̪͇̞̘̱͕̲̺͚͙͚͓̦͇̞͎͔͓̟͍̱̩͉̬̪̻̳̜͚͇̖̺̼̥̤̙̠͍̖͉̻̱̗͇̮̬̦̻̥̑̅͆̂͗̀͌̌̈͗̔͊͛̎͛̓̅͋̽̐̈̇̉̐̽̃̆̆̈́̅͊͂̓̂͒̒̎̈́̿̑̿̀̂͛͒̿͐͘̕͘͜͝͝͠ͅA̵̧̢̡̧̛̰͎̼͙̭̦̱͔̻̫͙̟̪̳̤͉̯̠͇̟̘̲̜͈͔̣̦̘̹̦͇̞͖̼̐̀̄̈́̊̄͌̿̀̆͂̃̈͋̍́̐̔͐̋̽͆̍͛̐̌͗̎̔̀͋̍́̇͊͘͜͜͜͝͠͝ͅL̵̡̢̛̥̙̥͙̟͙̻̤͍̟̙̜͕͈̜̭̦̰͓̠͓͖̺̩͙̯̝͖̟͖̫͖̲̫̤͉̗̗͙̥͚̭̪͇͓̮̗̟̩̘͙͚̗̓̒́̊̏̋̐̃͊̅̔͆̃͑̎̒̈́̾̆́̍̽̋͋̇͐̑̾̂͋̒̏̋̊̓̾̅́̆͌͒̀̇̒͐́̔͑̆̋̑̈́͐͊̄̽̚̚͘͜͝S̵̢̧̡̨̛͖̞̯͎̜͎̱̝̤͎̻̤͓͇̲̼͔̲̪̟͕͍͇͕̩͙͙̖͔̱̟̦̺̳͓͔͙̮͕̪͆̔͊̅̽̃̊͑̄̀͊͋̽̄̃̀̃̽͋͋̾̌͒͋̈̈́́͒̆̄͊͊͑́̂̆̌̍͋͌͗̋̔̓̋̈́̑͐͛̇̎̅͠͠͝ Ạ̸̢̡̨̢̧̡̢̧̨̧̧̨̧̨̧̨̨̡̢̧̥̬͕͕̱͈͙̠͇̟̯̗̯̞͇̝̱̙̺͍̙͕̣̙̠̤͉̤̜̬̪̗̞͇̭̥̬͖̼̻̠̫͉̱̱͚͕̩͕̪̩̭̟̲̞̗͇̦̱̬͎͓͚̝͇̜̻͉̝̘̩̗̠͙͙̻̳͈͕̲͇̼̮̞̠̘̤͍̮̜͚̦̹̹̤̣̹̯̘̝̱̤̤̩̜̦͖̙̥͓͖͔̜̠̬͍̞̯̜̟̣̫̗̦̻͍͎̮̥͖̤̪͍͎̞̼͕̬̻͈͋̈̔̓͗̐̏̂͑̈́̍͌̈́̆̈̋̆̿̿͊̓̇̀̂͋͑̀̎̿̎̐̑̅̃̔̑͂̈̽̍͛̈͂̈́͒̊̉̍̑͌̾͑̍̔̉͛̊͒̒͌̈́̌͒͗̎̃̑̾͐̃͂̐͆̍͐͑͋̈́̇͑̐̂̈̚̕͘̚͘͘͜͜͜͜͠͝͝͠͝͝͝͝ͅͅͅͅN̶̨̨̨̨̨̨̧̛̛̛̹̬͇͈̯͍͍̟̗̥̬̤͉̹͍̜̭̖̬̬̬̪̖̤̜̬̤͎͚̘͍͎͍̦̣̳̟͖͈̝̭͕͍̦̝̘͕̳̪̤̦̫̣̙͎͒̉̊͊̎̀͛͂̏͛̽͐̇̓͑̋͛̍̆̆̄͆̌͌̈́̉̾̈̓̐̑̾̄̓̆͂͗̀̎̐͂̀͊̾̽̂̊̉̃̋̋̽̄́̎͊̓͂̏̽͐͌͆̏̊͊͋̈́̉̈́̔̉̃̊́̅̊̎͊̽̆̒̈́̂̊̀́͑̏͐͌́̂͌̈̀̂̑̑͋̓̿͆̓̿̿͌́͊̋̑͐̄̉̀̑̐̽͆̕̚̕͘̚͘͘͘̚͜͝͝͝͠͠͝͝͝͝͝͠͝͝ͅĎ̷̨̢̡̧̢̛̛̮̮̜̺͕͔͖̣͇͔̳͓̻̖͚͚̺̺͍̖̳͖̮̟̱̣̜͎̥̳̟̱̺̝̼̘͚̟̹̬̪͍̻͎̰̯͖͖͕̈́̐̄̄̑͂̓̎̈́̈́̽̿͒̉͂̋͐̑͛̌̔̈̂̔͑̽̽̒͊̈͛̑̏̇̑́̊́̋̓͒͂̿́͘̚̚͘̚͜͠͝ͅͅ ̵̡̢̨̡̡̡̛̳̝̖̠͖̘̯͇͖͎̺̰̹̼̬̙̙͔̜̜͖̟͎̰̞͎͍̺͙̯̹̗̝̪̻͔̰̪̖̜̬̱͈͉̤̩̙̲̬̥̟̹̝̹̗̱̗͑̃͂̾̉̀̄̑̋́͌͌̀̌̆̂͗̾͌͗̓̀̅̈̊̈̈́̈́̅̍̆̾̔̏̓̋͘̚͘͝͝͝͝͝͠R̶̨̨̧̧̢̨̧̨̧̢̧̧̨̢̨̧̧̡̡̡̬͔͔̬̭̺̻̦̖̖̩͍͔̩̦̩͖̟̥̦̘̹̳͕̮̲̩͙̝̙̩͕̤̹̗̥̙̭̹̲̼̻̝̠̺̜̰͎̟̺͉͔̮̤͓̖͇͎̘̜͈̲̜͙̲̘̲̱͕̯̱̲͕̜͖͚̙͍̬̩̠̹͙͔̖̠̖͕͍̥̣̙̣̥͕͇͕̥̭͈̰̠͎̰̰̞͔̥̦̮̲̳̼̖̹̰̦͓͍͈̙̤̟̙̙̘͈͖̣̻̘̺̙̪͕̪̙͔̫͍̻̼̤͔͎̞̩͓͕̖̮̹̯͕͉̤̹̟̣͉̞͙̗̥͉͚̘̹̠̯̻̋͑̈́̈̋̈́̍͐͊͒͊͑͗͂̀̈̉̈́͗̏̕͜͝͝ͅͅͅȨ̴̢̡̧̛̛̠̪̹̲̗͇͖̪̙̙͎͚̣͙̲̬̳͎͕̳̙͍͎͈̹̲̫̹̙̫͎̫̱̖̯̜̲̻͍͔̻̩͉͉͉̖̲̗̻̟̠̘̹̦̻̱̫͈̻̣̻̟͇̝̓̑̓́̏̍̈́́͂̎̌̓̆̎́̌́́͐́̾̔͑̂̆̎͌̉̽̾̐̈́̂̀̍͒̉̏̉̆͗̄̎͗̑͌̓̿̓̅̔́̇͌́̈̔̔̇̈́̊̅̋̓̿̂̃̏̋̏̐̀͋͂̂̈͋̌́̄̆͒̔͆̀̿́͂̒́̐̎͂̿͆̌̌͛̓͌͌̈́̏̓̉̓͒͑̈̃͐̈́̎͌̾̈́̉̄̓̒̆̏̿̈́̀͑̿̌̔̽̄̽͛̌̒̈́̃̀̊̅̑̀̋̔̅̿̉̀̓̂̒́̈́͊͂́̔͑̉̉̀̃̄̈͘̚̕̚͘͘͠͝͠͝͝͝͠͠͝͠͝͝͠͠ͅͅͅP̴̧̢̡̨̧̡̧̧̛̛̛̛͇̣̣͚͎̹͓̘̤̗͍̳͈̟͇̘̘̮͚̹̫̬̩̘͇̱̤̘̩͕̬͕̣̖̯̣̹͚͎̫̹̦̬͍͈͉̦̤͓̥̭̻̰̠̬̐͊̽̈͒͛͂͌͊͂̊͐̃̎͑̉͌̑̿́̒̀͌̔̊̾̋̇̅̿̽̍͂̏̓͒̎̈́̈̂͛͆̒̒̈́̉̿̔̋̈̃̎̉̃̊̾͑̿̄̔͆̏̽̃̂͊̏̿͒̋̔̍̐̓̅̅̋̔̉̆̀͌̃͑̑̿̓́̃̈́͌́͂̐̉͑̇͑̉̓̍̌̾̈́̾̀̐̐̈̊̎͗̆́̀̓͂̉̔̇̇̃̃̌̎̽̓̒͌́̈̆̓̿́̍̒̈́̎́̌̌̂̾̌̊̏́̓͊̋̀̑̏̓͌͗̈́͗͑̉̂̈̑̇̆̌̌̀́̿̍͒̇̅̿̓͂̈́͘̕̕̚͘͘̚̕̚̚͘̕̕̕̕̚͜͠͝͝͝͝͝͠͠͠͝͝͝͝͠͠ͅĘ̷̨̡̡̨̨̡̡̨̨̧̨̢͇̤̰̥͖̗͔̼̰̪̮̳̺͙̬̤̯̻̮̯̯͈̩̱͖͚̘̖̙͇̮͉̥̹͈͓͕͉̳͍̱̦̦̺̼̗̫͎̪̣̥̙͓͕͕͙͔̣̘̟̳̳̬̙̳̲̫̠̯̥̼̪̳̳̬̫͙͕̦̞̟̮͉̝̤͈͈̱̩͚͎̳̥̖̺̣̗͚̲̲̦̰͎͙̗̠̦͔̱̟̬̻̥̗͇̹͍̯̫̰̳̩̩͈̟͔̟̹̍͜͜ͅͅͅͅͅN̶̨̢̢̢̢̧̡̧̡̧̨̨̨̢̨̢̡̨̢̧̨̛͇̳̟̪͕͈̣̞̦͙̣̰͈͕͎͙̼͍̰̠̹̹̪͎̠̮͍̼̟͖̭͇͎͎̟̟͈̫͓̞̹̥̻̹̹̠̥͉̞̯̘̲͈̱̯̘̺͖͎͖̭̼̭̟͖̗̹̼͓͍͓̰͍̣̲̟̗̫͍̥͎̘̘͉̫͓̣͇̮̩̮̹̞͈͕̬̟̣̥̲̣͖̠̖̼̪̜̮̣̫̖͚͕͓̝̬̱̮̺͚͓̣̯̪̯̫̖͙̜̠̠̜͚̝̲̖̹̱̭̦̬̝̝̯̫̦̟͕̬͖̙̹͍͓͔͓̜͕̤̟̱̬͎̱̦̹̲͔̗͚͈̣̹͚̗͍̹͍̲͔̝̰̫̬̻͎̞̈́̀̈́̒́͐̓͋́́͆͌̄̐̆̈͂̔̉͋̀̉̆̽̌̃̏̈́̔́͂̌̒̽̒͒͑̇̍͑̌̊̈̈̋́̅͌̆̒̈͑͆͊̒́̽̋͛̒̊̒̅̉̈́̎̀̄̃͒̈͆̈́͛̋̂̏̽̋͂̇̋̑͌̅̐̏̓̿̿̈́̽̊̐̐͌̽̎̀͊̐̊̀̏̏̈́͋́̇͗̒̓̃͛̓̔͌̉̍̌͌͌̇̽̐̑̈́̈́̔̑̈́̈̎̐̏́̎́̏̃̑̑͂̓͌̿̎͘̕̕̚̕̚͘̚͘̕̕͘̚͜͜͜͜͠͠͝͠͝͠͠͠͠͠͝͠͠͝͝͝ͅͅͅͅͅͅͅͅT̵̡̡̛̛̛̛͇͇̫̗̤͕̲͙͚̺̑̈́̍̀̂̿̽̾͛́̋̓̂͑̓͂̈́̾͑̓̈́͑̄͆̓̔̏̊͒̿͂̓̿̊͂͂̔̊̀͂̈̔̌̀̀̋̿́̌͗̕̚̚̚͠͝͝͝

[–] Venat0r@lemmy.world 5 points 1 week ago

Sounds like they weren't able to get their usual motzerella order one day and as a result designed a new pizza around American cheese 😅

[–] gedaliyah@lemmy.world 5 points 1 week ago

Can Elon hurry up and put a chip in my brain so I can erase this knowledge?

[–] AllNewTypeFace@leminal.space 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

A pizza you can make in a toaster oven

[–] AlexisFR@jlai.lu 0 points 1 week ago

Isn't that called a panini?

[–] Honytawk@lemmy.zip 29 points 1 week ago (3 children)

This is such a US meme, holy shit.

[–] wolframhydroxide@sh.itjust.works 31 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (3 children)

To be fair, the comic artist is from Boston. This comic strip has been around for almost 20 years, and this community is solely focused on the comic. This is like saying to ich_iel "God, this community is so German!"

[–] absquatulate@lemmy.world 16 points 1 week ago (2 children)

What he means is that while his memes are in general universally applicable, this one is a US-thing.

[–] VindictiveJudge@lemmy.world 4 points 1 week ago (1 children)

In particular, it's a very East Coast thing. While we have the mom-and-pop pizzerias on the West Coast, there aren't styles of pizza named for West Coast cities and we just don't have that pizza rivalry that the other coast has. There's California-style pizza, but that's named for a state rather than a city, and as soon as you leave California it's easier to find almost any other kind of pizza.

[–] expr@programming.dev 3 points 1 week ago

Chicago-style pizza too.

But yeah, the diversity isn't as significant as the comic would lead you to believe.

I disagree with the claim that they are, as a rule, universally applicable, though I certainly do not disagree that this is highly US-normative. There is a significant subset of comics specifically about US issues, stretching back all the way to the very beginning. I can, upon request, provide examples.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] x00z@lemmy.world 8 points 1 week ago

This is not a meme.

[–] remon@ani.social 2 points 1 week ago

Not even Randall can escape it!

[–] distantsounds@lemmy.world 26 points 1 week ago (2 children)
[–] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 17 points 1 week ago (2 children)

DiCarlo had eaten pizza in Italy during the war, and attempted to recreate it in the United States.

[–] jqubed@lemmy.world 17 points 1 week ago (1 children)

However, its method of preparation is polarizing, and it has been negatively compared to Lunchables.

When I was a kid I was pretty excited to get the “pizza” Lunchables

[–] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 16 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] massive_bereavement@fedia.io 21 points 1 week ago

Another thing I can add to my kids and raccoons Venn diagram.

[–] lagoon8622@sh.itjust.works 4 points 1 week ago

~~attempted~~ failed miserably

[–] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago

It's funny how it's so geographically close to the excellent Dayton style pizza

[–] pezhore@infosec.pub 12 points 1 week ago (1 children)

St Louis style is basically sauce and plastic cheese on cardboard.

St Louis Style Pizza (Wikipedia)

[–] BakerBagel@midwest.social 7 points 1 week ago

Actually, provel was engineered to be the perfect cheese for pizza. It stays melty after it cools which keeps the pizza stay gooey even when the pizza is cold. Pepperoni, onions, sausage, and green peppers is the perfect way to eat it.

[–] masterspace@lemmy.ca 7 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I feel like this graph needs a line that indicates your baseline normal pizza

[–] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago (3 children)
[–] masterspace@lemmy.ca 5 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (2 children)

I seriously doubt it's the most common pizza sold.

It's thin crust nature makes it economical for selling hot slices, but horrible for delivery and for reheating.

I personally consider New York pizza to be A tier; S tier I reserve for pizza with a slightly thicker, slightly sour, focaccia-like crust, and regardless, the baseline should be B-Tier.

[–] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 7 points 1 week ago

It's not even "thin crust" pizza. That's St. Louis style.

[–] lagoon8622@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Incorrect; it reheats fine in a countertop convection oven (or a cast iron or carbon steel pan on the stovetop if you know what you're doing)

[–] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago

Incorrect; pizza does not need to be reheated, as it is delectable cold.

[–] masterspace@lemmy.ca 0 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Yes, and pizza with real crust reheats fine in any oven.

[–] MonkRome@lemmy.world 0 points 1 week ago (1 children)

As much as I love Jon Stewart, NYC has the worst pizza in the country. Don't get why people love a limp pizza with the wrong ratio of bread/sauce/cheese. I've had better school lunch pizza than your average New York slice. Chicago style thin crust or Midwestern thin crust, or neapolitan are all worlds better pizza.

[–] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

WTF is "Chicago style thin crust?" Or have you mixed that city up with St. Louis?

If what you're looking for in a pizza is bread, sounds like you'd prefer Sicilian.

[–] MonkRome@lemmy.world 0 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Chicago style pizza was originally tavern style thin crust. This deep dish nonsense is a modern thing. And I prefer Neapolitan over Sicilian because thinner crust is usually better.

[–] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

NY crust is closer to Neapoliton, so I'm not sure what the problem is.

[–] MonkRome@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Not in taste, not in texture/airiness, not on quality what exactly do you believe is similar? They are both pizza! Just to clarify, I walked into this argument fully aware it is subjective. Maybe I've just never had good NY pizza when I'm there. If you let me know your favorite NY pizza you swear by, I'll give it another shot when I'm there. In all honesty I've only had it as a tourist as I have family there. Locals usually have a more developed sense of where the best example of something is.

[–] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago

If you've got locals there, ask them next time you visit! I couldn't tell you where I've gotten slices there, as it's been a while, but it's always been under the guidance of a local.

[–] Agent641@lemmy.world 7 points 1 week ago (1 children)

There's a pizza shop near me that uses a Vegemite and mayonnaise based sauce on its Australian Style pizza.

Now, this isn't actually true, I'm just workshopping infohazards that can actually injure pizza fans.

This could be the basis for an SCP. It's a pizza so foul that it literally kills anyone who considers eating it.

[–] dondelelcaro@lemmy.world 5 points 1 week ago (2 children)

But what about toppings on a pizza?

Oaxaca

Refried Beans, Enchilada Sauce, Ground Beef, Black Beans, White Rice, Green Chilies, Tomatoes, Red Onion, Corn Tortilla Chips, Jack & Cheddar Cheese & Cholula Hot Sauce.

[–] Zoomboingding@lemmy.world 4 points 1 week ago

That sounds like an awesome loaded nachos, and nothing at all like pizza

[–] Someonelol@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 week ago

That almost sounds like a tlayuda.

[–] tamal3@lemmy.world 5 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I stand by Baltimore's Indian pizza. Excellent pizza, excellent Indian food, somehow even better together.

[–] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Oh hell yeah that sounds good

[–] tamal3@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago

Not to blow my spot, but just look at this saag paneer pizza...

[–] PodPerson@lemmy.zip 3 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Yup. I grew up in LA, lived in Chicago for a while and loved it there, don’t care for NY at all, but NY pizza is best pizza. Fact.

[–] DrWorm@piefed.social 2 points 1 week ago

I recently learned about this, which is also known as Rhode Island pizza strips. I haven’t had the chance to try it yet

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_tomato_pie

[–] MML@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 week ago
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