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Tommy Barrett shares his opinions about central Indiana’s best tacos, best burgers and other foods in review videos he posts online.
The “Starts with a Question” host is seeking group consensus, however, on the topic of the best pizza.
Barrett, an alum of Bishop Chatard High School and Purdue University, is planning the first Indianapolis Pizza Festival in hopes of answering the question: Who has the best pizza in Indiana?
The event is scheduled for Aug. 9 on Monument Circle, Barrett announced Monday.
Attendees at the ticketed event will have access to unlimited pizza samples and be encouraged to vote for their favorites.
Barrett said he’s hoping to line up between 20 and 40 pizzerias to participate.
“I want to have enough where an opinion needs to be formed,” he said. “You can’t select the best within just four or five places—or just in Indianapolis or Fishers or Noblesville. You need to bring people all the way from South Bend to Evansville.”
With 18 restaurants presently listed at the festival’s website, indypizzafest.com, a minimum of 20 participants appears to be within reach.
On his “Starts with a Question” profile at TikTok and Instagram, Barrett selected Ale Emporium as the spot for the best chicken wings and Goose the Market as No. 1 for sandwiches.
Barrett said he admires Keith Lee and Dave Portnoy, two social media influencers known for sharing opinions about restaurants in cities across the United States.
Thanks to a day job with the NCAA that takes him on the road, Barrett has thoughts on food beyond Indiana’s borders. He said no pizzeria tops Joe’s Pizza on Carmine Street in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village.
Barrett said he believes the qualities of great pizza translate to all styles, ranging from New York to tavern to Detroit.
“You can’t have a good pizza without a good sauce, and you can’t have a good pizza without a good crunch of crust,” he said.
Indianapolis Pizza Festival is scheduled noon to 6 p.m. on Aug. 9. Tickets, $30, go on sale at noon Friday at eventbrite.com.
Barrett said a portion of the event’s proceeds will be donated to a nonprofit organization.
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What is included with $30 admission?
Unlimited pizza samples, according to the article.
Joe’s Pizza in Greenwich Village is good, but it is a far cry from the best especially in New York. It is definitely better than most places that I have been to in Indiana, but L’Industrie in the West Village might be the best.