For what it's worth, I grew up in Upstate NY in the 70's and 80's and still visit. It may just be nostalgia on my part, but I remember that the pizza of my youth was far better than what I generally see when I'm home visiting family.
Maybe I was just spoiled with the little family-run Italian places of back in the day, when I lived there.
That said, I sooooooo miss NY State food!
Thankfully a little pizza place, run by an Italian family opened up in town about a year ago. My wife and I almost cried when we first ate it... best pizza since we moved here 16 years ago, with the exact same taste and texture in the crust and sauce that I remember from Upstate NY pizzas of my youth. (In fact, I'm eating some right now!)