Old Chicago Pizza

I saw an ad for this place on Taylorsville Road. Is it new? is it a chain? Anyone been?

Ok, I found it online. It's a chain owned by the Rockbottom Restaurant Group. There's a Rockbottom Brewery in Cincinnati, but I've not been.

Old Chicago boasts a beer list of 110 brews from "around the world"

I've been. If you need to satisfy your curiosity, stop by for lunch if you're in the area...don't make a special trip. From what I remember it's 110 beers you can get anywhere else and average pie w/ a big price tag.

[Robin Garr]

I saw an ad for this place on Taylorsville Road. Is it new? is it a chain? Anyone been?

We've had some threads about it before, Ron. As you found (and as Greg detailed), it's a chain, with the shtick of having an extensive list of okay but generally larger-producer beers. It's okay - if I lived in the neighborhood I might drop in. But you wouldn't want to compare it to NABC for beer and pizza, or to any of our local brewpubs or pizzerias for quality. I haven't bothered to review it.

Ron, Don't go for the pizza or the stromboli as you can find much better elsewhere.

I ordered the small chicago deep dish for a carry-out lunch. The lady who took my order said, "That'll be about twelve minutes, is that okay?" Well, I immediately thought, "No, that is very wrong," but I kept it to myself.
Decent fresh ingredients on a crust which had the consistency of canned biscuit dough. Pretty unremarkable.
Now some friends of mine who were lured in by the beer sign said their appetizer menu was pretty good.

The question to ask whenever you encounter a massive beer list (ours included) is this: How fast are they moving those beers?

This is even more relevant a question if the bulk of the list is comprised of golden lagers from around the world. The more of those there are, the less chance they'll be fresh.

There is, in fact, a method to my madness when it comes to this. My reason for advocating that a small draft list include only one or two golden lagers is that most golden lager drinkers will settle for something in the same range in the absence of their core brand.

That's why we sell so much Spaten ... and it's always fresh that way.

mmmm
fresh lagers

This place is pretty sub-par. The best way I can describe is "McRich-O's". And before you think that's a knock on my beloved Rich-O's let me explain. The place was like a mass cloning experiment of Rich-O's by throwing out 8 million of them and sucking out the soul of the place. Yes they have a huge beer list, but a friend of mine that went with me attempted to order a beer by name and they waiter had to find out what number it was on the list to get it. This place makes me wish I had more hands to give it more than two thumbs down.

Roger,

Some education for a wine drinker (well, rarely beer drinker) please. What's the optimal shelf-life on beers? Sounds like it's different for golden-lagers vs. some others....

I will admit I knew there was a keg age (how long it's been open) issue, but didn't know that fresh beer (bottled or keg) was better.

Thanks,
Deb

I suppose the fundamental consideration is that no matter what style of beer it is, the deterioration begins the moment it is bottled or kegged. The efficiency with which it was bottled or kegged, and way it was handled, the time elapsed … all play a part in how long you can expect it to be optimal.

At the risk of oversimplification, then, the lighter and more delicate the style, the greater chance that the deterioration occurs more quickly. Brawnier beers travel better. An 11% barley wine not only resists noticeable decay longer, but it also is one of the relative few that can improve with age.

This is one reason why the traditional Old Chicago-style idea of one hundred “different” light golden lagers from around the world is so fruitless in the ultimate sense. They all taste alike to begin with, and then they have to be shipped from far away, increasing the likelihood that by the time they make it here, the most memorable flavor component is cardboard (which results from oxidization).

Contrast this with the fact that the Brits figured out long ago that a beer higher in alcohol and hopped more heavily could survive the sea passage to India, hence India Pale Ale.

The fresher, the better, with exceptions for certain styles.

Roger,

You are a wealth of information. Thanks also for bringing it down to a level that my limited beer education can understand.

I'm am confused however about the Indian Pale Ale example. Is it not similar to a golden lager as the name (Pale Ale) would imply to a novice like me? From your description I would have assumed that the darker the beer (ie Guiness) the better it keeps, but it looks like something else is at play here....

Deb

Okay, Hops doesn't always make the difference, but in a Golden Lager versus an IPA it sure does.

From a guy who loves a Hop-Bomb, I can tell you there is a huge differnce between a gloriously bitter Pale Ale and a Golden Lager. Even though they may close to the same color (the Ale will be darker) the Hops will add a wonderfully "bitter" taste to the brew. Golden Ales will land in single digits or low teens on the International Bitterness Units (IBUs - I probably messed up the acronym) whereas an IPA should start around 50.

The higher the IBUs the happier I am!!

Cheers,


Doug

Roger,
I'm am confused however about the Indian Pale Ale example. Is it not similar to a golden lager as the name (Pale Ale) would imply to a novice like me? From your description I would have assumed that the darker the beer (ie Guiness) the better it keeps, but it looks like something else is at play here....
Deb

Dismiss color as an indicator. A pale golden beer might be 9% alcohol Belgian ale, or a 4.5% light lager and look exactly the same. English mild is dark and weak, while the same color Dopplbock could be twice the alcoholic strength.

Pale ale came to be called that because it was lighter in color than the norm at that point. Once upon a time, most beers were dark, unfiltered and often sour; as science and technology unraveled the mysteries, it became possible to calibrate beer according to what the brewer was seeking rather than what nature would provide as default.

Does that help?

Wow, as someone who only reads the forums from time to time I hadn't seen a thread on this place. I absolutely love the pizza. It reminds me of Pizza Hut from the 1980's with better ingredients. I have been to Chicago many times and it is certainly nothing like the pizza I have had there, but for what it is I like it. There is a wide variety of meets, veggies, and cheeses to choose from. You can also get fresh basil, roasted garlic, and a few other things added to a pizza at no charge. They make the dough fresh every day so the pan crust has a nice oily consistency. I was surprised to see so many people with negative comments. I drive 20 minutes to get carryout on occasion. As far as the beer list goes, I am not a beer drinker so I cannot comment on that. I would suggest making the drive to check it out (I know my opinion may not carry as much weight as some of the other posters so take that for what its worth).