What started out as a normal lunch at BoomBozz Highlands Taphouse on Bardstown Road in Louisville soon turned out to be the beginnings of a pizza creation contest that Tabor Youngs, theatre sophomore, eventually won.

Youngs was dining at BoomBozz Highlands Taphouse when her server informed her of the “Create Your Own Famous Creation” contest. On a whim, Youngs and her dining companions decided to enter the contest by choosing from a list of ingredients in order to create their own original pizza.

As far as technique, Youngs said she just chose ingredients she thought would taste good together, which required some creativity on her part seeing as she admits she can be a finicky eater.

“Typically, I only like pepperoni pizza because I’m really picky, so it was really off-the-wall for me,” Youngs said. “I wanted to pick something that I wouldn’t typically eat which was different, so I picked things that I have never had on a pizza before.”

Youngs chose the following ingredients — a tomato-pesto sauce, fontina cheese, feta cheese, asiago cheese, mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, portabella mushrooms, sausage, pepperoni and black olives.

Barry O’Gara, operator of the BoomBozz Highlands Taphouse at 1448 Bardstown Road, the store which held the contest, said there were specific aspects of Youngs pizza which led her to victory.

“Her pizza was one of the five we presented to a panel of celebrity judges,” O’Gara said. “The taste and the visual presentation were the ones that won for her, and it had a good name.”

Youngs named her pizza Michelangelo because she had recently learned about the famous artist in one of her history classes.

“I wanted something Italian, and I am in a history class right now that starts with the Renaissance,” Youngs said. “I thought Michelangelo would be a really cool name for it because he is one of my favorite renaissance painters.”

Tyler Youngs, psychology senior and brother of Tabor Youngs, said he thought the name his sister selected for the pizza was a clever choice.

“She only wanted to use the cheeses that were around during his time period, and she said it came out on the same date that the Sistine Chapels were finished,” Tyler Youngs said.

There were five pizza finalists chosen and they, along with their families, were invited to dine at the BoomBozz Highlands Taphouse to taste the pizzas created prior to the winner being announced. Tyler Youngs attended the tasting with his sister.

“I thought it was really awesome she was a finalist, and I knew I would be there,” Tyler Youngs said. “I found out that it was out of 1,500 people, so upon finding that out, I had to be there.”

Tabor Youngs and her family were able to try one of the other finalists’ pizzas at the tasting called “Sweet and Hot.”

“It wasn’t half as good,” Evan Wilburn, psychology junior and Tabor Youngs’ boyfriend, said. “Tasting that pizza made me feel confident that Tabor would win.”

Tyler Youngs said his sister’s pizza had the innovation, the look and the taste to stomp the competition.

“I’ve never had portabella mushrooms on a pizza before,” Tyler Youngs said. “It was just something unique that also looked and tasted really good.”

Wilburn said he too was amazed by the taste of the pizza and feels it should be on the restaurant’s menu for more than just one month.

“I was like, ‘This is really good. This should be on the menu forever,’” Wilburn said upon tasting Tabor Youngs’ pizza.

In addition to having her pizza on the BoomBozz Highlands Taphouse menu for the month of November, Tabor Youngs said she won several free lunches at the restaurant in addition to a $100 BoomBozz Highland’s Taphouse gift card.

Despite winning the contest, Tabor Youngs said she doesn’t see any major culinary endeavors in her future.

“I don’t think I could pursue a career as a chef because it really doesn’t interest me that much,” Tabor Youngs said. “I can cook if I have to, but to be honest, I don’t really enjoy it.”

Since winning the competition and eating the pizza, Tabor Youngs said it has made her more open to trying new foods.

“I always just liked pepperoni pizza, but now I think I am more open to more options,” Tabor Youngs said. “I’d be more willing to try something different.”

Tabor Youngs has even had the chance to exercise some of that new-found willingness.

“I actually tried their buffalo chicken pizza the last time I was there,” Tabor Youngs said. “It was really good, and normally I wouldn’t have tried that.”

Tabor Youngs’ Michelangelo pizza will be available at 1448 Bardstown Road in Louisville for the duration of November for all who wish to taste the winning pizza.

By ANNIE MALKA

Staff

amalka@umail.iu.edu