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Robin Garr

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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Robin Garr » Mon Jul 21, 2008 5:25 pm

Getting back to the broader philosophical issue, separated from "what pizzas do you like?" there is a significant variety of pizza style in Louisville.

Certainly (as reported in Food & Dining a while back) the most characteristically "Louisville pizza" is the thin crust, piled high, cheese plus toppings plus more cheese mountain best exemplified by Impellizzeri, the Big Wick, the top-end Clifton pie and a few others. Most other local pies (Bearno's, Za's, Jockamo's, etc.,) are generally somewhat reduced versions of this. I'd put RichO's and Charlestown in this category too, with the footnote that they aren't piled high like the originals but rank among the tops for quality and flavor.

Windy City, as mentioned, has the city's best deep dish Chicago style pie, but it should be noted that they do an excellent thin-crust model, too.

I love Boombozz but would put him more in the category of "modern creative" pie, even though you can certainly get a very good standard thin-crust pie there.

I agree on Hero's as the top NYC-style, although Luigi's certainly replicates a NYC street-corner by-the-slice shop, for better and for worse.

And even though I grew up a Kentuckian, not a Hoosier, I have to admit that I can embrace the guilty pleasure of the "party-cut" Midwest/Hoosier thin pie with the toppings all the way to the edge, a la Pizza King and Uncle Tubby's.

Lots and lots of options, but if you want to show them the one style that seems particularly linked to Louisville food culture, I'd go with Impellizzeri's on Bardstown or, in second place, the Big Wick.
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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Kenny Lyons » Mon Jul 21, 2008 6:06 pm

Lots and lots of options, but if you want to show them the one style that seems particularly linked to Louisville food culture, I'd go with Impellizzeri's on Bardstown or, in second place, the Big Wick.


Right on the money! Have to admit that when anyone comes to town and wants pizza, these two are the places I send them.
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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Jon K » Mon Jul 21, 2008 6:28 pm

I'm with Robin on this one. On this side of the river I send folks to Impellizerri's and Wick's. I know lots of commenters love Primo's pie and think it is an authentic Neapolitan pie, but I can't see it. It's really good pizza, but not Neapolitan IMO.
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Marsha L.

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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Marsha L. » Mon Jul 21, 2008 6:32 pm

I hope I am enough of a forum regular that you guys will indulge me this little self-promotion: Where I work (Cafe Lou Lou), we have great pizza. It's often overlooked (review-wise), but sales-wise it's a big part of our menu. We don't have pan pizza, but we can do thin, and we can do party-cut. We don't have a wood-fired oven, but we do have a formal conveyor-belt pizza oven, for maximum consistency. We make our own pizza dough, we make our own marinara. We will make a pizza in any combination of ingredients you can find on our menu.

And, lest ye forget, beginning this fall we will be delivering said pizzas from our new Highlands location in Douglass Loop. :mrgreen:
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Robin Garr

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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Robin Garr » Mon Jul 21, 2008 7:57 pm

Marsha L. wrote:Where I work (Cafe Lou Lou), we have great pizza. It's often overlooked (review-wise),

It's true! It's outstanding pizza, one of my favorites in town. But I just don't think of you guys as a pizzeria!

I'll quibble slightly with Jon re Primo's: The Magherita specifically comes VERY close to authentic Italian for me. Some of the others depart from authenticity for the toppings, but the crust, the general construction and the oven bring it mighty close.
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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Mark R. » Mon Jul 21, 2008 8:18 pm

Robin Garr wrote:Lots and lots of options, but if you want to show them the one style that seems particularly linked to Louisville food culture, I'd go with Impellizzeri's on Bardstown or, in second place, the Big Wick.

I'm not quite sure why but my wife and I are not overly impressed with the pizza at Impellizzeri's. It's good pizza but certainly in our opinion not in the top five. The price may have something to do with it but even when that's not taking into account there's still something about it that doesn't turn us on. On the other hand we really love Wick's! Too bad their owner is showing his behind so much regarding the smoking ban.
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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Robin Garr » Mon Jul 21, 2008 8:49 pm

Mark R. wrote:I'm not quite sure why but my wife and I are not overly impressed with the pizza at Impellizzeri's. It's good pizza but certainly in our opinion not in the top five. The price may have something to do with it but even when that's not taking into account there's still something about it that doesn't turn us on. On the other hand we really love Wick's! Too bad their owner is showing his behind so much regarding the smoking ban.

Certainly your prerogative ... frankly, I prefer NYC or Neapolitan style myself. The point I was hoping to make, though, is that irrespective of personal taste, the Impellizzeri pie and the Big Wick (and a few others of the same genre and approximate age) have to be defined as an identifiable "Louisville-style pizza" that is representative of this region based on local history.
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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Jon K » Mon Jul 21, 2008 10:23 pm

Robin Garr wrote:I'll quibble slightly with Jon re Primo's: The Magherita specifically comes VERY close to authentic Italian for me. Some of the others depart from authenticity for the toppings, but the crust, the general construction and the oven bring it mighty close.

I think Primo's comes closest of any local restaurant. For me, something isn't quite there. Maybe it's the cheese or the flour or maybe this thing that some pizzaiolas talk about that the oven accumulates flavor elements over time and a new oven (less than 25 years) just can't quite fill the bill. Don't get me wrong, I've eaten a house payment in Primo's Margherita :D
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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by BrianW » Mon Jul 21, 2008 10:45 pm

Upon hearing a rumor, I drove by Tubbys today, they are boarded and shuttered. Could not read the paper sign on the door totally but part of it did read closed. Maybe a remodel?

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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Holly Hill » Mon Jul 21, 2008 10:56 pm

Eric McKendrick wrote:It's off the beaten path for most, but Bonnie & Clydes has really good pizza on Dixie Hwy. I like that they use a brick oven.


I'm glad someone else appreciates Bonnie & Clydes! Everytime one of the weeklies does a pizza issue, I'm both glad and sad that B&C isn't on the list. Glad because it can be hard to get a seat some nights, but sad because more folks should know about the joint!

The beer selection is great, and where else can you get good bottled beer for less than $3.00? (not totally a rhetorical question)

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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Caleb Weber » Tue Jul 22, 2008 4:36 am

MikeG wrote:RIcho's First, everyone else is behind them.


yeah that's right
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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by MikeG » Tue Jul 22, 2008 7:58 am

I havent been to Bonnie & Clyde's since I was in 4th grade, I need to go back.

I find Wick's to be the most over-rated pizza this side of chain delivery.

I've only been to Cafe Lou Lou once and havent had their pizza to rate it.
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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by John Hagan » Tue Jul 22, 2008 8:22 am

Shawn Vest wrote:
impellizerri' s
a topping heavy almost chicago style - a fork and knife pie

I saw this the other day and its been bugging me since then. I lived in Chicago for about thirty years. One thing that seperates this from a chicago pizza is the very thick bread like crust impellizerri has. Most of the pizza that we saw around chi town was much more like Heros. Yes there is the deep dish that is touted on travel shows and crappy documentaries of Chicago. Most folks who live there (who we knew) dont go for this. I saw a recent article on this,trying to find it now, that showed only around seven percent of the pizza places up there made a deep dish style. Its a misconception that all Chicago is deep dish.That said even the deep up there has a thin pie like crust. Not to say Impellizerri's is deep dish. I have to agree that they are a very Louisville style of pizza. Other than that Shawn, I think your right on the money with the rest of that post. By the way we love the pizza at Charestown, tastes so much better in squares.
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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Shawn Vest » Tue Jul 22, 2008 1:15 pm

thanks john

pie R square
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Re: How would you describe local pizzas?

by Dan Thomas » Wed Jul 23, 2008 1:43 am

I have to throw out there that the "quality" of toppings has a lot to do with it as well!!!

I feel that we dont have the same access to ingredients as other pizza joints have in bigger metropolitan areas such as New York and Chicago....

Somehow the sausage in a Chi-town pie usually tastes better to me....

We only have the few broad based distributors and a few other speciality guys that service our area!
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