Taste of Traditions’ breakfast style pizza.
Reminder Publishing photo by Ryan Feyre
The diabolical blend of mushrooms on a pizza is about as common as snow this winter, but a breakfast style pizza is somehow rarer than witnessing a polar bear crossing the Massachusetts turnpike.
Eggs, cheese and bacon on any kind of crust is a breakaway layup, a meatball down the middle, a 75-yard touchdown with nothing but green grass in front of you. But for whatever reason, the scrumptious concoction is typically nowhere to be found.
Truth be told, I kind of understand why. There are many factors restaurant owners must reckon with, including demand, price of ingredients and if the style of pizza even makes sense within their brand or hours of operation. Maybe everything does make sense for them to have the item on the menu, but they’d rather be 2012 Nick Young than 2018 Jayson Tatum dunking on LeBron in Game 7. I don’t know, maybe I’m just clueless and there is a plethora of locales that serve it.
In any event, my lamenting recently ceased when one of my colleagues sent me a press release about a newly minted restaurant in Indian Orchard called “Taste of Traditions.” My interest in the establishment piqued when I was apprised of their win at the Latino Economic Development Corporation Cook-off competition, but my curiosity reached its apex when I saw that the new diner-style restaurant featured the coveted breakfast pizza on its menu. My head perked up like a dog that just heard its owner lock their car.
The item’s original makeup is scrambled eggs with melted provolone and mozzarella on naan bread, topped with arugula and tomatoes. But my eating habits are questionable, so I substituted the tomatoes with bacon. My short-term memory isn’t always sharp, but it was probably the best decision I made that day.
The texture clash was what I wanted. The eggs’ fluffy perfection runs up against the tantalizing crisp of the bacon bits; the melted provolone and mozzarella counterbalances that texture dichotomy by offering a buttery sweetness to the dish’s base. And although the naan bread could’ve maybe been a tad crispier, I found the flatbread to be the ideal canvas to buttress the flavors above it. Hunger abated, I had finally found the coveted breakfast style pizza I’ve been looking for.
As for the ambience, Taste of Traditions provides an extremely welcoming space, as evidenced by the bevy of plants and many puzzles available for customers to ostensibly solve. The spot, located at 174 Main St. in Indian Orchard, invokes a classic diner feel, but there’s an added tranquility and warmth to how everything is presented. When I have the time, I’ll have to bask in its glow a little more.
And when I do, I’ll also have to explore its menu. Aside from the pizza, Taste of Traditions serves a breakfast sandwich, Cuban sandwich, a brisket biscuit, grilled cheese, kafta and much more. The restaurant is open 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the weekends. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner all day and also cater for larger events.
