Trattoria Roma [Meeting #44]

Trattoria Roma
1535 N. Wells St. (GoogleMaps)
(312) 664-7907

CPC invaded Trattoria Roma on 8/06/07.

The Pizza Club had gone dark for nearly a month when an email went out on August 5, 2007 announcing a meeting the very next night at Trattoria Roma. Pizza Clubbers responded well and an official meeting convened on a rainy Monday evening in Old Town.

Trattoria Roma came highly recommended by the website, 10best.com, which listed it among the top 10 pizza restaurants in Chicago. After the Pizza Club meeting was over, I cannot disagree with that assessment – the place definitely did not disappoint.

Trattoria Roma is a small, crowded restaurant that would probably bring back memories of a neighborhood restaurant in Rome if I had ever been to such a place. The one time I was in Rome, I spent most of my limited budget on gelato and museums/ruins, and I visited no residential neighborhoods aside from the one where the youth hostel was located. I digress.

The restaurant had our table waiting and upon being seated, we noticed pizzas on a nearby table and decided we would have to get one pizza per person as each pie is about 9 inches across. We got a Margherita, a Quattro Formaggi (blue, swiss, mascarpone and mozzarella), a Pizza della Casa (sausage, onion and mascarpone), and 2 Quattro Stagione (prosciutto, artichoke, mushroom, olive and egg). We also had a couple of bottles of tasty red wine (all wine is half price on Mondays and Tuesdays).

All pizzas are on a delicious thin crust. As cooky-monster states in the notes, the crust is thicker than traditional gourmet pizzas. Given the flavorful toppings, the extra dough in the crust creates a nice balance.

The Margherita was unlike any margherita pizza that any of the members had ever had. It tasted like a cheese pizza. It was good; it just wasn’t a margherita – too much cheese. As we would soon find out, the pizza chef loves cheese.

We ordered two Quattro Stagiones because we wanted to make sure that people got to try more than one topping. A quattro stagione, Italian for four seasons, typically is divided into quarters with each quarter having a single different topping. Trattoria Roma’s version had five toppings and they were all mixed together. That the egg was raw was a pit of a surprise, but good ingredients, good cheese, and a good crust made a delicious pizza.

I thought the Quattro Formaggi was excellent, but the combination of the chef’s love of quantities of cheese and the fact that two of the four cheeses (blue and mascarpone) are particularly heavy, made the pizza a challenge for some to enjoy. Personally, I share the chef’s apparent belief that there really is no such thing as too much cheese.

The Pizza della Casa was Trattoria Roma at its peak. The dollops of moscarpone balanced the delicious sausage and an outstanding crust ably supported the flavorful combination. I really liked all of the pizzas, but I thought this one was unquestionably the best.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by the high quality of pizza at Trattoria Roma. I am predisposed to assuming the worst about Old Town restaurants, but since this place predates the Disnefication of the neighborhood, I should have held no such bias. Regardless, the service was good, the pizza was excellent (a new addition to my personal list of top pies in the city), and the prices were right (about $10 each). I will return again soon and hopefully get to taste some of the ricotta cheesecake made by the owner's grandmother (in very limited quantities).

Petey gives Trattoria Roma a 7.7/10.


Quattro Stagione


Pizza della Casa


Some stragglers...


A sad sight...


Where it went down...

Gino's East [Meeting #43]

Gino's East
162 E. Superior St. (GoogleMaps)
(312) 266-3337

CPC invaded Gino's East on 7/11/07.

We made our way to this Chicago Pizza Establishment on a balmy July day and found a line that stretched out to the street. We chuckled at the suggestion of having to wait and walked towards the hostess to inform her that the Chicago Pizza Club was present and ready to be seated. The line moved pretty quickly and waiting let us get our thoughts together anyways.

Gino's was started in 1966 in its original location downtown. It was started by a group of friend's, none of whom were named Gino's. It moved to a new location in 2000 before moving back to its original location in 2006. Apparently, the stench of failure from the Planet Hollywood that occupied the temporary location was strong enough to drive them back home after some reconstruction on the site. To be fair, the River North location remains open for business and it retains the 40 years of graffiti covered booth and walls that were transplanted with the move. It is too big to have the same feel as the "new" original location and we elected to meet at the "new" original location. This chain of pizzerias is not to be confused with The Original Gino's which was on Rush street before finally closing.

OK, on to the pizza. We ordered the following:

• Deep dish Supreme which includes sausage, onions, peppers, and mushrooms
• Thin crust vegetarian with asparagus, mushrooms, onions, squash, zucchini, red and green peppers

Prior the arrival of our pizza, we ordered some bruschetta. It was nothing special, but the sauce was nice and chunky and was a sign of things to come. The pizzas took the standard 45 minute time to cook and arrive. The thin crust pizza was overloaded with ingredients. While a vegetarian may enjoy the pizza, I thought it was way too busy with all the toppings and lacked some salt. Additionally, the bounty of high-water content vegetables soaked the crust and made it soggy. Face it, we were all here to sample the big boy - the Deep Dish Supreme. It did not disappoint. It was similarly overloaded with ingredients, but these toppings were on a pie whose crust was able to support them. The sauce was chunky and fresh and the cheese wasn't out of proportion as we have seen in previous outings (thank you, Exchequer). The sausage, crumbled in this case, was very tasty and the crust was made from cornmeal and it held up under the weight of the ingredients. Really, I've always felt that Gino's is the baseline for a true deep dish pizza. The ingredients are fresh, it's a simple design, and I've never had one that is undercooked - it accomplishes its goal of a meal in a slice quite well.

Petey gives Gino's East a score of 7/10.


Deep Dish!


Francisco sportin' a brand new shirt...


For the vegetarians


Where it went down...

Coalfire [Meeting #42]

Coalfire
1321 West Grand Ave
Tel: (312) 226-2625

CPC invaded Coalfire Wednesday, May 30

Bittersweet pizza memories will be associated with this meeting. We bid adieu (temporarily) to Michelle, Dave, Ryan, and shortly, to official CPC photohrapher Kelly. Luckily, I think finding this new pizzeria more than makes up for their departure.

Coalfire was so internet hot that it ran out of dough a few times right after its opening. LTH and Chicagoist and the papers all stoked the flames early on. It's pretty clear that there is a market for traditional pizza in this town since DOC and Spacca Napoli are always hopping. Coalfire bills itself as a Massachusetts cum Italian style cooked with a coal oven. The oven is no artwork like what you'll find at Spacca Napoli, but it gets pretty damn hot just the same.

We ordered essentially every pizza on the menu. Size-wise, unless you're really hungry most people will have some leftover with each pizza. They're perfect for sharing with one person and still leaving room for an appetizer. Our pizzas started rolling in as they were coming out of the oven; 20 minutes after our order was placed.

Speaking in generalities, the ingredients were all fresh - no cans here except for those involved in the sauce. Bari Foods supposedly contributes to the meat toppings, a positive sign. Ingredient distribution is even on all pies. None of that business where all the toppings are on one quarter of the pizza and the rest is bare. What most people have been talking about, deservedly, is the crust. It's what makes this place a destination. The edges are burnt and sooty, the inside is soft and chewy but never soggy. It's also quite consistent. We ordered 10 pizzas and all were perfectly cooked.

Briefly, the service is quick and economical. Not much rest for a busy staff and they were able to accommodate our request for a 12 person table despite what I'm sure was an inconvenience to them on a busy weeknight. Our order had no mistakes and our water glasses were full.

To our departing CPC members, fare thee well. I'm just glad I still live in Chicago and only 2 blocks away from this place. Don't feel bad guys, I'm sure you'll find great pizza in Ohio and Miami too.

Petey gives Coalfire a score of 7.325/10.


Holy Basil!


The Pizza Club does anchovies...

Coal Fire cooked goodness

Don't let the burnt crust scare you

Michael's Pizzeria & Tavern [Meeting #41]

Michael's Pizzeria & Tavern
4091 N. Broadway Ave.
Tel: (773) 929-4149

CPC invaded Michael's on 4/17/07.

Michael's is a great place to gather with friends to watch sports on numerous flat screens spread throughout the pleasant bar/restaurant space, drink reasonably-priced pitchers of beer, and, of course ... eat pizza. The sauce is a bit sweet, and the crust is a bit dry, but the pizza is quite palatable. There is a good variety of fresh ingredients available.

We enjoyed the following pies:

• Thin crust with bacon and tomatoes (a crowd favorite)
  
• Thin crust taco pizza (B.Y.O. Doritos to add some crunch)
  
• Extra thin crust with cheese
  
• Deep Dish with pepperoni, garlic, and onion
• Stuffed with sausage and spinach

Our pizzas arrived 35 minutes after we placed our order. The service was friendly and efficient, and accommodating of our large group (which took a while to order and lingered over beer mugs even after the pizza was consumed). The food and beverage prices are reasonable, and include an array of weeknight specials. For example, we enjoyed their Tuesday night Deep Dish special with a choice of 3 ingredients, for $14.99. The ambience of Michael's is partly that of a neighborhood sports bar and partly that of a casual restaurant, with some limited outdoor seating available.

Petey gives Michael's a score of 7.67/10.

Let's eat!

Taco Piza... Doritos not pictured

Deep dish, ready to eat...

Serve it up!

More deep dish

Where it went down...

Bricks Chicago [Meeting #40; Meeting #9 Revisited]

Bricks Chicago
1909 N. Lincoln Ave. [Google Maps]
(312) 255-0851

CPC invaded Bricks on 3/21/07.

Petey has made some new friends since he first started making his rounds in the pizza circuit, so he decided to revisit an old pizza club stop. This one pre-dates the current blog, so it was a good chance to get some photos and post a review.

Bricks started in California and now has a restaurant in Chicago. It is a pleasant, dimly-lit spot located in the basement of an apartment building in Lincoln Park. The whole place has a heady aroma of garlic that will lure you into ordering more pizza than you need (see below). The service was fairly good and they will take reservations for large parties. Bricks also offers a nice beer selection with a good number of microbrews and such.

At Bricks, the menu includes a variety of specialty pizzas featuring creative combinations of their fresh ingredients. You can also build your own pizza. We selected the following specialty pizzas:

• brickhouse: pureed artichoke sauce, sweet red peppers, roasted garlic, mozzarella, and asiago.
• this was the only pizza we ordered that did not have any meat or tomato sauce, and that pureed artichoke sauce did a fine job of holding the pizza together.
  

• sole mio: housemade meatballs, tomatoes, spinach, fresh mozzarella, and tomato sauce
• this was a crowd favorite. the meatballs themselves were lush and flavorful, and the pizza as a whole was very well-seasoned.
  

• berzerkeley: smoked ham, artichoke hearts, sweet red peppers, tomato sauce, and mozzarella.
• the berzerkeley turned out to be probably the most humdrum of our selections, but it was still pretty good, because Bricks makes good pizza. the ham was not terribly flavorful. most members noted the similarities between this pizza and the brickhouse, and cited a preference for the brickhouse.
  

• the ditka: "all the meat ..."
• ... or so they say. there were some comments that this characterization was misleading due to the lack of meatballs on this pie, but it was meaty nonetheless. some pizza clubbers complained that there was not enough meat for a pizza that purported to be all about the meat. personally, i don't like it when meat-loving pizza piles the meat so high you feel like you're biting into a thick deli sandwich, so i found the ditka had the perfect amount of meat.
  

• petaluma club: bacon, chicken breast, onion, fresh tomato, tomato sauce, and mozzarella.
• as a pleasant surprise, this pizza was actually quite tasty. "but, of course it was," you say, "it has bacon!" true, but the chicken breast had the pizza clubbers feeling wary. however, the chicken itself was very tender and juicy, and it was sliced nice and thin. as a result, it mixed well with the other ingredients and avoided a common chicken pizza pitfall: taking over the pizza with big bland mouthfuls of dry chicken. and, of course, it had crisp bacon! unfortunately, the bacon was not spread evenly across the pizza, but the slices with good amounts were delicious.
  

The pricing for the specialty pizzas is as follows: 10" $10.50 12" $16.75 14" $19.95.

We ordered five 14" pizzas for eight people, which got us very full and was still about one pizza too many, so we all had leftovers to take home. The cost was $16/person without drinks, but including tax and tip. The pizzas all arrived hot on our table within a few minutes of each other, about 35 minutes after we ordered.

Petey gives Bricks 8.6/10.


The Ditka ... mmm, meat ...


An aerial shot!


The petaluma club


Where it went down...


One happy Chicago Pizza Club

Marie's Pizza [Meeting #39]

Marie's Pizza, Dining Room, and Lounge
4127 W. Lawrence Ave. [Google Maps]
(773) 685-5030

CPC invaded Marie's on 2/20/07.

Marie's has been around for decades and makes a popular thin crust pizza. The pizza makers hang out by the window, and the restaurant is attached to a liquor store, which you actually have to walk through in order to get to the restaurant. Why not pick up a bottle of wine? You can enjoy it with your dinner for a small corkage fee. That only goes for the wine, though. The entrance to the restaurant opens up on a bar and leads back to an ample space with plenty of tables and red booths lining the walls. Our server was friendly and seemed like she had worked there for a long time.

We ordered the following pizzas:

* thick crust, sausage and garlic
* thin crust, pepperoni and mushrooms
* thin crust, bacon

Overall, the pizza was quite good, but very greasy, particularly the pepperoni pizza. The thick crust pizza was just a bit thicker than the thin crust, but very similar. The mushrooms and garlic were canned/jarred, which is always a bit disappointing, but pretty standard for an old-school family restaurant like this.

Our pizzas came out in less than a half hour, and the cost came out to $7/person for the food, including tax and tip.

Petey gives Marie's 6.167/10.


Pepperoni!


Going fast!


Sausage and garlic


The ambience


Making your pizza


Where it went down...

Chicago Pizza & Oven Grinder Co. [Meeting #38]

Chicago Pizza & Oven Grinder Co.
2121 N Clark St. (Google Maps)
(773) 248-2570

CPC invaded Chicago Pizza & Oven Grinder Co. on 12/21/06

Well, it took two tries and we still only had three people show up, but the 38th Meeting of the Chicago Pizza Club was an unqualified success as we tasted a pizza like no other – Pizza Pot Pie at Chicago Pizza & Oven Grinder Company.

On February 14, 1929, the Valentine’s Day Massacre took place directly across the street. Rumor has it, the current home of Chicago Pizza & Oven Grinder Company was a house used as a lookout by some 1920s gangbangers. No word on whether the owner of the restaurant invented the rumor.

Anyhow, the place takes no reservations but balances that out with a full bar. When we got there, there was no host hanging around, but there was a large crowd of people, some vocalizing their frustration about the wait. Every so often a host does stroll over. He had no pad of paper and does not want anyone’s name. He simply asks how many are in your party and no matter what you say, he tells you the wait is 40 minutes. He remembers the order in which people arrive, so there is no need to hover around the front of the line (though we did so anyhow). It seems the no name policy may be a throwback to the gangbanger days of Lincoln Park’s past – the place also accepts no credit cards. There is no record of anyone ever eating there.

The ambience was nice – fairly dark with wood paneled walls and large wooden booths. The Christmas decorations were a needless reminder that the majority of Americans believe in Creationism.

We arrived at 7:32, gave our number (3) at 7:40 and were told it would 40 minutes. 50 minutes later, we were seated and handed menus. Service was fast and friendly. We sat at 8:30, ordered at 8:35, and got our salad at 8:40.

That’s right, salad. In a break from Pizza Club tradition, we ordered the Great American Salad - lettuce, delicious smoked ham, provolone and Swiss cheese, onions, green peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, artichoke hearts... tossed with freshly grated Romano cheese. Topped with creamy garlic dressing, sweet and sour poppy seed dressing, fresh ground pepper, and/or an interesting mix of largely unidentified seasonings, the salad was quite tasty.

If one goes to Chicago Pizza & Over Grinder for pizza, the choices are limited. There is only Pizza Pot Pie, no regular pizza. There was some debate as to whether a meatball oven grinder could fall into a broad definition of pizza, we opted not to open that door. Within the pizza pot pie genre, we were given the options of wheat or white, with or without mushrooms, meat sauce or tomato sauce, and ½ pound or full pound. We got three ½ pounders, 2 wheat and 1 white, all with meat sauce and all with mushrooms.

And none of the Pizza Clubbers were able to resist the Adam’s Apple, a delightful warm libation made of red wine, apple cider, whiskey, brandy, raisins and a cinnamon stick.

The pizza itself was good. Not great, but good. I enjoyed the meat sauce and both the wheat and white crust were good. I was expecting more of a pastry type crust as is commonly found in pot pie, but the crust was more of a chewy pizza crust. There was nothing extraordinary about the pizza – no wacky ingredients beyond the “doorknob size” mushrooms which were far smaller than any doorknob any pizza club member has ever laid eyes on. The meat sauce, while good, was also unlike any pizza sauce we’d ever tasted.

All in all, this was a pretty unique place which was good, but not great. The long line will forever remain a mystery. The pizza was good enough that I would not write it off as a gimmick, but not good enough to wait almost an hour for ever again.

Petey gives Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder a 6.6/10.


Waiting for our "number"


A salad at Pizza Club?!?? Yes, it happened


Salads gone, let's get down to real business!


Pizza Pot Pie, ready to serve


Being born


Where it went down

Pizza Metro II [Meeting #37]

Pizza Metro II
925 N. Ashland Ave. (Google Maps)
(773) 772-3267

CPC invaded Pizza Metro II on 12/7/06

Is there anything better on an arctic-cold evening than nice hot pizza with friends? I sure as hell don't think so, and I'm sure the members of the Chicago Pizza Club who braved the cold weather last night will agree with me.

Pizza Metro II is (as the name implies) the second location of the popular East Village pizzeria, Pizza Metro. Their 2nd location boasts an expanded seating area and a larger menu with more pasta items. But dammit, we were there for the pizza and we wasted no time in ordering up three hot pies to warm our chilled innards. After careful study of the menu—which boasts several unusual ingredients as corn, peas, and potatoes—we made our choices. Pizza Metro serves rectangular thin crusts pizza which are quite large and hover somewhere in the realm of 'not quite a thin crust' and 'not quite a pan pizza.' Our selections were as follows:

• Pepperoni & Garlic
  
  
• Italian Sausage & Basil
  
  
• Potato & Rosemary

Since Pizza Metro II offers you the option of ordering by the whole pizza, by the half pizza, or by the slice we ordered two whole pizzas and a half pizza of the Potato & Rosemary. Our pizzas came about 20 minutes after we ordered. And yes, they were all quite tasty. They all hide a nice crispy crust that wasn't too dry, and I remember enjoying the cheese quite a bit too. The Pepperoni & Garlic seemed to be the favorite of the group, with them using what we all agreed was just the perfect amount of garlic. The Sausage & Basil was also pretty satisfying as well. And I remember being initially impressed by the unusual flavor of the Potato & Rosemary pizza, but after a few more slices it soon lost it's lustre. We made the right decision in ordering that pizza as a half.

Take note Pizza Clubbers, these pizzas are BIG! The five of us who did manage to make it out last night found ourselves intimidated by the amount of pizza we ordered, but on the whole, too much pizza is never considered a problem. Overall, these pizzas didn't disappoint, but they didn't exactly blow minds either. I'd refer to this place as that "ole' dependable" kind of neighborhood joint that you'd support if you lived nearby, but not the kind of place you'd exactly go out of your way for. Rock-solid, but not outstanding.

Pizza Metro II is BYOB and also has a small cooler of sodas in bottles, cans and 2-liters. The seating area is fairly small (I'm curious to see the original Pizza Metro's seating area if this place is considered "expanded"), and last night it was a bit chilly in their restaurant, but we were soon warmed up with our pizzas. The prices were fairly average, with beverages and a LOT of leftover pizza to take home it came to about $14 a Pizza-Clubber. Since we probably had enough pizza left for another 4 members, it would have been less than $10 had more people shown up. The staff were all very helpful and friendly as well.

Petey gives Pizza Metro II a 6.75/10.


Italian Sausage & Basil to warm us up...


Potatoes on a pizza?! Yes, it's true


The crowd-pleasing Pepperoni & Garlic


Where it went down

Big Cheese [Meeting #36]

Big Cheese (Closed)
2554 W. Diversey Ave. (Google Maps)
(773) 227-1122

CPC invaded Big Cheese on 11/08/06.

Big Cheese is a family-run business that originated in Rhode Island in 1965. Returning to their Chicago roots, the family recently opened up a restaurant in Logan Square. The restaurant occupies a large space that formerly contained a night club. Those dining in the restaurant typically order from the counter, but it was pretty quiet when we were there on a Wednesday night and the friendly servers came to our table of ten. The delivery and take-out folks were bustling in and out.

Big Cheese focuses on crisp and crunchy thin crust pizza. Everything is made fresh daily from fresh ingredients. They offer white and wheat crusts, and their pies are 6", 10", and 14".

We only delighted in the pizza offerings, but Big Cheese also serves up various appetizers, pasta dishes, calzones, sandwiches, and salads - not to mention salad dressing that has earned awards from the Boston Globe. Petey may have to go back and try that some time when he's off the clock.

Big Cheese is BYOB as of this writing.

CPC ordered the following pizzas:

• Tomato Pie w/ Wheat Crust
• No cheese! What were we thinking?! Probably that the pie only cost $5.

• Three Cheese Specialty Pizza
• A blend of mozzarella, cheddar & feta topped w/ sliced tomato & garlic. This was a great blend of flavors and a crowd favorite.
  

• Chicken Artichoke Specialty Pizza
• Strips of chicken tenders, marinated artichoke hearts, black olives & sliced tomato, w/ mozzarella & parmesan. This was probably the least popular of the pizzas at our table. The chicken did not have much flavor and the ingredients did not really come together convincingly.
  

• Pizza Gardiniera Gourmet Pizza
• Fried breaded eggplant, marinated artichoke hearts, sweet roasted peppers, w/ mozzarella & feta. The fried eggplant was nice and crispy.
  

• Mediterranean Gourmet Pizza
• Greek style pizza w/ chopped tomato, spinach, feta, cheddar, and special sauce.
  

• Wheat Crust Pizza w/ Genoa Salami & Italian Pepperoni

• Regular Crust Pizza w/ Sliced Meatballs & Sweet Roasted Peppers
  

And as a bonus, we got a free and delicious dessert! The owner brought us four plates of a delicious chocolate calzone, a new menu item. It was filled with hazelnut and walnuts, and sprinkled with powdered sugar.

As you can see, we ordered a number of pizzas and they all came out burn-your-tongue hot as they were ready. The first pizzas were brought to our table about 20 minutes after we placed our order, and the rest of the pizzas came out over the course of the following 20 minutes. The cost came out to $12 /person and we had a bit leftover to send home with the club photographer.

Petey gives Big Cheese 8/10.


The interior


Where's the cheese?


The "Med"


OMG... Meatball Pizza!


The chicken artichoke pizza


Here comes the pie...


The owner with desert!!


Chocolate Calzones!


Where it went down