Make mine an Obama with extra pineapple: what the pizza can tell us about world leaders
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Version 0 of 1. If there is anyone who thinks that the UK’s influence across Europe is dwindling, let them come to Lausanne, in Switzerland. In this serene and prosperous town, Britain holds sway over daily life, and it is not just the plaque marking Lord Byron’s stay here along the shores of Lake Geneva. In the Pizzeria Boccalino, a few doors down from Byron’s hotel, L’Angleterre, one of the top dishes is the David Cameron pizza. It is piled up with ham, mushrooms, olives, onions, artichokes and chillies and it heads the restaurant’s list of political pizzas. It is two above the Barack Obama (ham, asparagus, tuna, hard-boiled egg, shrimps and pineapple) and three ahead of the François Hollande (merguez sausage, onions, mushrooms, basil and chillies). Admittedly, the day’s special is the John Kerry mini-pizza (chicken, pancetta, onions and rocket), but that is because the Iran nuclear talks are unfolding a hundred yards away and the US secretary of state has been in town for the past five days. He is a transient presence, who is unlikely to appreciate the culinary honour bestowed on him. It is clear from the way he strides around the lake shore – tall, elegantly suited and patrician, followed by swarms of photographers – that he does not see himself as a mini-pizza kind of guy. Related: Russian foreign minister to leave Iran nuclear talks early Asked how the names were chosen, the manager on duty at the Boccalino shrugged, suggesting the process was somewhat random. The Obama might contain pineapple because of his birthplace in Hawaii. The use of merguez in the Hollande could reflect France’s former colonies in North Africa. But what do artichokes and chillies say about Britain’s prime minister? Possibly not all that much. Food ingredients do not work very well as symbols of personal character. There is some sense in the fact that Boccalino’s Luis Suárez pizza was crammed with different kinds of meat in a reference to the famously carnivorous footballer’s reputation, but it was less clear why the Kate Middleton should be garnished with such an indigestible-sounding mix of ham, pancetta, onions, shrimps, pineapple, mushrooms and bananas. It may be intended to project royal opulence, if not excess. Related: The pizza revolution: the staples from Naples Such questions do not really trouble the pizzeria. Business is booming. The US energy secretary, Ernest Moniz, ate there at the weekend, and the tables have been full ever since with journalists, diplomats and bodyguards, easy to spot from their radio earpieces and bulges in their jackets. For a few days this spring, the place is echoing with a babble of different tongues, ordering mini Kerrys, standard Middletons and family-size Camerons. |