Tag Archives: #Pizza

Pizzeria Bianco Phoenix AZ – Worth a Fork!

Pizzeria Bianco is a nationally known pizzeria with two locations in Phoenix Arizona. Many celebrities, Food Network TV, magazines, and food critics give Pizzeria Bianco much positive recognition. The chef and owner is James Beard Award Wining chef Chris Bianco. The menu is limited but is all very high quality. They offer a few small plates, sandwiches, salads, and six pizzas. Part of what is special is the wood fired fermented dough made from locally grown heirloom grains. The mozzarella is house made. The canned tomatoes are California grown Italian style grown by Bianco. The produce is fresh plucked local and is sometimes actually plucked by Chris Bianco.

Inside is small, industrial looking, and loud.

If you can’t find a table inside there are tables outside and a few seats at the bar.

Today we went for pizzas.

I got the rosa pizza.

It looks much different than my last pizza from here. I haven’t been here in years…..mostly because I used to wait two hours to be seated. By the time I got seated I think we were usually on a second bottle of wine. Then when we finally got a pizza we were starving and my pizza from this location was charred so much that it tasted burnt to me and was extra light with toppings. For a few years after that I would get Bianco Pizzas from Pane Bianco (a sister restaurant) because they didn’t char the pizzas as much and went slightly heavier on the toppings……But again this pizza is very different from what I remember from this location. (It’s more like the Pane Bianco pizzas that I enjoyed)

This pizza has a crunch, a chewiness and crispness like no other. The outer crust is almost like a shattering crisp cracker. This crust does have a different taste to it that isn’t like flour. It is unique and is not like any other pizza out there…….

My pizza today has a delicious layer of parmigiano reggiano cheese.

Each bite does taste different. Some of the local Arizona pistachios have a nice rich fresh pistachio flavor and other pistachios are chewy. The red onion goes well with these flavors. My favorite bites are the ones with rosemary that brighten and freshen everything. Some pieces don’t have rosemary. I confess that I wish that this pizza came with slightly more rosemary. But it is great the way it is…that is just my taste.

My husband had the Sonny boy today.

This pizza was made with Bianco tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, salami, and gaeta olives.

It was nice to get seated soon after we arrived.

These pizzas were much better than what I remember from many years ago. These pizzas are also unique with a lot of work that goes into them and these pizzas don’t taste like any other.

Pizzeria Bianco is –

Worth a Fork!

www.PizzeriaBianco.com

Everything is subject to change.

The Forking Best Pizzas I’ve Tasted on the West Side in Glendale and Peoria AZ

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We have really Forking Awesome Pizzas in Glendale and Peoria. All the pizzas are Forking Great and delicious. These are the most delicious ones I’ve tasted so far. Pictured above is the Pizza Milano from Bottega Pizzaria Ristorante in Glendale. This particular one is special because it is ultra thin and is made with San Marzano Tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, fresh basil and a little spicy kick from Calabrian Chile Peppers. It’s crisp but does have a soft middle. it’s also the best ultra thin pizza that I know of on the west side. The regular pizzas are delicious as well and are very similar to Pomo Pizzas….(this restaurant used to be a Pomo). Delicious pizzas you can’t go wrong here.

From Fabio on Fire in Peoria is the Bufalina Pizza. This one has all kinds of flavors going on. Rich San Marzano tomatoes, peppery arugula, sweet reduced balsamic, creamy bufala cheese, nutty parmesan on a thin light chewy and crisp crust. The bufalina cheese was partially delicious…..It was creamier and more flavorful than other buffalo cheeses I’ve tasted from other places. This pizza was incredibly delicious! It’s one of the BEST ever!

The Pizzas from La Piazza Al Forno are all delicious but this Bianca Pizza was really extra special. This pizza was made with their insanely delicious house made mozzarella, a high quality ricotta (don’t know if house made but it tasted like house made), extra virgin olive oil, fresh basil, Sicilian oregano, and Calabrian chiles. All this was on their very delicate textured certified crust. It was really awesome.

The Forking Truth is that I do really love their Margherita pizzas too but they differ depending on the visit……They both taste good (pictured below) but I prefer the one on the right. The one on the right might be my favorite Margherita anywhere. The house made mozzarella is the most flavorful mozzarella…Their crust is the most delicate and tender and when the sauce is just right is pretty darn amazing.

Also on the west side by the same owner of La Piazza Al Forno is Piazza Romana that is technically in Avondale but is so freaking close to Glendale it just has to be included. This place is basically around the corner from Westgate in Glendale.

Here are Piazza Romana in Avondale is the Metro Phoenix first Roman Style Pizza Shop. Pictured above is the Arrabiatta. It has a delicious chunky thick topping that’s seasoned well with a kick!

Pictured above are the Margherita and the picante (spicy salami ((sopresata))

These pizza slices have a bubbly textured dough that is crisp but also moist in the center and are generously topped with delicious toppings. They aren’t as heavy as they look….and they ARE DELICIOUS!

At The Rec in Peoria they serve Detroit Style Pizza. (pictured above and below)

This pizza has a bubbly thick crust that isn’t doughy with these scrumptious crisp CHEESY edges.

The bottom taste almost like a buttery grilled cheese and this pizza was topped with a rich chunky oregano laced sauce and a delicious melty cheese blend. This pizza is incredibly tasty.

I make pizza too…..One of my favorites that I make is the Heirloom Tomato slices with fresh basil, E.V.O.O. with my cheese blend of mozzarella, provolone, sharp provolone and parmesan.

Those were The FORKING Best Pizzas that I’ve Tasted on the west side …..(mostly) in Glendale and Peoria.

Every FORKING Thing is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.

My 1st Taste of Detroit Style Pizza at the REC in Peoria AZ – Worth a Fork! ******with updates The Rec Pizza & Dogs

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The REC is a TINY Detroit Style Pizzeria located in Peoria Arizona. They offer two outside tables. (*****Update name change to The Rec Pizza & Dogs)

One indoor table.

Four hightop community stools. (****Update they added on a dining room)

You order at the counter and seat yourself.

The pizzas come in three sizes personal, medium and large and are cut in squares. They take about 25 minutes to prepare. Many varieties of Faygo Brand sodas are offered. They offer the usual variety of pizzas and also the unusual such as hatch chili with pulled pork and spicy pickle with bacon……… As you wait you look at all the Detroit Music Memorabilia all around and a few novelty collectibles.

Then you look out the window.

I just went for a plain personal size pizza.

It’s very hot just out of the oven…I spread out the little squares of pizza.

It’s a little bit Trenton Style……..(little fact…I actually worked in a Trenton NJ Pizza Shop for a while long long ago) The sauce is on top of the cheese……that is done so you don’t get over cooked cheese……But this Detroit Style pizza is very different than Trenton Style pizza. It’s mainly the crust that is unique and different. (****Update the crust is different see down below)

It’s a bubbly thick crust that isn’t very doughy. On the edges it’s almost like eating a cheese crisp….those crackers that are only made of cheese.

The bottom has a thin layer that taste almost like a grilled cheese sandwich……It seems almost buttered but is very crisp like a really good grilled sandwich.

On top of the bubbly bread is a gooey blend of cheeses……..you can taste grated Italian Cheese………

On top of the melty flavorful cheese is rich tasting chunky tomato sauce….with the perfect amount of oregano in it. It’s delicious!

I have to say my first taste of Detroit Style Pizza at the REC Pizzeria in Peoria is Worth a Fork!

www.theRECPizzaria.com

Everything is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.

Did a 2nd taste on the patio.

Tried a plain again.

This one had slightly less sauce but was pretty much just as delicious.

Tried a white pizza.

This one has too much thyme for my taste…..but I wouldn’t avoid it either…..maybe you should request light on the thyme.

My husband likes meaty pizzas and enjoyed the pepperoni with added sausage.

My dogs got to enjoy some crunchy cheesy ends.

Been back a few times and more changes have been made.

The name has changed to The Rec Pizza & Dogs (Coney Island style hot dogs)

They have added on a dining room.

They have changed the recipe for the dough. Today we tried three different pizzas. One was a seasonal pizza with pumpkin and ricotta cheese.

The dough is different.

It’s fluffy with a soft bread bottom.

The dough seemed fermented.

The crust used to have a delicious crispy bottom.

What I got today was very different.

My first taste of Grandma Pizza at Crisp in Scottsdale AZ

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Grandma Style Pizza from Crisp in Scottsdale AZ

Grandma pizza is very rarely found outside of New York and is suppose to be similar to the kind of pizza that Italian Grandmothers make in their home ovens.

We happen to have a little pizza parlor called Crisp in Scottsdale AZ.

See it really is little.

The owner is friendly and says he will bring out our pizza in about four minutes. I pick a seat on the patio.

The Pizza looks like a toasted sandwich and is a five inch square that’s cut on a diagonal. I can see it’s topped with a rich thick tomato sauce, some melted cheese, a fine grated hard cheese and it’s generous with fresh basil leaves.

I take a bite.

Wow….it’s not really like any pizza I ever had before…….it is different.

The crust is so crisp….no wonder why this pizza place is named crisp. The crust is completely crisp and reminds me of toast. It’s light but a very sturdy crisp like an airy crouton. The sauce is very similar to most east coast pizzas that I have enjoyed. From what I remember east coast pizzas always are made with a delicious sauce. This sauce on this pizza is similar to east coast tomato pies……..The sauce is thick, rich, sweet …..but not sugary….sweet as in sweet tomato…. with a really good rich DELICIOUS tomato flavor. There’s a little melty cheese, fine grated hard cheese and a good amount of fresh basil.

This pizza is almost like a cousin of the Roman Style Pizza…..They are both are generously topped, both have sturdy crisp crusts but the texture and taste of the crusts differ. The grandma has a fine network of bubbles in the crust. The Roman has bigger bubbles in the crust. Both the grandma style and the Roman style are not doughy …….both have a sturdy but light airy crust with generous high quality toppings. Both the grandma and Roman style pizzas seem lighter and not as heavy as doughier pizzas because they both have lots of air in the crust.

That was my first taste of grandma style pizza at Crisp in Scottsdale AZ.

www.Crisp-Pizza.com

Try Crisp Pizza and see what you think! Give the grandma style pizza a try!

Everything is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.

Roman Style Pizza HITS METRO PHOENIX with Piazza Romana in Avondale AZ****UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS*

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******UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS*****The first Roman Style Pizzeria has opened in Metro Phoenix called Piazza Romano in Avondale AZ (only 5 minutes from West Gate in Glendale). You might be wondering what is Roman Style Pizza?

Arrabiatta Slice from Piazza Romana

Roman Style Pizza starts out with studier more fermented dough to hold studier and heavier toppings. The pizza dough at Piazza Romana is made with high protein flour and is fermenting for over four days to create flavor and texture that is like no other pizza. You might imagine that the finished dough would taste sour but it doesn’t. This pizza had a nice study crisp bottom crust and also had a moist interior. It had lots of air bubbles of different sizes in the crust. The lacy dough sort of made me think of the bubble holes in Swiss Cheese. I noticed our slices were drizzled with olive oil and most of the pizzas served came with a salted crust.

Piazza Romana is a postage sized casual restaurant. You order at the counter and sit at one of the three tables inside or at the high top table or one of the few outside tables.

Here was today’s menu.

Pizza by the slice.

Margherita, Americana (pepperoni), Arrabbiata, Picante (sopressata) and two salads Apple Cranberry and Pucola.

I started out with one slice of Margherita and my husband went for a Picante (tomato sauce, mozzarella, sopressata)

The pizza slices go in an oven to warm up some and come out in a jiffy. Then the pizza slices are served on individual paper lined tiny sheet pans and get a drizzle of olive oil.

My Margherita on the left is 1/2 crust. The crust is sturdy but not heavy and dense like a Sicilian Type Pizza. It’s crisp but light with a moist chewy interior. I can taste lots of olive oil. This crust reminds me of focaccia but with a sturdy crisp bottom. The mozzarella is a more flavorful mozzarella and the tomato sauce is thick and concentrated. A good amount of fresh basil was used and it makes the slice very tasty. The course sea salt adds interest to the thick crust.

I decide I can eat a second slice and go for the Arrabiatta because I like spicy.

This Arrabiatta is topped with tomato sauce, chunky sweet tomatoes, hot dried chilies, fresh oregano and olive oil. This Arrabiatta came out more crisp than the Margherita. The crust side is shattering crisp. My first two bites weren’t spicy but tasted very tomato-ee. On my third bite my mouth filled with some tomato juice, olive oil and hot chili. From then on I got spicy. This slice was strong with oregano.

Two slices is enough for me but my husband goes for a third slice and gets another Picante Slice. He was told that the Picante is the most popular slice (Tomato Sauce, Mozzerella, Sopressata, Olive Oil and Sea Salt) that they’ve been selling and seems to be a favorite.

If you live in Metro Phoenix AZ a trip to try Roman Style Pizza in Avondale with cost you a lot less than a $1,400.00 plane ticket to try Roman Pizza in Rome.

*******UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS*****

I would say Piazza Romana is Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

www.PiazzaRomanaAZ.com

Every FORKING THING is subject to change and your experience may or MAY NOT differ.

The Forking Truth

The Focaccia Di Recco VS Pizza Rimini from Pomo Pizzeria in Scottsdale Arizona

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Pomo Pizzeria in Scottsdale AZ offers Northern Italy Style Extremely THIN DOUGH Focaccia Di Recco pictured below.

and also Pizza Rimini, also a Northern Italy specialty in four or more varieties (one extra special flavor on my visit).

The Parmigiana Pizza Rimini is pictured below.

Today I decided to ask a few questions about the pizza and focaccia…..Are they the same?

NO……

One is a focaccia and the other is a pizza.

They start out the same with the same dough……….

Both get stretched out paper thin but the focaccia gets stretched out EVEN THINNER because it’s sandwiches cheese. It’s stuffed. There is a top layer and a bottom layer.

The Pizza goes in the certified Italian Wood Oven at over 900 degrees F for a very short time.

The Focaccia goes in a regular oven in the kitchen at a much lower temperature for a much longer time.

The TASTE……YES the crust come out tasting VERY DIFFERENT!

The Focaccia almost taste like it was fried……I’m thinking that some of the oil from the Stracchino Cheese flavors both sides of the crust and the cheese is still all melty inside. It’s just really delicious! It’s so flavorful with almost cheese sauce inside the two tissue thin crusts.

You might feel different than me………..

I do think the Pizza Rimini is good…..i’d eat it anytime.

What I like about it is that is is so light…..It’s like pizza made for angels. It’s like the best diet pizza ever. You have the taste of pizza without the heaviness. You can eat half a pizza and feel like you can eat more no problem….It must be low in calories………….. The only thing I didn’t like about the Pizza Rimini was the outer ring of crust. To me it taste like burnt matzoh….. but I note the parts with cheese and sauce are yummy and don’t taste burnt.

While I enjoyed the Pizza Rimini…….it just isn’t as tasty as the Focaccia Di Recco….( TO ME!!!!!!! maybe not you?) That thing is just off the charts! It was just CRAZY YUMMY! Way more flavors that were more enjoyable to me. OH and I forgot to mention that you can add on local honey to embellish the Focaccia even a little more. A small amount of warm honey applied just adds another level to the Focaccia.

Both were good but for me (and my husband) we both preferred the Focaccia Di Recco.

www.PomoPizzeria.com

You know The Forking Truth is that EVERYTHING is subject to change and your experience may indeed DIFFER! Just remember that!

The Forking Truth

PHOENIX AZ Tops Travel & Leisure Magazine List for Best Pizza in America

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My Heirloom Tomato Pizza

Travel and Leisure Magazine Reader’s Poll Results place Phoenix as Best Pizza in America……… Much of the success might be due to Pizzeria Bianco. This particular Pizzeria is celebrity endorsed and is on many lists and TV shows for The Best Pizza in the Country. This is the Pizzeria where people have waited for HOURS in line to get in. Pizzeria Bianco Chef/Owner might be the first and perhaps only Pizzeria-Chef to earn a James Beard Award. Well what for ever reason many kinds of Pizzerias are mushrooming up everywhere here in Metro Phoenix. Some how Phoenix has become BEST Pizza in America. (according to Travel and Leisure Magazine)

Here’s the top ten from Travel and Leisure Magazine.

#1 PHOENIX

#2 Detroit

#3 Buffalo, New York

#4 Chicago

#5 Providence, Rhode Island

#6 New York, New York

#7 Maison, Wisconsin

#8 Wilmington, North Carolina

#9 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

#10 Knoxville, Tennessee

Below are some of but not all the Pizzas We Tried in Metro Phoenix in no particular order.