Living in rural Ashburnham can be (mostly) boring, but it has its perks! You have historic Mount Watatic, the famous Pink Park, and the only type of fast-food that can be found in every New England town, Dunkin Donuts.

We also have the continuous rivalry between two local sub shops, Brothers Pizza and Village Pizza; a war on cheese or pepperoni pizza, ham and cheese or tuna subs, and steak or BBQ chicken calzones.

Both are located in central Ashburnham, Brothers Pizza on 47 Main St., with Village Pizza only a one minute walk away on 65 Main St.

Village Pizza was introduced to Ashburnham over 15 years ago serving the Ashburnham community, old and new. Brothers Pizza, although relatively popular, opened up shop in 2013, after a small business moved out of the now sub-shops building.

I recently polled and interviewed individuals from Oakmont Regional (and Cushing Academy). The answers varied from person to person, as I expected.

Village Pizza is extremely popular with Cushing Academy students. Due to being only a short walk away from school grounds, students have easy access to delicious pizza and subs from their dorm rooms.

Jackson Stoever, a 2018 Cushing Academy graduate, says he prefers Village. “I love the service,” he says, “The people working there are very kind and learn your orders and end up knowing what you want as soon as they see you!” Jackson says his go-to meal is a BBQ chicken calzone.

But oddly enough, most students I’ve interviewed at Oakmont have preferred Village over brothers.

“Village, definitely.” Quinley Woods, an Oakmont Regional senior, says. “I feel like they’re faster, and I just enjoy them more.” She says. Quinleys go-to meal is a BBQ chicken pizza with fries and golden mushrooms. “Every time.”

Ariana Goulkin, an Oakmont Regional junior, says, “I like Village better. Their customer service is always good and Brothers remind me of black licorice.” Ariana says her family’s go-to meal is a pepperoni pizza and zesty fries.

“I prefer Village.” Katelyn Beddia, an Oakmont Regional senior, says. “Although it’s further away, it just tastes better.” Kateyn says her go-to meal is a BBQ chicken calzone or a bacon pizza.

Despite the positive reviews for Village from Oakmont students, Brothers Pizza is the fan favorite here at Oakmont. 8/10 students preferred Brothers over Village. Perhaps it’s the fellow Oakmont peers working at Brothers’ that draw in the Oakmont crowd.

Thera Walsh, an Oakmont Regional senior, says, “I prefer Brothers Pizza. I’ve been eating there for a long time, and the last time I ate at Village Pizza I wasn’t too thrilled with their food or customer service.” Thera says her go-to meal is a large cheese or black olive pizza and an order of fries.

“I like Brothers better.” Ally Lewis, an Oakmont Regional junior, says. “I like Brothers overall better because they have more quality items.” Ally says her go-to meal is chicken and fries or a pizza and fries.

Thandiwe Frazier, an Oakmont Regional freshman, says “Brothers is 10 times better, without a doubt. Village is just really bad and greasy and icky and floppy and icky.” Thandiwe says her go-to meal is a Hawaiian pizza or a Hawaiian calzone… “anything with pineapples.” She says. “PINEAPPLES BELONG ON PIZZA!”

I decided to put the contradicting answers to work and order from Village and Brothers. At Village, I will be trying the fan favorite BBQ chicken calzone with a side of mac ‘n cheese bites, while fom Brothers, the Hawaiian calzone with a side of mac ‘n cheese bites.

(Picture of BBQ chicken calzone and delicious mac ‘n cheese bites from Village; taken by Regina)

First, the BBQ chicken calzone.

What can I say about the calzone? Well, the crust was crispy and the chicken was delicious, but a little soft. Flavors of barbeque and mozzarella cheese danced in my mouth.

The mac ‘n cheese bites were crispy and delicious, but a tad bit dry. Village gave me blue cheese to dip the calzone in, as well as red sauce to dip the bites in.

Now, the Hawaiian.

The calzone was very cheesy. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE cheese, but sometimes it can be a bit too much. The pineapple was sweet, and the ham was salty! The chunks of ham were okay and could have been cut a tad bit smaller, but no complaints here.

The mac ‘n cheese bites, how can I put this… were the best I’ve ever tasted! They were crispy and moist and had the perfect amount of cheesy goodness. Brothers gave me red sauce to dip both the calzone and bites in.

(Picture of Hawaiin calzone and delicious mac ‘n cheese bites from Brothers; Picture taken by Regina)

You may be wondering, “where should I order my afternoon meal from?” And for that answer, I can’t tell you. Everyone has their own opinions, that’s what makes us unique.

I can, however, make a suggestion. And for that I say…

Brothers has amazing food, Village has amazing food. If you’re in the mood for pizza and mac ‘n cheese bites, head on over to Brothers for some cheesy goodness. If you’re in the mood for a calzone and mozzarella sticks, head on over to Village for the classic BBQ calzone.