Mesa Pizza

By the time we made it to Mesa Pizza in Iowa City, we had already completed a long journey.  Richie, Red, Baby E, and I tiredly hustled our way through the streets of Iowa City searching for a quick bite to eat.  Irritated, we had dejectedly settled on Which Wich...which is delicious, but not what we were looking for.  Then I spotted a beacon in the distance, a small sign on a narrow storefront boasting the name Mesa Pizza.

Red walked in and took two steps back when she saw the murals on the walls.   There was a real Tremors vibe going on.

  Or maybe Beetlejuice?  Dune, anyone?

"I've been to Saturn! Sandworms, huh? Hate 'em!'"

  We continued on and found Kevin Bacon...no, I mean a bounty of pizza awaiting us.

Better than Kevin Bacon!

 This was no ordinary pizza.  These pizzas were loaded with colorful toppings.  And their were so many choices! U.S.A.!

 I could hardly contain my excitement when I saw a pizza slice with a french fry on it... a french fry!  I don't even like french fries!

 Red asked for 'just cheese." (Why do 3 year olds hate awesome food and restful sleep?)  Luckily, it's not terribly difficult to convince a toddler that mac and cheese pizza is he best food ever.

Since I follow a made up diet that allows me to eat only meats and sugar, I chose a slice that had the most meat on top.

Protein! No whey?!

Looking at the menu, I am not sure what I ate.  It was similar to the Triple Smoke, a barbecue pizza with smoked ham, bacon, and steak.  However, my slice clearly had large chunks of sausage and a tomato sauce. It even had part of a french fry!  French fry!

 After our slices were chosen, they were warmed up in a cute little oven.  This made the bottoms fairly black and crispy, so we ended up eating the tops off with our forks.  I thought the meats and cheeses tasted very good and were seasoned well.  I really liked the tomato sauce, it wasn't too sweet or spicy.  I would have liked more cheese, as it was just a thin layer of mozz.  Red also enjoyed her mac n cheese slice.  It did not have a tomato sauce, but a white sauce that was just a tad garlicky.  A good choice for picky kids...which is every kid, right?

Richie got two slices, a chili cheese fry and BBQ bacon cheeseburger.

"It's like food made into other food"- Red

At least that's what we determined them to be.  The man boy working behind the counter didn't seem to know or care.  College life.

 Richie said the pizza tasted good but was not filling.  The chili formed the sauce on the left slice, while BBQ covered the right.  Unlike us girls, he liked the crispy-framed chewy crust.  After hoofing it back to our car, he was still hungry, as was I, so we stopped for some candy on the way home.  Gas station snacks...

So overall, this is a bit of a mixed review.  Loved the inventive flavors but didn't love the thin crust or price (3.75). Our advice- add some more toppings- let's not be stingy.  And maybe hire a decorator who doesn't work with a spray can.

Pizza Throwdown

Just stopping by for a quick post about PIZZA. 

 What makes pizza so delicious ? Yoga mats? No that was Subway. Apparently it's MSG. And no one cared and we all continued to eat pizza. In fact, 13% of Americans consume pizza on any given day! That's a statistic from the USDA 

Over the past few months, Richie has partaken in many a pizza. First, I treated him and Red to a heart shaped pizza from Papa Murphy's for Valentine's Day. If you can operate an oven, Papa Murphy's is pretty much pizza perfection. It's seasoned perfectly and the toppings are well distributed (until you drive it home in your car and take a hard turn).

Just tilt your head to the left, k? Heart!

Then we headed downtown to Falbo Brothers Pizza (2nd and Main Davenport). It's a Midwest chain that started in Madison WI. Here is their cute story. They have pizza slices most of the day and a full menu, including gluten free crust.
 Richie and his friend shared a Cajun Firebomb. My stomach wouldn't touch that with a ten foot pole. Last time I ate spicy food, I ended up in the ER. NEVER FORGET

They ordered a deep dish but got served thin crust. So I guess the service wasn't the best.  It was jazz night when we visited. Despite all those darn seniors making noise, we both give Falbo's food thumbs up.

 Then we have Monical's Pizza. A point of contention in our relationship. He loves it, I hate it. He grew up with it, so I imagine that is some of the appeal. This is also true of our opinions on Quad-Cities style pizza. I grew up with it and I love it. He does not.
 Monical's is a chain located mostly in Illinois and Indiana. They serve scant pizza toppings on crackers. But that's just my opinion. SOME people put this bright pink french dressing on top and call it delicious while inhaling an entire medium. Some people. *shakes head*

Chef Boyardee makes a better pizza.

Finally, we have The Slice.  The Slice Pizza opened in downtown Moline (1401 5th Ave) back in January.  They offer a lunch buffet, a full pizza and sandwich menu, and pizza slices are available from 9 pm to 3am on the weekends.  The name is a tad misleading as a couple people stopped in while we were there and wanted to know if they could just get a slice.  No dice.  I could hear the cook's frustration as he once again explained, "it's just a name."

                                 

                                                           Le Menu

  I knew Richie would, yet again, want the spiciest pie on the menu, the Cajun Gumbo.  I ordered an unbreaded tenderloin with fries.  He also got an order of 5th Avenue Bread, which is a fanciful way of saying "pizza crust with garlic and lots o cheese."  

Red was quite amused when the cook began tossing the pizza crust in the air.  It truly is an art.  The cook then brought us out fancy white plates and nice silverware, a stark contrast to what I would expect of a pizza joint on the corner.  

Our food came out about 15 minutes later.  Here is our bounty:

                               

My tenderloin is hiding under that mass of pickles.  I am still half heartedly on a quest to find the best tenderloin in the QC.  This was not it, but I have no complaints.   It was thin and grilled with a touch of spice. 

The 5th Ave bread ended up being the big hit.  Richie called it addictive and finished over half of the pan.  He also took in two slices of gumbo pizza while telling me, "you definitely wouldn't like it."   He thinks pizza sauce is mixed with cajun spices to create the "cajun gumbo sauce."  The crust had a nice chewy consistency, not too thin, not too thick.  Hmm, that's how I like my men.  

So there we have four pizza joints.  As if you needed help finding pizza, right?  

Crust Stone Oven Pizza and Pub

Not a fan of Quad-Cities style pizza, Richie was eager to try the new restaurant, Crust Stone Oven Pizza and their "European" style pizzas. Oh la la.  On Bix Saturday, we pulled into the parking lot and weren't sure if they were open or not.  As we walked in, we saw that it was only the 3rd Saturday they were open during lunch hours.  Their normal business hours don't begin until 4 p.m. on all other days of the week.

 We were offered either a table inside or on the patio, so we opted for the chilly air conditioned dining room.  The interior is pretty swanky looking- black and white, dim lights, photography on the walls.  Each wall was adorned with a couple of TVs turned to either ESPN, the Cubs game, or some snooze fest volleyball Olympic game.  Sad choices, so I stared at the walls instead.  And these randoms

The menu is small, but appealing.  The appetizer and sandwich section offers fancified french fries and cheese curds, a chicken sandwich, a burger, and mac n cheese.  The pizza offerings are your typical pepperoni, margherita, and sausage, plus a few interesting flavors- chorizo potato, three pigs, and chicken artichoke.  View the menu here.

Being the good carnivore he is, Richie ordered the three pig pizza which is topped with pancetta, capacolla, and soppresatta a.k.a. a bunch of pork.  Don't ask which meat is which.  The pizza is baked in a stone oven with temps of up to 900 degrees.  Need to get rid of a dead body?  The pizzas cook in about 90 seconds.  My mac n cheese held us up, but we still received our food very quickly, in about 10 minutes.

The macaroni had a nice crust on it, dotted with bacon. Mmm more pig. The inside was very hot and filled with melted gouda cheese, bacon, and peas.  It was creamy, flavorful, and the peas made me feel like I made a healthy choice.  (I didn't)

I shared my order with Scarlett, who also gave it a tiny thumbs up, though I think she prefers Easy Mac. 

Richie devoured about half of his pizza.  The crust is very thin and chewy, so it wasn't hard to do.

He actually thought it was a little underdone and could've used a few more seconds in the oven.  He didn't eat the top crust, but I did, and I enjoyed the taste and texture had a bit of char flavor.  He happily reported that the meats each had a bold, distinct flavor.  However, they were a bit salty to his palate and decided he would try pepperoni next time.  Nonetheless, he claimed that it was delicious and real pizza, "unlike that Quad-Cities style stuff."  Whatever.

He also downed a mug of Steven's Point Root Beer.  For 4 bucks you should get to keep the glass.  He likened it to Barqs because it had a bitter bite to it.

We had no issues with our waitstaff, and I read about a cool thing they did, but a friend of mine who went on the restaurant's second day said his waitress was very rude and ignored his table to talk with her friends.  He also said that management dismissed his complaints.  If you aren't given good service, be sure to complain.  Maybe they will listen or maybe they will continue to be douchey.

Happy Joe's Pizza

Happy Joe's is such an institution in the Q-C, one that I have grown up with, that it seems silly to even write about it. The pizza chain was started in 1972 by "Happy" Joe Whitty. I have enjoyed many birthday parties at various locations and always happily ate my Little Joe and free Birthday sundae.
















Through the years, I have grown up with Taco pizza, which is, supposedly, the original. They use their thin, slightly crispy crust and coat it with a layer of refried beans. Taco seasoned beef and sausage is scattered on top, blanketed with cheese, and decorated with a green and red confetti of lettuce and tomatoes. The best part, in my opinion, is the crunchy top layer of broken taco flavored tortilla chips.

Now my true favorite from HJ's is the Happy Joe's Special. The Special is dotted with small chunks of Canadian bacon and camouflaged in a layer of sauerkraut. I don't even like sauerkraut, but it seems to complement the sweet pizza sauce and salty ham.

 Crispy, yet chewy crust






However, dear Richie doesn't seem to be a fan of pizza that does not include pepperonis. So last night, I ordered a pepperoni pie to satiate him. Their pepperoni pizza always includes an ample amount of the greasy meat.

I also really enjoy their cheese blend. If you look closely, you can see the beautiful meshing of yellow and white cheeses.

Happy Joe's pizza is slightly addicting. I can be only marginally hungry, yet still inhale 3-4 slices. I think it has something to do with the amount of sugar in their sweet sauce.

I don't think Richie is as big a fan as I. Perhaps the sauce is too sweet for his sour attitude? Irregardless, I will order HJ again. But I recommend a visit to a restaurant for their bountiful buffet or for a low-key birthday party.

Hall of Fame Pizza & Wings

We are all quite familiar with the almighty Buffalo Wild Wings who dominate the wing market here in the Quad-Cities. They offer a great variety of sauces and a large menu. However, service can be slow, especially during those crucial game days, so we found somewhere new and decided to give it a shot.

On December 1st, Hall of Fame Pizza and Wings opened a carryout/delivery location in Park View, IA. They also have a full service restaurant with buffet in DeWitt.

It was a Tuesday like any other Tuesday when Richie and Bateman decided to play through all 3 Halo games. Their marathon of gaming called for some sustenance, so they went to Park View to fuel up with wings. (Much better than GU)

Like every other restaurant that exists in a small town, the menu is filled with items with campy names based on a sports theme. I was so disappointed that I missed out on the "Game of Pickle" appetizer, 6 deep fried pickle wedges served with honey mustard sauce, that I made Richie order one a couple days later. I'd put honey mustard on ice cream if it were socially acceptable.
So the pizza menu is pretty much on par with what you'd get just about anywhere else. The specialty pizzas aren't all that special, but they do have one with bratwurst and sauerkraut. They also make calzones, salads, and wraps.

The boys needed fuel for about 8 hours of non-stop nerding out, so they were all about the wings that day. Taking a cue from BWWs, Hall of Fame offers varying flavors and levels of heat for their wings. Richie chose 4 different types, The Heater, Asian Sensation, Hot Barbecue, and Kickin' Honey Mustard.





The wings were bigger and juicier than BWWs, as they are obviously not cranked out in mass production and plunked under a heat lamp. "They were crispy on the outside with a good amount of flavor and heat," says Richie Young, wing connoisseur.

I can't speak of the wings because of my aversion to anything slightly spicy, but I can pronounce the pickles to be perfectly pleasing. One large pickle was sliced into six wedges, breaded, spiced, and fried. The honey mustard was a suitable sweet complement.

While the marathon of gaming lasted well into the wee hours of night, the wings did not. All that was left of the carnage was a full buffalo skeleton, a heap of napkins and 5 empty Dew cans.

Though we have yet to try the pizza, I would say that a visit to the Hall of Fame is in order for all wing nuts.

Van's Pizza

Van's Pizza, Pub, and Grill is a relatively new place in town. It's located in the old Pat McGuire's at 3333 Harrison Street. McGuire's was a well loved Irish bar and grill that had been operating since 1986. The business was sold in 2009, but the offer to keep the name was available to the new owners. Because they already owned an Irish pub across town, they didn't want to open a second in Davenport. So they chose to open a pizza place. Just what Davenport needs, more pizza. This begs the question, can you have too many pizzerias in one town? Well, yes, you can.

However, Van's isn't JUST a pizza place. They kept the bar and have quite a selection of beers for the party boys from Palmer. They also tacked on the 'grill' so they can still serve burgers, appetizers, and other typically blah bar staples.

Suffice it to say, I'd really like a new concept to come to the Quad-Cities.

Exterior was slightly remodeled. Inside, the Irish paraphernalia is gone and replaced with generic bar shit. The menu looks suspiciously similar to the Jersey Grille.

Though I was pessimistic about the quality of pizza coming from this run-of-the-mill pub, it was surprisingly delicious.

The garlic cheese bread was properly garlic-y, blanketed with stringy cheese and spices. They serve it with ranch, marinara, and that green thing. It'll set you back 4.99.

Not wanting a traditional pie, we split a personal sized Iowa Farmhand's pizza.


I was most pleased that the sauce was actually ketchup and mustard mixed together. Makes for a burger-like taste and satiates my sweet tooth. The toppings were loaded on, a bit precariously, I might add. Some pieces were loaded with onion, others with pickles. Also sprinkled on were big chunks of pork tenderloin- this is an Iowa pizza after all. The crust was a good consistency, thin and slightly chewy.
The price wasn't as nice, $8.99, but if you're eating out, I suppose that's on par. A plain cheese is only $4.99 and a one-topping is $5.99.

I would probably make a return visit to try another specialty pizza. However, until the rest of the menu gets some originality, I'll pass on that.

P.S. The cold leftovers were fantastic.

Freight House Farmers' Market

A quick update on the Freight House Farmers' Market...

The entire building that previously housed the Freight House Restaurant, then Penguin's, Nan's, and Balls n Pucks, is now open for the year round Farmer's market. Though some of the rooms are sparse, other vendors are sure to fill up the vacant spots.













Antonella's is a pizza place in downtown Dport that also sells pizza by-the-slice at the Market. They traditionally make a Sicilian thin crust with traditional toppings including breakfast-style and the ever popular pepperoni.

Here's Richie munching away...













A nice, light, flavorful pizza













Just because it's winter doesn't mean you can't get delicious food and produce at the Market. Be sure to check it out Tuesdays from 3-6pm and Saturdays from 8am-1pm.

Firehouse Pizza and Pub

Richie recently played a show in Normal IL at a pub/pizza place called Firehouse Pizza and Pub. (107 East Beaufort)


















It is a small chain is native to central Illinois. According to their Facebook page, the chain was started 5 yrs ago by a fireman who wanted to replicate his favorite college pizza.












Do not be alarmed by the leering fireman. He is there to save your taste buds from the fires of eternal damnation.
















If you're selling pizza in a college town, you have to have some sort of unique selling point. I'd suggest shirtless firemen waiters, but this particular Firehouse went with buying a million TVs. The booths have little flat screens and the walls have gigantic projection TVs. Diners will not miss whatever pitiful Illini/Bears/Cubs game they want to watch.













In addition to the sports filled environment, they also occasionally have live music in the pub area, as they did the night Richie was there.






Behind the mic






The pizza boasts a unique flavor. Firehouse has concocted a very sweet tasting sauce. What's the secret behind this? Probably massive amounts of sugar. If you are a pizza purist, you can order traditional style sauce instead. You are also probably overly picky and opinionated.
















I told Richie to bring home pizza or don't bother coming home. I did not specify what kind. So... the best thing in the world besides chocolate is pickles. I think 99% of the human race can agree on this. Knowing this important fact, Richie ordered the Cheeseburger Supreme pizza because it is topped with pickles! It also features hamburger, bacon, onion, cheddar, mozzarella, and mustard.
















The sauce was, indeed, very sweet and reminiscent of ketchup. Therefore, it was suited for this type of pizza. The crust is thin and crispy, though you can get NY hand tossed as well. The toppings were loaded on, covered with cheese, and each slice had it's own pickle chip. Though I ate it cold at 5:45 in the morning, pre-run, I thought it was delicious.
















Their other specialty pizzas include BBQ chicken, Hawaiian, Garlic, Ranch, Taco, BLT, and Margarita. They also have typical appetizers like wings, onion rings, and garlic bread. I was stoked when I viewed the menu online and saw that they have pigs in a blanket. Such refined tastes I have.

The pizza is great and I think Richie enjoyed the atmosphere. You can forgo the pub side and just sit in the restaurant to avoid aggressive drunks/tipsy business majors from ISU.



Live music YaY