Balena [Meeting #111]

Balena
1633 North Halsted Street (Map)
Chicago, IL 60614
(312) 867-3888

CPC invaded Balena on December 16, 2012.

The Chicago Pizza Club may not be the active hotbed of pizza exploration it once was, but the CPC is not dead. And what our 2012 lacked in quantity was made up for in quality. Our last meeting (Tocco) may have been a dud, but our first three stops of the year (Roots, Jimmy's, and Pizzeria da Nella) were all excellent. 80% success rate makes for a great year but 60% success is decidedly mediocre. See, kids, when you're dealing with a small set of numbers, each individual one carries a lot of weight. What that means is that Balena, the joint venture of Chef Chris Pandel (The Bristol) and the Boka Boys, was going to make or break our year.

Eight CPC members, one 2-year-old child, one 3-month-old child (CPC debut!), and one 3-week-pre-birth fetus all gathered around a pretty sweet large heavy wood table in a nook in the back of the restaurant. The pizzas, which range from $13 to $18, are 12 inches across and the restaurant's recommendation is that diners share a pizza before diving into the more expensive entrees. That wasn't going to work for us, so after getting an incredibly enthusiastic overview of the menu from our very friendly server, we placed an order for each of the six pizzas currently on the menu:

• Mozzarella, Basil, Tomato

• Cauliflower, Garlic Crema, Burrata, Anchoïade
• This was one of t the anchoïade (typically a blend of olive oil, white wine vinegar, garlic and anchovies)

• Spicy Sausage, Red Onion, Tomato, Mozzarella
•  The spicy sausage, made in-house, was particularly good. It was nice to see a new place put out sausage that holds its own against the better old-school purveyors in town.

• Mushroom, Fontina, Taleggio, Scallion, Thyme
•  This umami bomb of a pizza was one of just two vegetarian options but packed enough flavor to stand up against its meaty counterparts

• Brussels Sprout, Pancetta, Pecorino, Red Onion
•  This combination of sweet, salty, and earthy flavors made for my favorite combination of the night.

• Mortadella, Pistachio Pesto, Mozzarella 
• Pistachios, often an ingredient in mortadella, are a logical choice for pairing with the classic Italian meat. But rather than toss some crunchy nuts on there, Balena takes a more creative apporoach with the pesto which eliminated textural issues that might bother some people and ensures there's pistachio flavor in each bite.

The menu does change with the seasons so readers shouldn't get their heart set on any of these particular combinations of toppings. But based on what we sampled, anyone going to Balena should look forward to having a nice array of extremely well executed toppings, some in combinations found in virtually every pizzeria in America, but others that might not exist anywhere else.

The only issue with the pizzas for me, and it's not a major one, came with the crust. The first thing that jumps out when seeing the pizzas is just how much crust is left naked. If the bread is exceptional, like at Great Lake (RIP, hopefully temporarily) or at Mozza in Los Angeles, that's easily overlooked. But Balena's crust, while quite good, isn't in that league. That's not to say it's bad by any stretch. The flavor was good, though it was a bit chewy for some. Our server told us there's some honey in the dough, but none of us could taste it. I will say that not everyone ate all of their crusts. I will also say that I finished some of those uneaten ones.

The final components of the of the pizza experience, which we failed to document with pictures, are the housemade chili flakes and chili oil, which are provided with every pizza for those who want to kick up their pizzas a bit. None of the pizzas were starving for more flavor, but these were both a nice touch for those of us who like a little more heat of the variety that complements rather than overwhelms.

Because there were 8 of us and only six pizzas on the menu, the CPC made the rare decision to add some non-pizza items to our order. The only hard part was deciding which pair of pastas we were going to add to our order.

• Orecchiette, Kale, Lemon, Bread Crumbs, Chili
• Rigatoni, Pork Ragu, Porcini Mushroom 

This is the Chicago Pizza Club not the Chicago Pasta Club so I'm not going to get into details about these two $16 plates of noodles. I will say that these were inhaled and I'm pretty sure everyone made a mental note to return to Balena for more pasta at some point.