From Pizzagate deniers comes the most often quoted phrase, "Comet doesn't even have a basement." So where did the idea that Comet Pizza had a basement come from? Researchers found an old article interviewing James where he states that his bulk organic custom pizza sauce was stored in the basement:

"MW: Meanwhile, another celebrity chef was helpful in putting Comet on the map — Guy Fieri, who filmed an episode of his popular Food Network show Diners, Dive-Ins and Dives there five years ago."

"....Because a lot of restaurants will open a can and put it on. Like our sauce — we harvest a whole crop of organic tomatoes — 10 tons of tomatoes every year. Can them all, store them in the basement, have like a harvest party when it gets loaded in." https://www.metroweekly.com/2015/04/from-scratch-james-alefantis/ This article was written before Pizzagate broke.

"And this one from the BBC from 2 December 2016, where James emphatically denies having a basement: "They ignore basic truths," Alefantis tells BBC Trending. For instance, the conspiracy supposedly is run out of the restaurant's basement. "We don't even have a basement." "Sometimes an innocent picture of a child in a basket is just an innocent picture of a child in a basket and not proof of a child sex trafficking ring," he says." https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-38156985 This referred to his Instagram shot of an unkempt toddler girl standing in a wire food basket with an off camera adult hand offering an orange. His Instagram included many other odd pictures of young children. https://duckduckgo.com/?q=jimmy+comet+instagram+pictures+archive&t=osx&ia=images&iax=images

It was originally thought this (basement) referred to Comet Pizza, but later some determined that it was the basement of his other restaurant, Buck's Camping and Fishing, two doors down. Much has been researched about this sauce, so I decided to look at past links on the subject. What prompted me was the jar of Comet Ping Pong Sauce advertised on their Face Book page December 15, 2016. https://www.facebook.com/cometpingpong/videos/vb.113980191967512/1394306030601582/?type=2&theater If you make a quick pause, you can grab a screenshot of the product. It's a 26 oz jar and does anyone know what the green illustration is? It looks like the top of a person's head with just the eyebrows showing and a couple of plants coming out of the "hair." WEIRD. Maybe I am misinterpreting.

One past VOATER did an in depth analysis on the economics of this custom sauce. Some info didn't add up. Well worth a read: "I made a comment on voat detailing how there is no way he turns a profit with the hours he is open, along with lying about how much tomato sauce he really cans. I used my 5th grade level maths skills to deduce this while finding out from pizza enthusiasts how much sauce on an average pizza, etc... If you want the original thread, here it is https://voat.co/v/pizzagate/1528096 This is very interesting I'm going to do some digging into the costs of actually using the brands of tomato's he claims and looking at the costs."

"Comet's lightly cooked sauce is made from a combination of tomatoes, including heirlooms (such as Brandywines), beefsteaks, Romas, and some Pennsylvania-grown San Marzanos, says farmer Mark Toigo of Toigo Orchards. This quote has my eyebrows raised. The problem, as more than one chef pointed out, is that you can't realistically use heirlooms for sauces in restaurants. Finding consistent, perfectly ripe specimens would be nearly impossible. And even if you could, the expense of turning those heirlooms into, say, a pizza sauce would be prohibitive. It might cost you $16 in heirloom tomatoes to make enough sauce for a single pizza, MacQuaid guesses. That pie would have to sell for about $45, he suggests."

"My point is the financial aspect, and how there is no feasible way he could pay for 10 tons of tomatoes and send it to a processing plant (more $$) then have it delivered(more $$) If he somehow managed to get heirloom tomatoes for 1$ a pound (yea right buddy) then he still spends 20 grand on JUST sauce. Now think about all the other costs that would come with a pizza restaurant... Employee's, taxes, utilities, rent(if applicable), HEALTH INSURANCE my god every employer knows how expensive it is now. (thanks obama). But also that he has conflicted the 10 ton statement with a more recent one stating he only uses 2 tons a year. Edit: Where does he store the 10,000 cans at bucks that isn't already being used by bucks for food storage itself?" https://www.reddit.com/r/conspiracy/comments/7buc2o/comet_ping_pong_is_likely_just_a_meet_up_a_public/

Then there is the emphasis by Alefantis that the tomatoes are sourced from Toigo (organic) Farms. I researched Toigo Farms:

Lobbyists with client TOIGO ORGANIC FARMS, LLC.....Their lobbyists' other clients are high rollers: https://lobbylinx.com/browseresult.php?Client=TOIGO%20ORGANIC%20FARMS,%20LLC

http://www.toigoorchards.com/market-schedule/ CHECK OUT THEIR LOGO.

COMMENTS FROM A D.C. FOODIE FORUM: DC Area Farmer's Markets -- 2007 "Posted May 7, 2007 I love Toigo and have been known to hang out with the crew after market hours, but I think their peaches and apples are much better than their tomaters. On the other hand, no less a cred-wielding critic than Carol Greenwood bought a couple of tons of their tomatoes last summer to put up for the pizza sauce in her new restaurant, and posted Mark Toigo's (last seen in South America restoring a vintage plane) photo (with others) in Comet Ping-pong's bar, so what do I know?"

"Toigo's tomatoes were not bad yesterday at Dupont. The flavors were not as developed as they are later in the season, but they did taste of tomatoes."

"I have yet to post anything about the local Slow Food Convivium's panel on the Farm Bill 2007, but I'll add that Jim Crawford of New Morning Farm participated as did your buddy, Mark Toigo, the latter in long white shirt sleeves, the former not." https://forums.egullet.org/topic/102365-dc-area-farmers-markets-2007/

Slow Food/ Alice Waters / Edible School Yard Project/ connection:

"Slow Food was founded by Carlo Petrini in 1986 in Italy after a demonstration on the intended site of a McDonald’s at the Spanish Steps in Rome. How did this group get their message across? By eating bowls pasta! A fitting gesture that symbolized the vast difference between Italian food traditions and the incoming wave of industrial food.....t was an inspiring foodie paradise. Some conference highlights included an interactive Sourdough Starter workshop, keynote address by Carlo Petrini and an inspiring lunch hosted by Alice Waters."

"Chef Alice Waters, known for starting the original farm-to-table restaurant Chez Panisse, in Berkley, CA, is one of the most well-known advocates for improving school lunches through The Edible School Yard Project. ...." https://www.farmermark.com/blog/2017/8/4/slow-food-nations

"Slow Food Nation: Conversation with Alice Waters Sustainable food advocate will receive the Foundation Medal at the UC Santa Cruz's Founders Celebration Fiat Fifty dinner on September 26, 2015" https://news.ucsc.edu/2015/08/alice-waters-q-and-a.html

"What is sustainable food? CowThere is no legal definition of 'sustainable food,' although some aspects, such as the terms organic or Fairtrade, are clearly defined." https://www.sustainweb.org/sustainablefood/what_is_sustainable_food/ Does this lead into AGENDA 21? "Agenda 21 Chapter 14 Promoting Sustainable Agriculture And Rural Development" http://www.un-documents.net/a21-14.htm

Alice Waters promotes Hillary, James Alefantis, and his Hillary/pizza logo: https://www.instagram.com/p/BKhHsk8gz6r/

"Alefantis seeks fresh meat in Cuba"
https://voat.co/v/pizzagate/2166431