In Search of Decent Southern Pizza

Finding good pizza in NY/NJ is rarely difficult. While there is some pizza up north that is just passable, most is pretty darned good. I don't know if it's the technique, the ingredients, the armpit sweat of the dough-tosser or even if it's just the water. But pizza in the Metropolitan area is generally the gold standard of the genre.

Not so in the South, where finding good pizza is not always easy. A friend of ours in Charlotte recently tried a place--a new chain she found-- that she thought looked promising, and her description was, "It was like ketchup on a cracker." Um, yeah. No. I'm good.

We asked some of our new neighbors in southeastern Brunswick County, NC, some of them NY/NJ transplants, and their reports were less than glowing. Their comments fell somewhere between, "You can't get good pizza down here at all" to "Pizza from this place isn't TOO bad." Um, Yeah. No. I'm good there, too.

But one of them mentioned a place in North Myrtle Beach, about a 25 minute ride from our home. He said, "Try Ledo's. It's different, but it's good."

So, with some business to attend to in North Myrtle Beach, we came upon the recommended place, and, as it was lunchtime, we decided to give it a try. Ledo's is a franchise, this particular one being owned by a helluva nice guy named Ken McMurrain (Bottom, R.). The chain was begun in 1955 (when square pans were the norm) by a guy named Bob Beall, and all franchisees follow the prescribed formulas.

We didn't want anything fancy, so we walked back to the small bar and simply ordered an 8-inch plain pie to sample. You can certainly get bigger, different ones, too. Joey (L.), the hospitable manager who started life in Verona, NJ, was most helpful, and better yet, he drew me a pint of Dirty Myrtle, a 9% DIPA from New South Brewing that was both fresh and fabulous.

After some friendly chit-chat, out came the "experimental" pizza on a square plate. It was cut into nine squares, and its crust was cracker thin--and delicious. Ledo's uses a variety of cheeses, including a few types of provolones (one smoked) instead of the standard mozzarella. They, too, were excellent. The sauce, with a very delicate hint of sweetness, was spread judiciously.

It was freakin' fabulous, honest to God. And while yours truly never drinks beer with pizza (I like to see the oil from my lips floating on my Coke), the Dirty Myrtle Joey poured me was a wonderfully great pairing. So good was it that we ordered a SECOND plain Pizza and another beer, which means an 8-inch pie is perfect for a solo lunch or a snack.

And the menu is loaded with other appealing dishes as well. The missus and I vowed then and there to return to try more of Ledo's offerings.

Don't get me wrong, Jersey folks. Maruca's on the Seaside Heights Boardwalk has nothing to worry about. But that's a whole different type of pizza experience. And Ledo's is another.