Pizzas Ron
If you ever find yourself in Sayulita, the old fishing village-turned-surfer’s hangout in Nayarit, Mexico, and you’re sick and tired of fish tacos[1] and craving a hot and tasty slice of pizza, look no further than Pizzas Ron, the locals’ favorite spot since 1995. No sad looking pies melting under a heat lamp here. At Ron's, each pizza is made to order with fresh ingredients and hefty handfuls of toppings. I highly recommend the house specialty, pizza de camarón (shrimp pizza). The Hawaiian pie is excellent too. Just to manage your expectations, you’re not going to find a thick and bready, olive-oily deep dish Chicago style pie loaded with thick tomato sauce. What you will find is a thin, crispy-crusted New York style pie that doesn’t sag at the tip when you pick up a slice to take a bite. You'll also notice the cheese has a different texture – it’s more melty and less stringy than mozzarella. That’s because Ron’s uses Mexican quesadilla cheese, which is closer to American cheese. Somehow, it works, though, trust me. You just have to keep an open mind.[2] If you prefer a picante pie, add a few squirts from the bottle of hot sauce on your table. It’s especially good on the Hawaiian pizza because the heat of the cayenne pepper balances perfectly with the sweetness of the pineapple.
In an emergency (when your butt and the couch have become inseparable), Pizzas Ron delivers! Their phone number is 01 (329) 291-3149. But if you have time, you’ve got to go check out the restaurant. It’s got such a fun quirky vibe, you could totally picture the Dude from the Big Lebowski eating there. The address is Calle Pelicanos, 39 (Centro), which isn’t one of the main roads, but it’s easy to find if you follow these simple directions. Walk along the beach until you get to the North end that’s closest to the river and you’ll get to the pier where public restrooms and showers are located. Start walking down the street leading up to that pier, and you'll find Pizzas Ron about halfway down the block. You can't miss the bright signs and the painting of Popeye the Sailor Man on the wall above the door. (I don’t know what Popeye has to do with pizza, I thought he was more of a spinach guy, but why quibble with artistic license?)
It’s not until you step inside the door that you come face to face with the pièce de résistance - a massive clay oven shaped like Ron's head topped with a gigantic sombrero that’s dripping with Christmas lights (I’m not making this up). Cheerful pizza chefs sling the pies onto wooden paddles, and shove them into Ron's "mouth,“ creating the optical illusion that the oven is gobbling up all the pies but if you cock your head sideways just a bit, you can see the pizzas resting on top of glowing embers deep inside the oven. Splendiferous odors fill the cozy room. You will have a tough time stopping yourself from drooling all over your placemat like a puppy dog.
If I haven’t talked you into going to this restaurant, you are probably a robot, but for all the human life forms booking flights to Sayulita now, here are some final words of advice. Pizzas Ron is only open from Wednesday through Sunday, so don't make the mistake of going there on a Monday or Tuesday, or you'll be sadly disappointed. You just might cry. Hours are from 2 pm to 10 pm, but remember - this is Mexico, where posted hours serve as approximate guidelines for what’s likely to happen, not what’s guaranteed to happen. When business is slow, proprietors sometimes close up shop to go the market, take a smoke break, or whatever. So if you knock on the door of Pizzas Ron during posted business hours and no one answers, just take a look around. Ron lives right above the restaurant. You’ll probably find him puttering around in the backyard tending to his chickens or hanging out on the pier watching the surfers. He’s always happy to open his doors for hungry customers, but it will take "una hora" for his psychedelic oven to get hot enough to bake the perfect pizza. So crack open a cerveza, sit back in your beach chair, and relax - you're on Mexican time now - and waiting never felt so wonderful.
[1] Yes, it is humanly possible to get sick of eating tacos, but apparently not for this guy. https://onsizzle.com/i/dont-you-ever-get-tired-of-eating-tacos-me-there-4269237.
[2] A student’s perspective on the importance of keeping an open mind when you’re traveling abroad. https://www.goabroad.com/articles/intern-abroad/don-t-forget-to-pack-your-relativism-keeping-an-open-mind-when-traveling-abroad
