Giordano’s
http://www.giordanos.com/

Food in Chicago is a battle between the million hot dog/gyro/beef joints versus a very progressive food scene with superstar chefs.  To be honest, I am glad that both exist and continue to thrive.   However, if you ask anyone that has a clue what kind of food Chicago is known for, they will say pizza or Chicago dogs.   Both are some of the most awesome things you can cram in your gullet.

In my opinion, Giordano’s is the epitome of Chicago Style pizza.  Uno is a chain whore.  Gino’s East has a crust that tastes like cornbread to me.  Sure there are others in the city and some of them are quite good, but Giordano’s is the king.

What I Ate:   Medium stuffed pizza with Sausage and pepperoni; $23.00.

The most awesome part about this review is….this was my lunch order.  Yes, I was alone.

For those of you that are not familiar, Chicago style is kind of upside down.   From top to bottom:  meat, cheese and then sauce.  You have to plan accordingly because it takes about 35 minutes for the pizza to bake after you order it.  Don’t try to pick it up, this is a fork and knife pizza.  In my opinion, it’s the only acceptable fork and knife pizza.  If you eat regular pizza with a fork and knife, you are either a grandma or a snooty prep.

When they deliver it to your table, they scoop a piece out and the cheese is dangling from the slice to the plate and they have to cut it on the side of your plate with a spatula.  Words cannot explain how much cheese is on this.   In all reality, it is really an unacceptable amount.   The toppings were of good quality, and I really like their sauce.  A sprinkle of oregano and red pepper flakes really bring it to life.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes.  It is one of the most awesome foods in the country.  So basic, yet so good.  I have been going to Giordano’s for a long time while on the way to concerts and Bulls games growing up.  At this point, I feel like I would be letting my family down if I was in Chicago and didn’t go to Giordano’s.

I have to admit though, ordering that much food at lunch was asinine.  I had a ton of leftovers, therefore ate it in my hotel anytime I thought I was hungry.  I think that I gained four pounds from this pizza.  However, it was worth the time at the gym.

-wibia

Maria’s Pizza
1106 Prospect Street
Indianapolis, Indiana  46203
http://www.mariasoriginalpizza.com

Maria’s Pizza is located in historic Fountain Square.   They have been open since 1955, so I figured that they must be doing something right.   Pre-show to see The Healing Sixes at Radio Radio, I decided to stop by and give it a try.

It was a Friday night and they had a piano player and a sax player knocking out jazz standards.  I was digging that, and it’s a nice touch for a pizza joint.  Tables were scattered around and there were a few couches by the fireplace as well.  It seemed like there is a better seating arrangement to fit more people in.  The place was pretty much full.

What I Ate:  Medium Sausage and Pepperoni.  I can’t remember the price specifically, but it was around $12-$13 range.

The pizza took 45 minutes to arrive.  Plus, Maria’s does not serve alcohol.  It is a rare occasion that I am out on a Friday night and there is not a drink in my hand for 45 minutes straight.  Tragic.  They were apologetic that it took so long and kind about the wait.

Toppings were strategically placed on the pizza.  The sausage was tasty and didn’t feel like the normal mass produced chain sausage.  The pepperoni was buried between the cheese and dark red sauce.  Nothing special there.  The crust was thin, but not foldy/bendy like NY Style.  It was flaky/buttery and stiff-ish with very little bend.  Not my favorite type of crust by any means.

Would I Buy It Again?  Probably not.  It surely wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t anything that I would travel for.  I liked the jazz duo and the place was homey and friendly, I just didn’t love the pizza.  Based on the audience and the recommendation from a friend, there are plenty of people that enjoy the pizza here and it is surely worth a try.

-wibia

NY Slice Food Truck
Location varies
https://www.facebook.com/TheNySlice

I am always really excited when I see a new food truck.  I spent a good amount of time in Portland, Oregon where there are a ton of food trucks.  My understanding of the mission of a food truck is to have a narrower focus and do that really well.  Sure, there are some that offer a wide variety of items, but it seems like everyone of them has a hook.  NY style pizza is a big enough hook to get me excited.  I am a big fan of NY style pizza and Brozinni’s is the only place in town that does it well.  Let’s see if we can add another one.

What I Ate:  Pepperoni; $3.00.  Sausage and pepperoni; $3.25.  Garlic Knots; $3.50.

The pepperoni slice wasn’t all that bad.  You can get a nice fold out of it, I liked the sauce and I thought that it was an honest size for the price.  Good coverage on the toppings as well.  The slice of sausage and pepperoni was considerably smaller and the amount of toppings on the pizza is embarrassing.  The garlic knots were very doughy and extremely bland.  The cheese sauce was the straight out of the can variety.  I feel like I should be writing more, but it was pretty straight forward pizza.

Would I Buy It Again?  No.  I love the idea, but execution needs a good amount of work.  The pepperoni was good, but if I have $3 in my pocket and I want a slice of pizza, Brozinni’s is still my go to.  It pains me to write this as I fully support the food truck scene, but take the food truck experience out and this pizza is forgettable.

-wibia

Napolese
114 East 49th St
Indianapolis, Indiana 46205
http://www.cafepatachou.com

Napolese has been around for a little while and it has been a place that I have always wanted to try.   I love pizza and I really enjoy pizza done well.   Knowing the level of detail and focus that goes into Patachou, I was really looking forward to this.

What I Ate: Side Focaccia ($3), Side Tomato Sauce ($2) and Hamaker Pizza ($14).

Having my two year old with me, I wanted to get him something to nosh on while we wait.  If not, he can turn into a diva at times.  The focaccia was bad.  Strips of what appeared to be pizza dough where some of them were saturated with oil and others with dry as a cracker.   However, I liked the sauce.  Plain, light on seasoning just like I enjoy it.  For $5 total, this was not very good at all.

The Hamaker is sausage, pepperoni and mushroom.  This is my favorite three topping combo, so I had to give it a try.  The pizza looked good when it was delivered, but  that is where the story ends.   I liked that the mushrooms were left whole on the pizza and they had a little bite to them.  The sausage was okay, but I tend to like a fennel-y sausage more than this versions.   What I didn’t like is the pepperoni.   There were two long slices there were difficult to chew and navigate.   The worst part was the crust because I couldn’t eat it with my hands.  I think the amount of meats pushed enough oil to the crust that you couldn’t pick this up.

When I ate my leftovers the next day, I put it in the toaster over to crisp the crust and I thought it was a lot better.   To be honest, I should’ve sent it back, but that wouldn’t have fixed the pepperoni problem.   However, sending back pizza  is difficult to do wait for another when your kid is ready to jet.

Would I Buy It Again?   I really don’t know.  I can only imagine that this was poor execution.  The quality of the ingredients was there, I liked their red sauce and it was a cool place.   And, if I am ever in the mood to trap a Meridian-Kessler Cougar, this place is like shooting fish in the barrel.

I will give it another try and report back.

-wibia

Monical’s Pizza
12501 North Meridan Street
Carmel, Indiana  46032
http://www.monicalspizza.com/

As mentioned before, I would go to Roselli’s Pizza Buffet with a pal of mine about twice a month.  I love it there.  Great food, service and a good place to chill and grab a few slices.  My partner in crime changed jobs and works in a different area now so we are looking for a new pizza buffet home.

What I Ate:  Pizza Buffet; ~$7.00.

Walking into the joint, I thought it was generally nice digs for a pizza place.  It is actually pretty big on the inside.  Taking a look at the buffet, I had my concerns.  It seemed like it was an afterthought because of the way it was built into the wall.  I had my doubts early.  Also, they have servers there for drink service.  To be honest, she was nice, but I thought that it was annoying that looking for a quick cheap lunch that I have to tip someone out.  Put a soda machine by the pizza and problem solved.

Also, the pizza buffet was just pizza.  No salads, pasta, breadsticks…nothing!  All the pizzas were single topping which was annoying as well.  Part of me wanted to take an entire pepperoni pizza just so I can peel off the pepperoni and then put it on my sausage pizza and leave the rest behind just to prove a point.

As far as the taste, it was better than it looked.  The crust was a little hard and cracker for me as I prefer a softer crust.  There was a lot of Italian seasoning on the pizza, which I thought took away from the ingredients on the pie.  However, it needed more flavor than sparsely placed pepperoni, so it was welcomed.  They had a deep dish type pizza (2nd pic on the right) there that I like more than the thin crust.  It barely showed up on the buffet, but it just okay.

Would I Buy It Again?  Nope.  I didn’t enjoy the pizza, I didn’t like that there was only one topping pizzas and I didn’t like the absence of a salad bar.  Maybe I have it wrong, there were a good amount of people there, so someone likes it.

-wibia

Little Caesar’s Pizza
http://www.littlecaesars.com/

I love this concept.  On the way home from work and need to pick up something to feed hungry bellies that doesn’t cost much, this is a workable choice.   Pizza size is 14″, costs $5.00 and Pepperoni is always an option.  Some stores also have other options like Ultimate Supreme, Hula Hawaiian and 3 Meat Treat, but you’ll have to call your local store for availability.

What I Got:  Hot-N-Ready Pepperoni Pizza; $5.00.

The pizza is really bland.  Sauce, crust and even the pepperoni is pretty bland.  However, sprinkle some Italian Seasoning or Oregano and Red Pepper flakes on it and it turns out to be quite edible.  Outside of that, this is just a typical pizza and there’s nothing remarkable.

Would I Buy It Again?  I am really torn here.   It is a 10+ on the value scale.  It is a lot better than most frozen pizzas and about as much as a combo meal from a fast food joint.  However, on taste alone, it is probably a 5/10.  The most average inoffensive pizza that you could have.   Because of that, it’s a good choice when you need to feed a couple of kids.  

-wibia

The Deal Decoder segment brought me to this pizza.   Large pizza with two toppings for $5.99.  I have been on a major pizza kick lately and for $6, I figured why not.  Plus, the new recipe came out in January 2010 (our initial review) and this is my first time trying it.

What I Ate: Large pizza with sausage and pepperoni; $5.99.

On the way home, I noticed a pretty strong garlic smell coming from the box and I was looking forward to giving it a try.  Upon opening the box, it looked like any other chain pizza.  I noticed a few gaps were there appeared to be very little cheese or sauce.  The crust was pretty chewy and I prefer a little more crisp on the bottom.  However, it did appear as if it was cooked to what they intended to do.  I tasted very little sauce, so I can’t really comment on if it added anything to the equation.  The sausage was nothing to talk about and pepperoni was a little bland as well.

What I liked a lot is the garlic seasoning that is around the crust.  It is gluttonously buttery and pretty tasty really.   I know that it was an unnecessary touch, but I thought that it added a lot of flavor to a pretty bland pizza.

Would I Buy It Again?  For $6.00, Sure – only because it is the best $6.00 pizza that I have ever had. Considering that it is only $1.00 more than a Hot ‘N Ready from Little Caesars (keep in mind only one topping on the Hot ‘N Ready), I thought that the Domino’s pizza tasted better and was a better value.  I would also say that it is better than most frozen pizzas at that price point.  Based on taste alone, I like it better than Papa John’s, Jack’s and Hot Box.  This is the first time that I have had a Domino’s pizza in more than a year and it was better than I expected.

-wibia

Silver Beach Pizza Company
410 Vine Street
St. Joseph, Michigan
269-983-4743
http://www.silverbeachpizza.com

St. Joseph, Michigan is a beach town on the southeastern portion of Lake Michigan that’s about three hours from Indianapolis.  It’s a straight shot drive up US 31 to get there and the lake and beaches are very pleasant in the summer time.  The town of St. Joseph is quite charming, with almost no chain restaurants downtown, except for Jimmy Johns (?), and also not too many antique stores (I hate antique stores).  This is a very nice town with a lot of character and it’s a great place to spend time with your family.  I also get the feeling it may be okay without kids as the beach seems to have a ton of college age kids running around it.  

Silver Beach Pizza is a restaurant located at the Amtrak train station about a thousand feet from Silver Beach.  It’s a ‘live’ train station too where you can actually take the train from this station to Chicago in under two hours.  We were here with the kids after riding the midway rides at the Venetian festival in St. Joseph on a Saturday afternoon.  This year’s carnies looked distinctively less disturbing than last years, though the carnie that was sleeping in the cart next to us on the Ferris wheel was definitely disturbing.  After riding the rides, we were ready to eat, and despite the pleas from the children, we were not having carnival food for lunch.  What I was looking for in lunch was air conditioning, comfortable seating, and some pizza in a kid-friendly environment.  We definitely found all of that.

What I Got:  We started with the “Nacho Mama” nachos, which was the simplest nachos you can have; corn chips with two plastic bowls of melted nacho cheese. 

While this may not be an acceptable restaurant form of nachos for most people, it was, for three dollars, perfect for little kids.  Our children liked the simple chips and dipping cheese (no jalapenos to navigate around).  I thought they were too salty, but I was in the minority, as I usually am.  This was just enough to take the edge off the kid’s hunger while we waited for the main course.

We then had a medium cheese pizza with pepperoni on half of it ($12.50).  The pizza was actually very good.  It had a slightly sweet taste, and the cheese topping may have had some cheddar mixed in.  The crust was tasty and the serving size was quite good. 

For a family lunch, taking a break in the air conditioning from the hot sun, this was a great lunch.  Also, my wife points out that they had stepstools in the bathroom for kids to wash their hands.  The ambiance was actually much nicer than we would have expected from the fairly modest exterior.  You can eat indoors or outdoors as well.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes.  I’ve heard from numerous people that this is a favorite pizza spot in St. Joseph, so I figured I’d better try it.  It was a terrific place to eat with children (there were many children, and even stroller storage near the bathrooms); they actually gave the kids little globs of pizza dough to play with while we were waiting for our food.  And the pizza was good enough that I would go back just for that.  They also have an extensive beer list, salads, sandwiches and pasta.  Add all of this to their terrific location right off the beach, and this can round out a perfect summer day with the family.

We also love the town of St. Joseph.  I highly recommend it as a summertime destination, particularly from Indianapolis.  It’s just far enough away that you feel like you’ve gone somewhere, but not so far that it’s a hassle to drive.  The town, weather, and lake are all lovely.  It’s not unlike Cape Cod, except that your dog can drink the beach water, and there are no funny accents (well, except for some of the folks from Chicago).

-BigRedEater