“What’s Cookin” with Michael Castaneda
Let’s be real. The cafeteria on campus has crummy pizza.
The food trucks are great but can get a bit stale if you find yourself there every day ordering the same thing over-and-over again. If you’re looking for flavor and variety then Bufad Wood Fire Pizza is the place to go. It’s a few blocks from the Main Campus on N. 13th St. and Spring Garden. They advocate for local farms and use organic products when possible. The best part about Bufad is that the menu changes when the season changes.
It’s an Italian-American styled restaurant. They source all of their meats from Kensington Quarters. That restaurant is built around a butcher shop and also gets their products from local farms, as well. The co-owner of Kensington Quarters, Michael Pasquarello, also owns Bufad and a number of other restaurants in Philly.
This place is fantastic. When you walk through the door you will immediately be teased by the aromas escaping the oven. The restaurant looks and feels warm.
They always have the Margherita on the menu, which comes with uncooked san marzano tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, torn basil and extra virgin olive oil. I almost didn’t have the time to take a picture of it because it was eaten so fast.
Since their pizzas are Neapolitan styled, it is the perfect size to share with a friend. The crust what soft in the middle, crisp on the outside and was chard on the edges giving it a delicious burst of Italian-American comfort. I used it to soak up the leftover sauce on the plate from the pizza. Best. Idea. Ever!
While there, the managing editor of The Vanguard, Rachel Byrd and I also tried a Spaghetti Squash pizza, covered in slow-cooked tomato sauce, roasted spaghetti squash, chiles and oregano. It’s finished with a wood-fired egg, ricotta and pangrattato. It was extremely filling and might seem a bit odd with a quick glance, but I assure you, it is a fantastic combination of ingredients to put on a pizza.
If you are of age, the restaurant is also B.Y.O.B. One could assume enjoying these pizzas with a cold beer is probably an amazing combination.
Bufad Wood Fire Pizza is a great place to get lunch or dinner next time you’re at the Main Campus. The Service was pleasant. Our server smiled the entire time and made sure we were taken care of from start to finish. Besides the small hiccup of accidently walking away from the restaurant without our leftover pizza, I had a great time there and can’t wait to go back to find out what other things they’re cookin’.