Review: Tony Sacco’s Coal Oven Pizza
Author: WIBIA | Filed under: Food Reviews, Location: Carmel, IN
Tony Sacco’s Coal Oven Pizza
Clay Terrace Mall
14402 Clay Terrace Blvd, Ste 150
Carmel, IN
http://www.tonysaccos.com
Florida based Tony Sacco’s is brand new to Indy. It was on my list to try, but somewhere in the middle. BigRedEater and I grabbed a weekday lunch to give it a try. If you look at their website, they bring in coal from PA and filter the water separately for the crust. Overall, it looks like they pay attention to all the details.
What We Ate: Garlic Rotolis $5, Caesar Salad $7, Pepperoni Pizza $12.00.
The garlic rotolis were highly recommended for our server, so we would give them a try. Eight Rolls, olive oil, garlic and basil dipping sauce. The fat part of the rolls was about as big as a squash ball. As far as the taste….eh. Nothing to talk about. There was a lot of oil and it was really too much. A few of them were stuck together, so that makes me think that they were pre-made and then torn apart? Now that I am writing the review, I realized that we didn’t receive any of the basil dipping sauce. They really need a sauce…and about 3 tablespoons less oil.
This is how they were served as well, just tossed in the bowl…
Caesar salad was a base of romaine lettuce with Romano cheese and Caesar dressing and a few crostinis. What I did like is that the salad was lightly dressed and the dressing was not the heavy thick out of the bottle stuff. However, not a lot going on here. It was a good size, but very little flavor. Fresh pepper was not an option, though it would’ve been nice. You can add chicken for $3.00 more, no thanks.
A small pizza is 12”. $10.50 to start for a small, then toppings are $1.50 extra. Specialty pizzas are $15.95 for a small. The menu states that the sauce is homemade and the cheese is a mozzarella/romano cheese mix topped with olive oil and basil. When the pizza arrived, I expected to see the black marks of a coal oven pizza, but that was not the case here. The slices had a nice fold to them, but I found the pizza to be about a minute under cooked. The dough was finished, but it just lacked crispiness.
I didn’t love the pizza. It wasn’t bad, but there was nothing about it that I couldn’t find anywhere else. They have all the right elements going into the pizza, but it just doesn’t transfer to the final product.
Would I Buy It Again? No. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t spit out the food, but this meal didn’t leave any memorable moments. The total bill was around $30 for lunch for two. I can’t say that the food validated the price tag. They do not have a lunch menu, so if you want pizza, you are stuck ordering a $13 pizza and assume that the other person wants what you do. Let me be clear when I say that the business lunch crowd does not want to be roped into buying an entire pizza.
I have to admit, the service was quite good though. Very attentive and friendly. Honestly, I am interested to hear other people’s opinions.
-wibia
Tags: caesar salad, clay terrace, coal oven, Food, pepperoni, Pizza, rotolis, tony sacco's
I have to say that even though you said they weren’t good, those garlic rotolis LOOK good. The salad and the pizza just look boring. What a waste.
We have a great family owned Italian joint in my neck of the woods that serves something similar to the garlic rotolis. difference is, they call them garlic knots and they’re free. They are served when you sit down, kind of like chips and salsa at all the Mexican places. They are the friggin’ bomb!! Sadly if you want more, you have to pay a little extra, but were only talking a few bucks. If your eating a meal of even a pizza there, there is no need more, or you will fill up way too fast. Problems is, they’re addictive. We always buy some to take home.
Sorry to hear a place with so much potential was such a let down.
Boy, you got this review turned around quick – I was going to shoot you a message today seeing if I should write it up. I thought their food was all fine, but it wasn’t anything special. If I were shopping in the area with my wife and kids, I would stop there for pizza. Here are a couple of the good points:
1) The pizza was out very quick. Surprisingly so. Like, if I was there with my kids, I’d be psyched that it was out that quick.
2) The service really was great. The waitress went so far as to explain how to reheat the pizza (using a pizza stone and a specific temp) to get the best results from the leftovers.
I don’t think it was so much of a letdown as much as it just wasn’t a stand-out. Their pizza was fine, but not as good as Pizzology. And that brings me to the lunch point – even Pizzology and Some Guys have great lunch specials, and work to bring in the lunch crowd. I would shy away from this place and head somewhere else where I can get a pizza lunch for under ten bucks.
Wow, detailed review…I can almost feel your disappointment. Do you have any Chicago style pizza joints in Indy? That would be a great review
Completely agree. I ate there last week and had the same reaction. With Pizzology just blocks away, why go here?
@ Kat. We have a few people that think they are Chicago style, but they are not. Nancy’s is our only one, you can serach for it on the site. Pretty good actually.
Roselli’s gets close with their Chicago style, but they still tend to put the toppings…on top.
@Dave. Good question. Tony Sacco was not bad, but Pizzology raised the bar in the area. Two years ago, Tony’s might be the best.
@BigRed “I don’t think it was so much of a letdown as much as it just wasn’t a stand-out” Well said.
@Raiders. I have had garlic knots from a few places and usually like them. The bad part is that the do not reheat well.
Your right, WIBIA, knots don’t heat up well and are better ate fresh. I do so in the oven, but it seems you lose some of that addictive flavor.
I would like to point out as well. Even though I am not even close to your area, I enjoy your site. One day I plan to go to the 500, and your site will guide me to the better places to eat. I hate the usual tourist spots, and love to try what the locals eat.
@Raiders. Thanks for saying that, it means a lot. I hope you make it to the 500, definitely something that you should attend.
I reheat the garlic knots in the toaster oven on the toast setting. Usually does the trick, not as good but a lot better than the micro. (same with pizza)
Any plans to review Napolese Pizzeria by Cafe Patachou at 49th and Penn? I’ve been hearing good things.
Also, if we were going to get another pizza chain here in Indy, I wish it would have been California Pizza Kitchen.
@Pat Napolese is on my short list…very short list. This week or next for sure. CPK was here at Keystone Mall years ago and didn’t make it. It has been a while since I have been.
Holly and I were just by here the other evening, and remarked to each other “I wonder if this is any good”.
Now we know, and we’ll pass.
Detailed review but my only comments would be that I still tried it and along with others found the food to be very good and will continue to recommend to everyone we see! The service was amazing along with the food and I don’t really understand where all the facts came from because for the food we ate over the last week had the coal oven char, salads are huge and very good we have had the antipasto and chicken ceaser along with several of there specialty pies. A couple of our garlic rolls were upside down as well but I don’t think it affected the flavor by any means… My recommendations for pizza would be the BBQ chicken or the Napoli both very very good and apps would be the rotolis and/or the wings! Another point I want to make is that this location has only been open since the 19th of April I believe so they still have a couple small things to fix which is expected of any start up business. Overall this is the type of coal oven pizza Indy has been looking for and would bet them to start growing rapidly once these few mistakes are corrected. I also think if given a second chance views would be complete opposite and taking one persons opinion over a fresh concept is a little crazy… Looking over the web I have found several mixed reviews majority great and extremely excited about Tony Saccos!
@ Jim. “I don’t understand where the facts come from..” Look at the pics, there is no char on the pizza, that is a fact. What don’t you understand? Also, I never said that the Rotolis being upside down affected the taste, I said since they are stuck together, it makes me think that they are not hand made.
I understand that they opened on 4/19 however, if there was a mistake to what I had, then 1. It shouldn’t leave the kitchen, or 2. I shouldn’t be charged full price. I am not a guinea pig. People disagree with me here, but this theory applies to every business. I am in the consulting business (in real life) and if I make a mistake with a new customer, what are the odds they will call me back to use me again and refer me to their friends? Slim to none. What is the difference?
I am more than willing to give it a second chance and I might someday. I have a feeling that you are new to the blog… read this first: http://wouldibuyitagain.com/2009/12/meaning-of-would-i-buy-it-again/
I’ve been to this restaurant twice in the past couple of weeks. I have to say my biggest disagreement with you is about the salad. I absolutely love their Caesar salad. I agree that there was just enough dressing, but I thought that the flavor was totally there.
Looking at your picture of the pizza, I have to say it does look a bit lighter than ours were. I assume that the consistency just isn’t there yet. I thought the taste was definitely different than what I’m used to with with the pizza chains I’ve been to. It had a certain crunch and taste that I assume was thanks to the coal oven. I’ve never been to Pizzology, so I can’t really compare it. I’ve tried two of the specialty pizzas, and the toppings seemed really fresh and tasty.
Definitely agree on the great service, though. We even had a good chat with the manager who made sure that we enjoyed our meal. I’m sure that if you had talked to the manager, he would have done what he could to make your visit better.
They must have taken some interest in reviews because they have started some lunch specials. My wife and I went in there for lunch the other day and she had a personal pizza and drink for 5.95 and I had a personal pepperoni pizza and side salad for 7.95. The waitress was really friendly and at one point I wasn’t even sure who our waitress was because everyone one in the restaurant was helping take care of everyone. I like this place – great atmosphere. Oh… they also said they have some drink specials going on too.
seriously – i think this guy should re-visit this restaurant – i have been to tony sacco’s and i think the pizza is fabulous – the crust is very thin and tasty – our salad was fresh and crisp and enough for everyone. chicken wings were hot and flavorful. prices were competitive – i was impressed – I THINK YOU BETTER GO BACK AND TRY IT AGAIN!
You are off the mark. I have been to both the Florida location and Indy. The pizza is killer and I would and will eat Sacco’s every time I’m in Indy.