Thursday, July 31, 2008

Katies Pizzeria Clayton, MO.

Katies Pizzeria is located about half a block east and across Clayton road from the Esquier Theater. The menu is what I would call FUFU food, its a bit hard for me to explain you either know what I'm talking about or you are one. Their wine list took up more space on the menu than all the food combined.

You have only ten choices for pizza, unlike the infinite combination's you can come up with at a more traditional American pizza joint. I choose the Fingerling Potatoes, Parsnips, Pancetta, Parmiggiano, Onion, and Rosemary it was about 12 inch's and cost $16. I choose this pizza because I know that Pancetta is a bit like bacon, and how can you go wrong with fat salty meat? Right? Outside of the Pancetta it was way out side my comfort zone, but I wasn't ordering my last meal so a little daring I was. I'm not sure if it was the Fingerling Potatoes or the Parsnips as I don't recall having eaten either item in the past, but the pizza had a very unusual flavor all most sour. It wasn't bad by any means just unusual. My dining companions ordered the Italian Market Vegetable Chop Salad which had shaved fennel, carrot, zucchini, shaved parmigiano, pine nuts, cannellini beans, and was tossed with lemon balsamic dressing ($9). They also ordered the Salami, Onion, Crushed Red Pepper, Kalamata Olives, and Fresh Mozzarella pizza ($16). Their pizza was more to my liking than my own. Would I dine at Katies Pizzeria again? Sure, but hopefully on somebody elses dime. GAW
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Monday, July 28, 2008

Pizza World Maplewood, MO.




Pizza World is a small chain of pizza restaurants based in Collinsville, IL. They have resturants in 6 states and from my recollections have been around the St Louis area for 10+ years. I have had pizza from Pizza World on several occasions in the past, but those locations are no longer open. I worked in Brentwood today and I didn't take my lunch (out of bread, no really...), I was surprised when Pizza World was one of the places that delivered. Nobody eles wanted pizza for lunch so I held out until my workday was done. I placed an ordered togo and was told it would be ready in 30mins. When I got there the pizza wasn't ready, they had forgot to make it, so I got a free drink and a deep discount. I wasn't in a hurry to get any where and 3:30pm is a bit early to order pizza anyway. I wasn't even half way through the RFT when my pie was ready to go. Yes it was a Pepperoni, Meatball, Canadian Bacon, and Red Onion pizza on a hand tossed crust. It takes me about 45 min to an 1 hour to get home and that puts the pizza just about the perfect temperature in my opinion. It was a very pleasant experience when the first slice hit the taste buds. It was rather hard to not eat the whole pie, but I was feeling a bit lazy so I saved half to lunch on Tuesday. It was worth every penny I paid, I would have gladly paid full price it. GAW

And then there was the Pizza files.


The green chile parade being over, I figure I will start chapter 2, something close to home and close to my mid section. The Pizza Files. I've always loved pizza for as long as I can remember. As a small child pizza was a group thing, if we had pizza it was usally 3 or 4 familys together sometimes at the pizza place sometimes the guys went and picked up. It always came from the Pizza House on the south side of Moberly, MO. 35 years and I still vividly remember the taste and texture of the pizza not to mention the interior of restaurant. The Pizza House has been gone for almost 25 years now.

1984 I was sixteen and I had a 1973 Super Beetle with god only knows how many miles on it. It was the perfect car to deliver pizza's in, so thats what I did. I started out as a delivery "BOY" and when I quite on Christmas Eve 1986 I was the assistant manager. In the 2 1/2 years I worked there I became the best pizza maker the Pizza Works had ever seen, and I learned a very good lesson. That lesson was that I prefered to eat pizza than to make it.

Those two pizza joints enfluenced my tastes in pizza to this day. At the Pizza House I started with good old pepperoni, and as I matured the Spartan Special became my prefered pie (the Spartans were the local high school team, the pizza had pepperoni, hamburger, and Canadian bacon). While working at the Pizza Works my palette expanded again. I came to enjoy the BJ special... One of the owners was Bruce Johnson and it was his creation hence the name. I still order it on the rare occasion when I visit Pizza Works. The BJ special consist of the usual, crust, sauce, cheese and a light sprinkling of sausage pellets (yes pellets don't know what they were make of), pepperoni, onions and finally a liberal shake of parmasan cheese before in the oven.

Today my pizza should have pepperoni, meatballs, Canadian bacon, and red onions. I shouldn't have to mention it, but Mozzarella is the only proper cheese for pizza. Hand tossed crust is also called for. Please don't think I'm a pizza snob, but if I'm paying thats what I'm getting. I like all pizza and if your buying I'll eat it even if it's got green peppers (the most evil of all food).

Yes that is my 1973 VW Super Beetle that I delivered pizza's in. GAW