heres the deal about Frozen pizza./people who like pizza aren't as fancy as they pretend to be.

I just wanted to take a second and write about frozen pizza. Its beautiful, not because of its taste, not because its actually beautiful, because it isn't, most are quite disgusting in appearance. Frozen pizza is a work of art because its simple and easy.
When I was a kid, my mother would occasionally want to treat the family to a special experience. as an adult I realize that she really was probably trying to figure out an easy way to handle us while my dad was out of town and she was all alone. anyways, on the weekends dad was gone we would frequently go to Blockbuster,Come on! don't give me that look! just go look it up, while there we would rent our favorite movie, or one we were excited to see, and then go get a frozen pizza.

To this day, this is her babysitting strategy when she has all her grandchildren. Frozen cheese pizza is something no kid is going to turn down. It is simple, and it tastes fine for the likes of a kid. Also to this day, I am so fond of pizza, and frozen pizza because I got to bond with my rather large family over pizza. my brain positively associates frozen pizza with family.

The other key part to this is that I still have the tastebuds that allow me to recognize that frozen pizza isn't that bad. Pick a brand any brand! None of them are inedible, none that I have experienced anyway, and to add to my point referenced in the title people who like pizza enjoy it, and seek it out because it is simple. That is not to say that we can't appreciate great pizza when we find it. We just really love the simplicity of having all the greatest things of this world piled on to something we can hold in our hands and shove in our mouths.
thats what I think. tell me what you think in the comment section, but please be gentle. Continue reading →

Pizza Studio of Lehi, a really great twist on something you are familiar with.

I am sure that it is clear from the title, I really liked my trip to Pizza Studio. I have been to the Lehi location and the location in City Creek center. Both did a great job, but I am only reviewing the Lehi location. Lets get down to business. (I know you are thinking "to defeat... the huns" but don't. ok you can if you want, I can't really help it either.)

Service. 10/15.
Y'all should know that they were super busy. I have mentioned before that I work at Chick-fil-A and they weren't quite as busy as us, but I promise they won't go out of business anytime soon. Thats right, now I am one of those people who say, Y'all.
Anyway, they served me quick, and that is the most important. So now, this is where I explain the title of this post out of necessity. I was in no way referencing pizza when I said, "something you are familiar with." I was referencing a certain sandwich shop. All I will say, is that the only thing "Pizza Studio" has in common with the Sandwich shop that shall not be named is the format in which your order is taken.
as you approach the beginning of the process they will ask for your choice of Crust. just go with Traditional. I am sure the others are good but I'm a "if it aint broke don't fix it" kinda guy. then you can get some predetermined pizzas, but the unique thing about them is making a custom pizza, so do that. However, this isn't everything about their service.

this is not the crew that took my order. cause I am cool like that.

As a customer you can be Served quickly because, They have someone who starts the pizza by getting your crust. They have someone else who places your sauce and choice of cheese. Then someone for meats, and someone else who places your Veggies. Finally someone places your pizza in the oven and someone else takes your money. This setup is great for a business because it allows an employee to be expert at one small thing. Even if they aren't expert someone else is standing right by to help. they were fast and friendly. They didn't quite earn a 15 but they were pretty good.
Location and Identity. 9/15
for this section i'll be brief. They are somewhat new to the national pizza scene. Yet, in the areas they are in, they are well established and growing fast. If you visit them and fall in love, I wouldn't be worried about them disappearing. I gave them a 9 because they aren't well known amongst everyone yet, ya know, like Pizza Hut, or Dominos. However, if I were to review them in a decade I think their rating in this  category will go up. With five locations in utah, there is no excuse for you not to visit them.

Menu. 12/15

Now, just in case I haven't said, when I rate the menu I am looking for the selection, and a clear and easy presentation of that selection and I think they are pretty close on this one. As I have previously said, they build personal pizzas according to your exact specifications. So the selection is top notch. The only thing they lack in selection is crust sizes and styles. As of right now they only serve thin crust. but they have like five different flavors of Crust!
As far as how clear the menu is, here are some pictures that will speak to this point better than I ever could.

Here is another one. at my location both of these were on display

Price. 14/15

They do great. at the American fork location it is 7.99 for unlimited toppings and an 11" pizza. which isn't very big. especially when you take in the fact that the crust is thin. Even considering this. I am a big fella at 6'2" 230 lb's it still fills me up. I don't even pile on the toppings and it hits the spot. 

Taste. 11/15

This one is tricky, because with build your own pizza the taste is kind of up to you. however they still get a high rating because the predetermined pizzas are delicious. The other obvious contributor to the taste is the ingredients, and unlike their build your own sandwich counterparts. the ingredients are fresh and great.

Over all on my rating system, they got Four out of 5 stars. really great place to get lunch. I haven't eaten at all their locations, but the two i have visited have provided a consistently great experience. Go Eat lunch here as soon as you can!

Continue reading →

Costco pizza. Combo? What Combo?

So, my wife and I recently became members of Americas most exclusive club Costco! I will be reviewing the pizza served in my local Costco, which is in Bountiful Utah. Just in case you don’t have the energy to read through this whole post. Basically I will say that Costco pizza serves its purpose as a quick and relatively cheap lunch after lugging around your bulk toilet paper and such. It helps that it isn’t difficult to swallow.

Service 7/15

At this particular location, it took the two people who were at the counter a few minutes to draw straws and decide which unlucky soul had to serve me. They weren’t to excited about being there. Nor were they terribly helpful in explaining the menu and my options. But we will get into that in the menu category. I gave them such a high ranking in the service category because the employee who did finally help me was friendly and nice once she took my order. Just not helpful or enthusiastic.

Location and identity 13/15

I don’t feel like I need to explain this to much more. I mean come on folks its Costco. The only way they would get a 15 as a pizza joint would be if the restaurant portion was open to the public. Yet, I honestly understand why it isn’t. Its obviously meant to be a perk for the Club member.

Menu 5/15

So here is the shake down. They basically serve carnival food at Costco. So the menu consists of chilidogs, cheeseburgers, corn dogs, and the like. If you have never eaten at Costco, like I hadn’t before this review, then when you look at the pizza section of the rather large menu. It says “combo, cheese or pepperoni.”

This is not the menu at my Costco, but it is a good representation.

Now, I work at Chick-fil-A, and when I say combo I mean a side item and a drink, not a supreme pizza. What I was seeing was, I could get a single slice of either cheese or pepperoni. Or I could get a whole pizza. or I could get a single slice, some side item and  a soda. So you can see why I was confused when, after I asked for a pepperoni combo I received two slices of pizza. Then when I asked after a drink my attendant simply said. You didn’t pay for a drink. So I said. “Can I,” and she shrugged as if to say, I don’t know, can you? At the end of the day I got the pizza and the soda. So there, just be aware that they don’t have combo meals like traditional fast-food restaurants do.

Price 12/15

Price was great! I really don’t have anything to say about the price. The slices were big and very affordable. The picture above is something I found on the web because I forgot to take a picture but after buying two slices and a drink, I still spent less than I would have spent at Wendy’s on lunch.

Taste 7/15

The taste was ok. The best way to describe it is that Little Caesers and Costco pizza can compete together. These pizzas are a grade above Little Caesers, but not by much. The old mantra applies. You get what you pay for.

Overall, according to my rating system, they get a 59% or two and a half stars they are good but not great. You should know that the pizza is not a good enough reason to join Costco. There are plenty of good reasons. Getting lunch at the end of your shopping trip is just a perk.

Continue reading →

This week in the news is dying, and out of its ashes, rising like the phoenix comes, "how would the world be better this week if pizza were involved?"

So. I am going to do a slightly different spin on this from previous weeks. I'm going to tell you about a major news story. Where pizza may or may not be involved. If pizza is involved, then cool. If not I will speculate about how, if it were, pizza would make that situation better.

I got this story from the New York daily news, and officially pizza isn't involved.

Storm chaser attacked by knife-wielding man along Texashighway after tornadoes struck near Dallas

The supposed attacker. photo taken from the New York Daily news

This story takes what would already be headline news, and twists it just right. Follow the link for details, but after the devastating tornados that hit Texas, a man attacked a famous storm chaser with a knife. While we are looking for ways that pizza could have improved this event. Obviously the storm chaser should have had a pizza available in his truck, because the man that attacked him was most likely "hangry" after a terrible storm. He would have

appreciated a pizza, and it is most likely that he subconsciously wanted a pizza anyway. I don't know if my speculation makes any sense, but after editing it a few times, I don’t know how to make my thoughts clearer

Cars and Pizza Ovens Targeted as Italy Combats Air Pollution

After one of the largest international climate agreements in history, it seems that the world wants to combat climate change and air pollution. However, this winter Italy is simply concerned with air pollution levels being consistently breached. While the nation is primarily focused on limiting the usage of cars, the town of San Vitaliano will be restricting the use of wood fired pizza ovens. All I can say is that the mayor should focus on restricting transportation usage, if he wants to have a part in combating air pollution, I say unto you Signore let them eat wood fired pizza!

That’s all this week folks. Thanks for reading, more after the New Year.

Continue reading →

Here is a recipe that I think is pretty good.

So, this is a recipe that sounds pretty good to me. I am pretty busy and haven't had a chance to try it. That means that i can't promise you how it will go. we'll start from the dough and take you all the way to the table. follow the instructions carefully! or else!

Crust prep

Assemble the ingredients necessary that are outlined below. Always use a clean large work surface. Portion out ingredients as needed then combine them once you have everything.

This allows for you to quickly and accurately insure you have everything you need.

This will also enable you to quickly assemble the crust. Which is something that requires a great deal of time. So every moment you can spare is essential.

This ingredient set will allow for 4 crusts, so plan accordingly.

           

Ingredients:

·      ½ cup luke warm water  (120 ml)

·      2 teaspoons active dry yeast (10 ml)

·      1-teaspoon sugar (5 ml)

·      5 cups bread flour (680 grams)

·      2 teaspoons salt (10 ml)

·      1-tablespoon olive oil (15 ml)

·      1¼ cups water (300 ml)

Directions

·      Mix the yeast, lukewarm water, and sugar and let it rest until it's all foamed out

·      Mix the yeast and the rest of the ingredients

o   Careful when measuring flour to spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level off after sufficiently full. This prevents the flour from being pressed into the cup and adding extra flour to the recipe.

·      Knead the dough and add flour if the dough is too sticky

o   Knead for about 5 minutes until the dough becomes silky soft

·      Let it rise for half an hour

·      Form nice round balls, (I know this sounds funny, but try to focus.)

o   It is essential that the unused balls be sealed and refrigerated immediately to preserve shelf life, which is 8-12 hours.

·      Press and stretch into a pizza

o   Form crust first by pressing it into the edge of the pizza with your hands. Then stretch the center until sufficiently thin. Careful not to break

The above process takes approximately 45 minutes to one hour

While you are letting the dough rise, which will take about 30 minutes, begin making the sauce. The recipe I use is not super hipster. But its easy. So are you ready? Ill tell you.

Sauce Prep

Same rules as before, clean up your space! Then assemble the ingredients before proceeding. They are as follows.

Ingredients

·      1 6oz can of tomato paste

·      6oz of warm water

·      3 table spoons grated parmesan

·      1 teaspoon minced garlic

·      2 tablespoons honey

·      ¾ teaspoon onion powder

·      ¼ teaspoon dried oregano

·      ¼ teaspoon dried marjoram

I know it is getting excessive, but bare with me it is worth it.

·      ¼ teaspoon dried basil

·      ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

·      1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

·      1/8 teaspoon dried read pepper flakes

The recipe book I found this in then adds. “Salt to taste”. Are you kidding! You cant tell me the last 7 ingredients weren’t also “to taste.” These are not critical to the chemical make up of the sauce. Its not like if you forget the marjoram the sauce will be ruined! The whole thing is “to taste” excepting maybe the tomato paste and water. It wouldn’t be very good pizza sauce, because it wouldn’t taste like anything except tomato paste. So add at least most of these ingredients, “to taste”

·      salt.

Directions

·      In a small bowl, combine tomato paste, water, Parmesan cheese, garlic, honey, onion powder, oregano, marjoram, basil, ground black pepper, cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes and salt; mix together, breaking up any clumps of cheese.

·      Sauce should sit for 30 minutes to blend flavors; once you have formed your crust. Spread sauce over the dough with ladel this should yield enough for each crust you make. Which is why I like to use it for the crust I told you about

As far as making the rest of your pizza, an essential ingredient is mozzarella. The reason for using mozzarella is its elasticity. I know that isn’t a very appetizing phrase, but that means it will be soft and stringy. Mozzarella is string cheese by the way.  There are a few other cheeses that can add some great flavor to your pizza, but if the goal is stringy and soft. Mozzarella needs to be 75% of the cheese you put on this bad boy.

I am partial to the meat lover’s route.  So if you’re listening to me. I will pile crumbled sausage on the cheese. Make sure this is precooked or you’ll probably die. Peperoni needs to be there of course. And then I think bacon crumbles makes a perfect meat lover.

 Good luck!

Continue reading →