King Dough -- Revisit

One of the last places I went to eat before the shutdown was King Dough and it was one of the first that was requested by the fam when we decided to venture out (and I mean to sit outside and eat somewhere). So at King Dough, they are basically offering their food as carry out (don’t worry you can get drinks too) and then you can sit and eat it at their outdoor tables. So they aren’t really serving it to you, but they put it in a box and they do give you some disposable plates etc. to use. 

We got a bottle of wine to share (you can only get whole bottles FYI) and the kids all got some drinks. We had to wait a bit to get a table in the shade but got one just before our food was ready. We had the meatball starter ($14), a Stinky Pete pizza with an egg on top ($18.25), a burger and fries ($13), and a baby margarita pizza ($8.5), also with an egg on top. 

I was happy to see that from my first visit till now, things here are consistently good. The crust is what makes the pizza so yummy I think and even though this one didn’t have quite as much of the “stink factor” that the first one I had did, it still tasted great.  My only knock on both pizzas were neither egg was cooked quite enough, leaving a bit of gelatinous white. The burger is a surprise hit for a pizza place, and I think it ends up being one of the better burgers in town. They serve a 5-ounce smash burger with American cheese, pickles, lettuce, tomato, grilled onions and secret sauce on a sesame seed bun. I like that the bread is not too much for the burger and it is just a super tasty, and again, consistently solidly good (this is probably the 3^rd time ordering a burger). Well worth ordering, even at a pizza place.

And I didn’t mention the meatballs, but they have become a perennial order as well—and for a person who is generally not a meatball lover, they are very good. Really tender and great with the fresh marinara and ricotta. 

All in all, a good relatively safe (as far as distancing and cleanliness goes) option if you really need to get out of the house and get some food. Honestly, if I lived closer, I’d be getting carry out a lot from them. Too bad they don’t have a location further north. 

Also, please keep sharing your favorite safe, outdoor places to eat...this is about as far as I am going right now---not quite ready for inside seating,

King Dough

452 N. Highland Ave

Indy 46202

317/602-7960

http://www.kingdoughpizzas.com/

King Dough

So I kept on seeing all the hype on the interwebs about King Dough, and to be honest, I had my doubts about how good it could really be. But naturally, my interest was piqued and so we headed over there to give it a try. It’s on the east side of downtown, in what looks like an area that is revitalizing currently. A lot of new housing etc. It also has a nice outdoor area that people were standing in on one of our rare sunny days lately, but which will be very nice once we have actual reliable warm weather. 

They were quite busy at around 6:30 on a Saturday, but even though they initially told us it would be a 15-20-minute wait, we actually got seated immediately. Unfortunately, I think this was maybe not the best for our server who was a bit in the weeds, and our service suffered all night because of it. 

Anyway, we started with the Greco salad ($9 for small, $15 for large), which was chopped lettuce, spinach,  and mixed greens with olives, cherry tomatoes, red onions, peppadew, and pepperoncini. It also had crumbled feta cheese and a great zesty Italian dressing (lemon basil vinaigrette). (It comes with green bell peppers too, but we got it without.) This was a fabulous salad and exactly what you want in an old-school Italian salad. Lots of little bits of flavor with a super tangy dressing. The picture you see is the small, which I think easily serves 2-3. I ate slow because I wanted to save some to eat alongside the pizza.

My son ordered the casarecce carbonara ($15), which came out next (they apparently just bring things out as they are done, so plan accordingly). It was the pasta topped with a light, but creamy carbonara sauce—which is mainly egg and some parmesan cheese with hunks of bacon and some sliced pickles habanero peppers on top. They  use cured egg yolks as well. The peppers were unnecessary and a bit hot (if they were more pickly and less hot I would have been into them), but the pasta dish was excellent (we picked off most of the peppers). Seriously, this is one of the better pasta dishes I’ve had in Indy in any restaurant, Italian or not. The pasta is cooked just right, and the sauce isn’t so overwhelming that you want to stop eating it after a few bites. We all happily ate off of his dish. I would love to try all the pasta dishes---and I saw the polenta with meat sauce on another table as well and it looked amazing. Sadly, they were out of the first choice my son wanted (pappardelle Bolognese) but he was very happy with his second choice.

Hubby and I debated which pizza to get for a long time—he really wanted a meat-full pizza and I really wanted the “stinky pete.” I won this battle and we got the stinky pete ($16.50). So this is a pizza with mozzarella, goat and gorgonzola cheese—there is no red sauce on it. It is topped with mushrooms and roasted cherry tomatoes. It was really, really good. Even my son who claims to not like pizza most of the time (he was ruined for pizza in Indy when we were in Italy) really enjoyed it and said he would happily eat it again.  It had a nice kick from the goat cheese and blue cheese and the crust is thin and bubbly on the edges and is just the right chewiness that makes you want to eat every bite of it. Loved it combined with the acidic salad. There are lots of good combos on the menu though—and honestly, I bet the simple margarita is delicious too. Hubby has plans for bringing more people next time and also getting one of the meaty ones (even though he really wants the stinky pete again too). I would also like to come with a larger group and try more of the appetizers as well. 

So, I will say, it is a place that lived up to the hype and will definitely go into the rotation for us. They don’t take reservations though, so prepare for a possible wait. The food turnover is fast though, even when the service is really slow, as it was for us (you will get food, you may just not be able to get a drink).  I recommend having enough people to order a bottle of wine so don’t have to wait if you want another drink. All in all, it is one of the best new places we have tried in a while. 

Oh, and let me know your favorite pizzas here!

King Dough

452 N. Highland Ave

Indy  46202

317/602-7960

www.kingdoughpizzas.com 

Ale Emporium - Revisit

It had been awhile since we’d been Ale Emporium, and recently I bid on a gift certificate at a fundraiser and won, so it was a good time. Our gift card was for a large pizza and large wings, so we grabbed some friends and went. They have so many flavors of wings, but we decided to just stick with the classic buffalo version. I like that they give you a good mix of drumsticks and flats, because hubby and I really like the flats. I can’t say there was anything particularly exceptional about them, but they were solid wings. I sort of wished for a bit more buffalo sauce—it was mainly on the bottom of the bowl and they weren’t tossed too much. The blue cheese dressing  was really tasty. We also had some ranch, but I stuck with the blue cheese. (Wings are $8 for 1 pound, $15 for 2 pounds and $26 for 4 pounds).

The pizza was more of a fan favorite—hubby really liked it. We got the thin crust, but it was still pretty deep with toppings…not really what you think of as “thin.” On half we had mushrooms and red onions (my choice) and the other side we had mushroom, red onions, pepperoni and sausage. It is really, really cheesy—they put a ton of cheese on their pizza. So this is kind of a preference thing. Hubby and one of our friends really liked it. It had a great taste, but almost a little too much cheese for me (I know, that sounds crazy). I just feel like the cheese gets a little gloppy, especially after it has cooled a bit. Hubby on the other hand, was talking about that pizza all night. He also really liked the sausage—he said it had a lot of flavor and was just the right size pieces. I did like the flavor of the sauce for sure. The whole thing reminds me of a more old school pizza flavor if that makes any sense. I couldn’t really eat more than a couple of pieces though with all that cheese—like I said, it is almost a deep-dish version of a thin crust pizza.

Service was fast too. The place was completely jammed, and we were on a deadline for an event afterwards and it all came out with more than enough time to spare. Our server was super friendly, and we got drink refills quickly. And if you like your beer nice and cold, this is the place for it.  No kids allowed in the Castleton location jut FYI.

Clearly, they are no hurting for business based on how huge it is and how busy it was. Nice to see an old school independent place still doing so well. But what are your favorite items here? I am not sure I am sold on eating the pizza or wings a lot. 

Ale Emporium

8617 Allisonville Road

Indy.  46250

317/842-1333

www.ale-emporium.com 

Brozinni Pizzeria - Revisit

Ok, it’s possible that I have written about this place once or twice, or maybe ten times, but I honestly feel like it is my civic duty as a blogger to make sure everyone knows about it. So my daughter needed me to drive a friend to Greenwood, and I was more than happy to oblige, because I immediately thought, “I can get Brozinni!”

You always have to start with garlic knuckles. These are just twists of dough, but they come sitting in a pool of garlic butter. I was sad when I heard our server ask the table next to us, “Can I start you with an order of garlic knuckles?” And they said no. I had to restrain myself from going over there and telling them they were making a huge mistake. But I didn’t go. My daughter would have been horrified. But the knuckles are really good, and the extra sauce is imperative for dipping your crusts later.

This was the first time I had been for dinner. At lunch you can just order a slice of pizza, but at night it’s whole pies only. So we “suffered” through it and ordered one for the two of us. I got my classic pizza topping, mushroom and red onion, and my daughter got pepperoni. Even though we got the “smaller” 16-inch version, it was way too much food for us and made for a hearty second dinner the following night. This is hands down my favorite pizza place in Indy. It is one of the few New York style pizzerias in Indy, and it pulls off that authentic chewy, foldable crust. And one of the benefits of ordering a whole pie is that they make it to order so I got a lot more uniform mushroom and red onion distribution. On a slice, for my combo, they just take a cheese slice, add my ingredients and then add a little more cheese. Still good, but not as proportional.

Bonus points to the waitress who carded me when I ordered a glass of wine. We all knew she wasn’t fooling anyone, but it increased her tip anyway. Seriously, if you haven’t been, check it out. Totally worth it. 

Brozinni Pizzeria

8810 S. Emerson Ave

Indy.  46237

317/885-0911

www.brozinni.net 

Blaze Pizza - Revisit

My daughter and I were down at IUPUI for the regional National History Day competition (she’s a state finalist!) and had a break between her presentation and the awards ceremony, so we hit Blaze for lunch, as it is right near campus.

We both pretty much made our own, although mine was a variation of one of their combos, the “Veg Out” (they are all around $7-8). It was topped with mushrooms, red onion, spinach, Gorgonzola and mozzarella cheese and had dollops of red sauce on it. Ok, I know this is a chain, but I think their pizza is pretty darn tasty. The crust is really thin, and with the blue cheese, it had a nice distinctive flavor to it. It’s not too much, but just enough that you get that hint of flavor in each bite. They are personal size pizzas and I can almost eat a whole on by myself. I like this particular pizza because the sauce is not spread all over the pizza—sometimes I think too much sauce detracts too much. They quick fire them in an oven while you stand there and they are nice and crisp.

My daughter built her own with mozzarella and feta, kalamata olives, chicken, and oregano. She really liked it (and I agreed after my couple of bite of hers). She made a nice Greek combo and with the addition of the feta and olives, it had a nice salty kick to it. I still preferred mine, but hers was very good. 

It’s supposed to sort of be fresh fast food, but the one complaint I had was that it was so not fast at all. Luckily we had enough time, but it took a solid 30 minutes to get through the line. I am not sure why the delay, but man, it was slow.

They have some fun drinks too—my daughter had prickly pear aqua fresca and they had a blood orange lemonade. It’s a good place for a pizza fix for lunch near campus, but just be prepared that it may not be as fast as you think it is. And hey, I am spending a lot more time on IUPUI's campus now that I am back in school. What are your favorite places to eat around there?

Blaze Pizza

913 Indiana Avenue

Indy  46204

317/624-1500

www.blazepizza.com 

Brozinni Pizza

You guys, if you’ve been following me for a bit, you know Brozinni is one of my places. Let’s face it, pizza in this town is not that good. Seriously, we can argue about this all day long, but you know I’m right. There’s lots of pizza, and there’s some good pizza, but there’s a lot of crappy pizza. Mostly crappy.

My all time favorite though is Brozinni. It’s New York Style and it just has the right chewy, foldable deliciousness. One slice is big enough for your lunch, well, with some garlic knots on the side, and you’ll be all set (be sure and dip that crust in the garlic sauce).

I introduced my hairdresser to them on my last visit, and she used to live in NYC. She has texted me since telling me she can’t stop thinking about it.

If you haven’t been there, you should probably go check it out. It’s what pizza should taste like.

Brozinni Pizza

8810 S. Emerson Ave

Greenwood IN 46237

317/865-0911

www.brozinni.net 

Byrne's Grilled Pizza - Revisit

The other day I took  my daughter to see Cinderella at Clowes Hall. I asked her what she wanted to eat before we went and she said poutine. So I tried to take her to Twenty Tap, but there was a 20-minute wait. On a Tuesday. Go figure (and good for them). So by then we were running low on time and just decided to go to Byrne’s again, because we had eaten there the last time we went to Clowes, had enjoyed it, and had gotten in and out fast.

They have added some art and there were a fair amount of people in there this time and it had a nice casual atmosphere going on. Knowing that their crust is more of a thin, almost cracker-y type of a crust, I was open to trying more non-traditional toppings on my pizza (it just seems like it makes more sense as a flatbread type of pizza for some reason) and contemplated the menu.

First though, we ordered a couple of breadsticks with the garlic olive oil dipping sauce. It’s a pretty simple sauce—literally just chopped garlic in olive oil—but nice and tasty and wholesome. No crazy bright orange cheese stuff (although they do have other options as well). The bread sticks are good—big and doughy. I wish they had a little seasoning on them or something, they’re kind of plain otherwise, but still good. They are filling though, so watch out!

So after looking over the menu for a bit, I decided to go with the “hot chick” pizza, which is their take on a buffalo chicken pizza ($10 for small). It was really good. It was the thin crust, buffalo sauce as the pizza sauce, pieces of baked chicken and then blue cheese, red onions, banana peppers as well as regular shredded cheese. It was served with a side of ranch. I really enjoyed it a lot. I have a weakness for buffalo items and it hit the spot. The chicken was tender—and not just white meat and the sauce had just enough heat to it. Loved all the blue cheese. The ranch to dip in was decadent, but a nice touch.

My daughter had “the Confessional” ($10) which is basically their version of a Margarita pizza. It’s tomato sauce, shredded cheese, large rounds of mozzarella, tomato, and basil. She enjoyed it. After three weeks in Italy, she really likes a basic margarita and said this was a good one.

The real reason she particularly likes this place is for the chocolate chip bread pudding though. A holdover from Oh Yumm Bistro before them, they do a nice job, although it could stand to be heated up a little more.

Byrne’s is a nice neighborhood place—there were families in there as well as tables of adults. I would definitely eat there more if it were in my neighborhood.

Byrne’s Grilled Pizza

5615 N. Illinois Street

Indy 46208

317/737-2056

www.byrnespizza.com

Jimmy Stix

I met a friend for a quick lunch in Carmel the other day at Jimmy Stix. Ok, apparently it has been around for a bit, but I had never even heard of it. It’s not a chain, so I was intrigued. It’s pizza though, so my hopes were no overly high (so much pizza in this town, so little that really stands out).

They have a bunch of lunch specials that are really good deals—most are around $5-$6 and include a combo of pizza with something else (a couple of breadsticks or a salad or a drink, etc.). I went with what I thought was a slice and a drink for $4.99 and a couple of breadsticks on the side ($2). I mean, if they have “stix” in their name, you have to try the breadsticks right? Anyhow, it ended up being two slices of pizza, so an even better deal. They aren’t huge pieces, but still.

Honestly, the “stix” were probably my favorite part. The breadsticks were soft and just a bit chewy with a little bit of garlic flavor on them. But what was really addicting about them was the garlic butter dipping sauce. It was quite delicious. A bit on the salty side, which I really liked with the breadsticks. I can’t say it was truly butter, but I can say we couldn’t stop eating it. Great for dipping the crust of the pizza in as well.

The pizza itself was perfectly fine. Nothing that made it really stand out to me, like I said, typical of pizza in Indy. I liked that you could order whatever toppings you wanted on your slice (they simply add them to cheese slices and warm them) and I got my classic red onions and mushrooms. The proportion of the toppings was pretty good, getting some of them with just about every bite. I can see this place for a quick, cheap lunch in Carmel. It’s not a place I would seek out, but it was perfectly fine. I had a bite of my friend’s Greek salad as well (hold the potato salad??)-- it wasn’t bad either. I appreciated the amount of cheese and olives, and the tomatoes weren’t horrendous. It was served with balsamic vinaigrette, which again, was fine.

If you’re eating in, it’s definitely not a fancy place—the interior feels borderline fast food. But it is definitely fast and you can be in and out quickly. And it will serve your pizza craving. Just be sure and get that garlic dip. I’m all ears if you have any other suggestions for pizza places that maybe I haven’t heard about? Know any little one-offs that are your favorites?

Jimmy Stix

720 Adams Street

Carmel, IN 46032

317/844-5560

www.jimmystixpizza.com 

Napolese- Quick Revisit

Hubby and I had a quick dinner at Napolese with friends over Valentine’s weekend. We hadn’t made plans and since it was Saturday and it was nearly Valentine’s Day, we needed a place that didn’t take reservations. As far as having to wait (we did for about 45 minutes), the location at the Fashion Mall is good because you can wander around and shop while you wait for them to call you and let you know your table is ready.

Anyhow, we planned accordingly and sat down right about when our friends arrived. I love the olives they give out at Napolese, even though I had to ask for them this time (maybe they were wasting too many on people who don’t like them?). We also shared the Brussels sprouts salad ($12) and the crostini with apple bacon jam, spinach and gorgonzola ($9). That crostini dish was delicious. The sweetness of the apple bacon jam with the freshness from the just wilted spinach and the salty ripeness of the gorgonzola were great. And it was unique—it wasn’t just a creamy spinach dip or a creamy blue cheese dip. I would happily eat this again. The Brussels Sprouts salad left me a little underwhelmed though. They sprouts were roasted, but still a bit too firm for me and the whole thing came across a bit too sweet with pieces of sweet potato and bourbon gastique. There was also kale, radish, and pancetta.

We went with one of our classic choices for pizza—the Napolese broken yolk ($15). This is a margherita pizza (sauce, fresh mozzarella and basil) with three quail eggs on top—they are meant to be nice and runny (you know that’s how I like them), but sadly, these were not quite as runny as they usually are. I think it must have been because they were so busy, but just a plain fried egg on a  cheese pizza isn’t quite as exciting. The crust was still very good—it has that nice chewiness to it. Our friends’ BLT, which is another common order for me and hubby, looked spot on though.

All in all, it’s great to have some independent places right in the mall—that seems so uncommon and overall,  while this wasn’t my best meal there, I enjoy Napolese. They have a decent Italian wine list and friendly staff. It’s a good local option to have nearby.

Napolese

8702  Keystone Crossing

Indy  46240

317/705-0765

www.napolesepizzeria.com 

Byrne's Grilled Pizza

I took my daughter to see Wizard of Oz at Clowes Hall the other day—I needed somewhere we could eat an early supper nearby before the 6:30 show time. No idea where her love of musical theater comes from…but that’s another story.

I remembered hearing about Byrne’s Grilled Pizza taking over the old Oh Yumm spot on Illinois and thought it would be perfect. They are also open all day and on Sundays. Check and check. Byrnes started its life as a food truck that many people had mentioned to me, but I had never gotten a chance to try. Nice to see they have done well enough to move into a brick and mortar spot.

Because it was so early, we were the only ones there for a while, but our server was exceptionally friendly and helpful.  We started with an order of breadsticks (2 or 4 per order, we had 2) with a side of garlic olive oil for dipping (there are several dipping options) ($3.25). The breadsticks are their pizza dough done in a chewy breadstick and topped with salt. Interesting, because their pizza crusts are the super thin type, but these were pretty good. I really enjoyed the garlic dipping sauce, which was a pretty simple combo of good quality olive oil and minced garlic. The garlic was yummy, as garlic tends to be.

Their pizzas come in two sizes—the smaller one being a personal pan size. We each got one of these. It was a good way to try two completely different pies as well. I had “The Californian” ($10) and my daughter the “PBS” ($10). We both enjoyed our pizzas. Mine was topped with red sauce, spinach, bacon, plum tomato slices and avocado. And cheese of course. The crust here is very thin and crisp—almost more like a flatbread. I enjoyed the nice change of pace. I also liked that they gave you just enough of each topping, and not so much that the pizza became soggy or overwhelmed. They also liberally season their pizzas with dried herbs.

My daughter’s PBS had pepperoni, Smoking Goose jowl bacon and sausage (and cheese and red sauce). She really seemed to enjoy it. She ordered it because it had Smoking Goose bacon and she “only eats bacon from Smoking Goose.” Seriously. It’s kind of a problem because there’s a lot of bacon in this world that isn’t Smoking Goose. Anyhow, she ate almost all of it, which is a sure sign that she enjoyed it. She prefers the crumbly bits of sausage on pizza and that is the kind they use here. Again, super crispy crust. 

I was also happy to see that Byrnes had also acquired the Oh Yumm chocolate chip bread pudding recipe. Whenever hubby and ate there, we always looked forward to this dessert. It was still delicious—studded with lots of chocolate chips in a very moist bread pudding topped with vanilla and raspberry sauce and a couple slices of strawberry. It was nice to see it passed along. Apparently Byrnes hired several of the staff from Oh Yumm as well, which was also nice to hear.

The interior is a little more stark, with some wooden beams added to the ceiling and a counter from which you can order carry out (which seemed a popular option as people were coming in the whole time we were there to do just that on a cold Sunday evening). If you like that cracker thin type of crust, and more creative topping options than many places are offering (would like to try the Mexican pizza), you should check this place out. Let me know what you think.

Byrne’s Grilled Pizza

5615 N. Illinois Street

Indy 46208

317/737-2056

www.byrnespizza.com  

Diavola Pizza

Hubby and I had a date night the other night and were struggling with somewhere to go. We wanted something new but really didn’t want to go downtown either. Several of you guys asked if I had been to Diavola yet, and I hadn’t, so we decided to check it out. Diavola is the new Neapolitan style pizza place in the old Zest/Twist location on 54^th Street. We didn’t know it going in, but the same man who owns Ambrosia Italian owns it. They have done a nice job with the interior—it’s nicer feeling than your average pizza joint and could stand up to it being a date night.

The pictures of the pizza online were certainly appealing, so we were looking forward to it. We started with the arugula salad ($9)(what you see in the picture is half-they split it in the kitchen for us). It was done well—nice crisp, fresh arugula with shaved Parmesan and some homemade croutons that had a nice herby flavor and a light vinaigrette. It was dressed appropriately and a nice thing to start with. I also liked that it wasn’t ridiculously huge, so you didn’t feel overwhelmed before you even got to the pizza.

Our server recommended if we split a pizza, that splitting a salad and appetizer was a good way to go and would be about the right amount of food. Based on her advice, we ordered the polpo appetizer ($13) next. This was the first clue for me about it being owned by Ambrosia. The set up was really similar to the octopus dish there. There were little cakes made of potato underneath, the charred roasted octopus on top, and there was a lemon vinaigrette throughout the dish. There was also a small pile of undressed arugula in the center of the plate topped with sliced olives. The olives were nice and salty and were a nice component in the dish. The potatoes were ok, a little bland maybe, but the biggest problem with the dish was the octopus itself. It was terribly chewy and overcooked. It looked pretty but it was borderline inedible. The vinaigrette was good as were the olives. That’s about all I can say positive about this dish.

We ordered a pizza ($14) and got a half and half combo—our server assured us we could do that. I chose the Contadina minus the roasted red peppers and hubby chose the Diavola. That meant that my side of the pizza would have artichokes, roasted mushrooms, basil, their homemade tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella. Hubby’s would have the same sauce, basil, and cheese as well as spicy soppressata and extra virgin olive oil. Ok, my first gripe was that I had them hold the roasted red peppers because I feel like they dominate flavors too much, and in general, I don’t really love bell peppers. But for some reason, they added green bell peppers to my side, which I like even less, and which bummed me out. Other than that, the pizza was just ok. The middle of the crust was way too soggy and even the outside was a bit limp. Hubby was not finding a lot of the spicy soppressata on his side—he wished for more. I think part of the problem was that there was too much of other things on the pizza—from the toppings themselves to the cheese and sauce—it all didn’t help the crust any. The crust just couldn’t stand up to it. It’s possible that this place will perfect the pizza (I hope so) as it is open longer—I feel like it took both Pizzology and Napolese a bit of time to really perfect the pies, but I can’t say I would be rushing back to check. Based on this visit, I think there are many better options in town (mentioned above). Also, I have no idea if they even offer dessert because a check was plunked down before we were even asked. Maybe our server thought we had had enough, who knows.

Diavola Pizza

1134 East 54^th Street

Indy 46220

317/820-5100

https://www.facebook.com/diavolapizzaandwine/ 

Marco's Pizza

Here’s real quickie one—even though it is not a place that I have written about before, since we only got the one pizza (well, we only ate the one pizza), I thought I would just mention Marco’s. This place is a chain, but I had it at a kid’s birthday party and thought, hey, this is pretty good pizza so we ordered it for my daughter and her friends on her birthday.

Hubby and I got our classic toppings—red onion and mushroom. We also heated up our pizza stone in the oven while we waited for the delivery (I like that you can set a delivery early in the day to come at a certain time). The crust has a good amount of chewiness that I like and the sauce is not sweet. And there isn’t too much of it. We got it crisp on the stone, and it was a tasty diner. I will say though, I sort of hate their website—for some reason it is really difficult to just see what’s on the menu and how many people the pies serve.

All in all, it is a decent delivery option. Honestly, better than most I have found. It’s not overtopped and the crust has a nice yeasty flavor. What do you think? What’s your go-to easy delivery option for pizza?

Marco’s Pizza

7002 Lake Plaza Drive (multiple locations)

Indy 46220

317/849-7300

www.marcos.com 

Brozinni Pizza - Revisit

We had an opportunity to stop at Brozinni the other day when we were heading to Brown County, and I was thrilled. I figured, it’s been awhile since I wrote about it and everyone is always asking me what my favorite pizza place is---and well, it’s this place, so I figured it was time for an update.

You have to start with an order of garlic knuckles ($2.50 for 4, $4.99 for 8). These are basically just pieces of the pizza dough twisted into a knot and then coated in super garlicky, super buttery sauce. I love these things. Things like this are the reason I know I could never give up bread. Their dough is so good on the pizza, and this is the perfect thing to start with. Plus, you have to have the leftover garlic butter to dip your pizza crust in. You have to get some for that reason alone.

Brozinni is New York style pizza—huge slices of thin crust. I always get the same thing, a slice of red onion and mushroom (they will make you anything you want by just putting toppings and some more cheese on a slice of cheese pizza). I can’t find the exact pricing of this, but it doesn’t really matter, because you will be happy to pay whatever. It’s around $4 a slice though, and they are enormous slices—they take up two paper plates. The crust is just the right combo of chewy and bendable and has a nice flavor—they use the right amount of sauce to crust ratio and they chop up the onions nice and small. It’s the perfect slice of pizza.

I also got the chance to try a couple bites of a whole pie—or at least one half of it. Hubby and the friends we were with ordered a pie with two flavors—I had a bite of the “34^th Street,” which is a white pizza. I had my doubts about white sauce in a NY style place, but it was pretty darn tasty as well. They make a creamy white sauce and put it on the pizza with basil, lots of garlic and mozzarella. I am pretty sure I got some ricotta in there too, although it’s not listed as an ingredient on the menu. The crust is really what makes the pizza at Brozinni and this piece of pizza just proved that to me—even with completely different toppings, I still really enjoyed it. Can’t say I won’t go back to my usual on a return visit, but I would happily eat this one if I got to eat here more frequently.

This place is practically in Greenwood, so it’s a trek for us, but it’s worth it. If you have not been yet, you need to go. Then you’ll understand why I am always complaining about pizza in this town. It’s the best. I still welcome feedback on what YOUR favorite place is though so please leave me a comment and let me know!

Brozinni Pizza

8810 S. Emerson Ave

Indy IN 46237

317/865-0911

www.brozinni.net 

Giordano's

We had an old friend from California visiting us the other day and he was intrigued to try Giordano’s because there’s not a lot of Chicago-style pizza in the Bay Area. Hubby and I had only had it once since it opened here in Indy, and that was carry out, so it is hard to say if it was as good as it could be (plus it was when you had to order it like 5 days in advance and they were so busy, I think they were making them well in advance).

Anyway, I wasn’t surprised when on a Sunday evening they told us there would be an hour and a half wait. I was surprised when they texted 30 minutes later to say our table was ready. We scrambled over there and got our table. It looks like the wait times have decreased a fair amount—after we were seated there were a couple of tables that sat empty for a while.

We ordered our pizza right away—we were warned that they take 45-50 minutes to prepare. We decided to also go ahead and order an appetizer to share as well since we were all pretty hungry. We ordered the bruschetta appetizer ($8.50), which was toasted bread, a slice of mozzarella, and a huge mound of marinated diced tomatoes with basil and a drizzle of balsamic. Honestly, It was better than what I was expecting. I mean, the tomatoes are done about as well as they can be when they aren’t really in season. But the olive oil, basil and balsamic glaze added nice flavor. The bread stayed crisp throughout—helped along by the layer of mozzarella in between preventing the liquid from making the bread soggy. I also liked the added soft, but slightly firm texture from the cheese.

It was still enormous though, and you have to be careful because then the pizza comes and you really need to save room for that. Unfortunately, our app came only like 10 minutes before our pizza (service was a bit off) so we didn’t get to stave off the hunger waiting for our pizza that much. The pizza came and our server served each of us a gigantic slice—we split a large (there were 5 of us) and had half spinach and half sausage ($25.75). Having the pizza at the restaurant was much better than carry out—the crust stayed crisper on the bottom and flakier on the edges (I also recommend against getting mushrooms as we did the first time because they contributed to soggy crust syndrome I think).

The pizza is good, but honestly, I can’t get as excited about it as some people seem to. My favorite part of it is the sauce, which has a nice acidic savory kick—it isn’t sweet like some pizza sauces are. I was kind of overwhelmed with the amount of cheese on there—I think about 80% of the pizza is cheese—and it’s a thick pie. There was a thin layer of spinach (or sausage) underneath all the cheese. I think the spinach was the preferred topping—everyone thought the sausage was kind of bland. I also had a side salad—the harvest salad (still quite large) ($5.25). It was mixed greens with blue cheese, candied walnuts, dried fruit, pear and balsamic vinaigrette. A little heavy on the dried fruit for me, but it served its purpose—cutting through all that cheesy pizza with some hits of acid.

I think we all decided we wouldn’t wait an hour for it, but it’s an okay option if you’re in the mood for a giant cheese bomb. I know you are all going to probably tell me I’m crazy, but I just don’t think it’s all that.

Giordano’s

4100 East 82^nd Street

Indy 46250

317/348-4085

www.giordanos.com

Murphy's @ Flynn's

The family and I used to frequent Murphy’s a fair amount before its move. It was a kitschy space that the kids really liked. And I liked that my son, who loves steak and lobster, could get either or both for a very reasonable price. When the construction at Keystone and Fall Creek started last year, Murphy’s decided to move because they knew their business would suffer. They moved in with Pat Flynn’s at 52^nd and Allisonville. They’ve been there for a while now, but we hadn’t made it over to see what the new “Murphy’s @ Flynn’s” would be like. We were curious as to how they combined the menus etc. 

It appears that Murphy’s is the more dominant theme there, although the menu is much larger, incorporating some of the Flynn’s dishes as well (pizza, sandwiches, etc.). Most of the green booths from Murphy’s have been moved, and they have actually done a decent job of incorporating them into the existing space. Sadly, they’ve lost the wine list they had at Murphy’s, which wasn’t amazing, but had a couple of decent reds on it.

We had several different things, mostly that were from the Murphy’s old menu I think. I had a filet dinner ($17.99), which I split with my son. You still get a soup or salad (I think maybe you got both before?) and they still happily have the blue cheese dressing, which is old school, and really chunky, and hubby’s favorite. The lettuce itself is a mix, and just ok, more of just something to soak up the dressing ( We ordered an extra cup of clam chowder because my son really enjoys it. It’s more of a cream heavy version, but had a decent taste. A little hotter temperature might have been nice, although my son didn’t mind because he likes things a little closer to lukewarm. You also get your choice of potato. I went with the twice baked because I don’t remember seeing it on the menu before. It was fine—mostly some cheese on top of a seasoned baked potato. It didn’t have a lot of additional flavor than a regular baked potato, maybe less without any butter. The steak was the best thing on the plate—it was cooked as we ordered it and was nice and tender. They have a pretty decent quality beef for that price point. I also missed the yummy pieces of garlic bread that Murphy’s used to put on the plate (although my son wanted me to be sure to reassure everyone that they do still have the little baskets of crackers on the table, which he loves).

Hubby had the rainbow trout ($16.99), which is seasoned and broiled. Actually, hubby had requested it pan-crusted (which is an option on the menu) and they didn’t do it. He ate it anyway, but said it was pretty bland and didn’t have the crunchy bits he likes from previous experiences. He was trying to be all healthy and got broccoli as his side, which he then didn’t eat because it was barely cooked. Like I said though, he loves that blue cheese dressing and was greatly relieved it was still on the menu.

My mother-in-law had the fried lobster dinner ($17.99), which has been a favorite of ours in the past. How can you not like deep fried lobster? I would have a hard time eating a whole dinner of it (they used to offer it as a combo with a smaller steak) but a piece from her plate was a nice crunchy treat (they also do offer it as a starter). My in-laws both out-ordered us on the sides—they both had hash browns (which I also don’t remember from the old Murphy’s) and I really enjoyed them. They were more almost like potato cakes; with a softer more mashed interior and a really nice crispy edge. I ate as much of these as they kindly shared and this is the side I would get on a future visit.

I think if you stick with the steak and add these hash browns, and with the salad and that blue cheese dressing, you can get a nice solid meal. I can’t speak too much of the Flynn’s items, but I’d be interested to try the pizza. I saw a couple come out of the kitchen and they were nice and thin and looked pretty good. Ever had one?

Murphy’s at Flynn’s

5198 Allisonville Road

Indy 46205

317/545-3707

www.murphyssteakhouse.com 

Pizzology - Mass Ave

I hit up Pizzology on Mass Ave with a friend for lunch the other day. It was actually my first time going to the new location. Well, I guess it’s no longer the newest location, now that the one in West Clay has opened. It’s been awhile since I’d been to Pizzology and I was looking forward to seeing what was new on the menu.

The first thing we shared were the artichoke fritters ($8). I hadn’t seen them before and they were really, really good. Of course, I am a total sucker for artichokes. They were gooey and cheesy with nice bits of artichoke rolled into a ball and deep-fried. The cheese they use is goat cheese and there was also lemon in there, so they were nice and tangy, which you know is totally my thing. They were super crisp and hot and dusted with salt. They serve them with a roasted Fresno aioli—it was really nice with them too. Not heat spicy, but a nice deep chili pepper flavor combined with the creamy rich mayo.

We also shared a pizza that I had never had before—and one that was new on the menu since I had last been to Pizzology (like I said, it’s been awhile). The pizza was the rosmario ($13.50). It’s a white pizza (no red sauce). It’s topped with mild, earthy fontina cheese, wood-roasted mushrooms, rosemary and caramelized onions. It sounded like a unique and really tasty combo to me. It was good, but it didn’t have as much flavor as I expected with rosemary as one of the ingredients—the use of rosemary was fairly light. I liked the flavor of the mushrooms. You can tell they’ve been roasted in the wood-burning oven.  I think a little sprinkle of sea salt on top might complement the rosemary flavor. I do like the crust here—and we got a little taste of the red sauce too by asking for a side of the marinara to dip our crusts in—a nice way to get a little bit of both worlds. Honestly though between the two, the fritters are what stood out for me.

I like the spacious interior of the Mass Ave location—and the big open kitchen is a cool thing to watch. I wasn’t a fan of sitting on one of the bar stool tables along the window—if you sit on the window side (it’s a banquette type of bench), I was too far from the table. No problem for me, we just switched because it wasn’t that busy yet. Our server was very friendly and let us know when there was a mistake in our order and corrected it quickly. A nice addition to Mass Ave.

Pizzology

608 Massachusetts Ave

Indy 46204

317/685-2550

pizzologyindy.com