Carmen's Bakery - Hazleton

https://www.nepapizzareview.com/2014/05/carmens-bakery-hazleton.html
Pizza That You Don't Heat or Refrigerate???
It's not every day that this pizza critic runs into something totally unexpected and unlike anything else I've ever tried before, but trust me it happened today! I was attending a meeting in Luzerne County with a friend who happens to be the "Unofficial Mayor of Hazleton." He and I frequently discuss food and specifically pizza with the fabled scamutz (ska-mootz) cheese which is native to Hazleton. We have long talked about making a trip down to try the local cuisine which I have been looking forward to for some time now, but the Mayor fast-forwarded my attempt at trying some "pitza" as they call it in that area by bringing me a gift. The gift was wrapped neatly in a bakery box with the words "Carmen's Bakery" emblazoned on the top. As I anxiously tore open the wrapping, I could immediately smell the pungent aromas resonating from inside the box. When I finally opened it I was surprised to see that there was a pizza inside! The Mayor quickly explained to me that this pizza was "Cold Cut" pizza which did not need to be heated or refrigerated.I'm familiar with pizza that you can buy in the refrigerated section of the supermarket which can be eaten uncooked, such as Nardone's Bros, but I've never heard of a pizza that didn't need to be refrigerated before! You can imagine my curiosity and skepticism toward such a bold claim. The Mayor told me stories about how he grew up as a kid taking this cold cut pizza on family trips with him to the beach and they would leave the pizza out on the table for three days before even considering putting it in the fridge. I looked at him in wide-eyed bewilderment not thinking that such a culinary feat was possible. He told me stories of the countless experiences he had eating at Carmen's and how wonderful the long-time owner of the establishment is. All of this talk made me want to take that trip down to Hazleton even sooner, but it also peaked my interest in giving this pitza a try.
See how Carmen's stacks up against it's cross-town competition, Senape's!!

