Friday Night Slice, Part 23

PIZZA BUDS

Nashville's streets are getting more and more packed as the food truck trend finally made its way down South this year. There's tacos, grilled cheeses, milkshakes, marshmallows, Barbie Burgers, even waffles...a whole blog is already up and running to cover our mobile food options.



And what appears to be the slightly dirty, drunk uncle of them all is the Pizza Buds truck. Pretty much the opposite of state-of-the-art, their ride is a cross between hipster vintage and junkyard ghetto - the perfect appeal factor for Nashville hipsters.



We parked at Yazoo Brewery in the Gulch on a Friday evening and ordered our pepperoni and cheese "12-inch frisbee" to eat picnic style in the parking lot. Initial concern: pizza isn't the most portable food out there. Things I buy on the street need to come on a stick or in a wrapper. But hey, they gave us plates and napkins!



The pizza was definitely cooked to order and came out blazing hot. I have no idea about the cooking method employed as I couldn't see what was going on inside the rusty camper - I envision stained beige ovens plugged into an overloaded outlet, but these guys still have to pass codes, right?

The Pizza Buds serve a rustic thin crust pie. The cheese was good and gooey (medium pull away) and the pepperoni was sliced perfectly to get that slight crunch. They were still soft in the center and left a little grease, but that's good grease. The sauce was unobtrusive and just gave you the idea of tomatoes without any unnecessary chunks or other gritty business, but they did do the last minute sprinkle that ruins so many pizzas. Here are some random Italian spices! Thankfully, they didn't sprinkle too long and I didn't get a piece of parsley in my mouth or anything.



Now for the crust. Have you all seen the newest campaign of Miracle Whip commercials? They are GENIUS. They admit that Miracle Whip isn't for everyone and that some people downright loathe it, but what's brilliant is that the company is asking you pick a side. Either love them or hate them. Embrace the emotion fully and support your choice with fervor. Damn the lukewarm! Now I hate Miracle Whip, but I LOVE these commercials. And I love the idea. So I'm asking you, pizza eaters, to go taste the Pizza Buds crust and pick a side. It's bizarre and unlike any pizza crust I've ever tried, starting out all normal and bready and then...wait...what the hell was that? Is that sugar? Cinnamon? Huh? I have a feeling that there will some serious polarity in the responses of your dining crew.



So how does it measure up against the rest of the pizza in town? Aside from the exotic crust, it's not the heaviest hitter out there. But at 2:00am when you're pouring your drunk self out of a show, I bet that it's the best darn thing you've ever eaten.

Where you at Pizza Buds? Check Twitter.

* * * * *

Cold Pizza:
Friday Night Slice, Part 1: MAFIAoZA's and Joey's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 2: Pizza Perfect and Pizza Perfect Kebobs
Friday Night Slice, Part 3: Rudino's Pizza and Grinders
Friday Night Slice, Part 4: Chicago Style Italian Beef
Friday Night Slice, Part 5: Pie In The Sky
Friday Night Slice, Part 6: Castrillo's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 7: California Pizza Kitchen
Friday Night Slice, Part 8: Ahart's Pizza Garden (Murfreesboro)
Friday Night Slice, Part 9: New York Pizza Depot (Clarksville)
Friday Night Slice, Part 10: Matteo's Pizzeria
Friday Night Slice, Part 11: Angelo's Picnic Pizza (Antioch)
Friday Night Slice, Part 12: Manny's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 13: Nashville Pizza Co.
Friday Night Slice, Part 14: Brick's Cafe
Friday Night Slice, Part 15: Sal's Pizza (Hermitage)
Friday Night Slice, Part 16: Painturo's (Mt. Juliet)
Friday Night Slice, Part 17: Brothers' Pizza (Franklin)
Friday Night Slice, Part 18: Snappy Tomato, Roma, and Jet's
Friday Night Slice, Part 19: Geadello's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 20: Michaelangelo's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 21: Caesar's Ristorante Italiano
Friday Night Slice, Part 22: Cool Springs Brewery (Franklin)

Got any suggestions for places that I should cover? Let me know!

Friday Night Slice, Part 22

Nice to see you again, Friday Night Slice.

It's been a while, but you still love pizza and so do we. You were once so committed to finding the best pizza in town and it's not time to give up now. Let's catch up on a few reviews so that we can meet some of Nashville's newer joints this Summer...

* * * * *

Cool Springs Brewery (formerly Guido's)



Oh Guido's. We all fondly remember the original 21st Avenue location (R.I.P.) with its thin slices of greasy pizza and tiny basement full of our fellow 15 to 17-year-olds in Chuck Taylors and oversized flannel shirts. The all-ages venue was the only place that you could get into and the only place where your friend's new band could plug in. The list of local talent alone that cut their teeth at Guido's is surely an impressive one - but that's another post better suited for this blog's other posters (we're waiting, BP and Andrew J).

My memories of Guido's had everything to do with that venue and nothing to do with their food. I'm certainly not saying that the pizza was bad, it's just that the pizza was never why I (or any of my friends) went there. So I remember being completely surprised when I heard that they were opening a satellite location in a strip mall in Cool Springs sometime around 2004.

When the Mr. and I visited (about a year before I was the Mrs.), it was nothing like the original Guido's. This Guido's had tables and waiters and black cloth napkins. It still claimed to have live music, but now in the form of sleepy jazz. The pizza had tried to go gourmet and they offered a build-your-own bar in the back. I must not have done a very good job building my own as we didn't go back until a new sign appeared on the door: Cool Springs Brewery.

Under new ownership, Cool Springs Brewery opened in late 2009 offering "the finest New York syle Pizzas [sic], Craft Brew and the best Live Music in town." Hmmm. The new name alone was not a good way to start our relationship. How do you present yourself as neighborhood microbrewery when Cool Springs is not really neighborhood? I recall a conversation that I had a few years back with a local hipster who commented on the fact that Cool Springs has Starbucks, McDonalds, Ann Taylor, Borders, GAP, and every other chain store imaginable. It has everything, he noted, except a SOUL (said with emphasis). He was a little overly concerned with the issue, but he was right.

So you bought a "be a microbrewery" kit and kept the little black stage in the corner, but how's the pizza?



In case you've forgotten how I roll, I only order pepperoni and cheese for these reviews.

The wait was a little long, but the pizza was piping hot with bubbly cheese and curling pepperoni cups, served on the traditional raised metal platter. The sauce and ingredients were fresh (as in, fresh from the fridge to the oven) but the taste was pretty typical. The tomato sauce was present but lacked any distinct good or bad flavor and the cheese was the standard, pre-grated, soft mozzarella blend. It was tasty, somewhat greasy, hot and gooey with a reasonable pullaway. The overall taste was pretty good, it just didn't have anything unique or interesting going on. Many of these joints must use the same food supplier.

The crust was not New York thin, but still in the thin family with a crunchy outside and soft interior around the edges. Not the greatest, but not half bad. You can sample the different pizzas at their daily lunch buffet and the menu additionally includes pastas, wings, stuffed mushrooms, subs, calzones, strombolis, salads and desserts (including a chocolate pizza). The Mr. didn't have much to say about the beer either. Ho hum. Maybe we should talk more about the old Guido's instead?


Cool Springs Brewery (formerly Guido's)
600A Frazier Drive, Ste. 135, Franklin, 37067 (map)
dine in and carry out


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BONUS: Lupi's Pizza Pies

FYI. Lupi's Pizza = worth the drive to Chattanooga.





So far on our journey through pizza in Tennessee, MAFIAoZA's, Pizza Perfect, Manny's and Joey's have dominated...but Lupi knocks these kids down with one punch! Oh no! Is there a Nashville contender that can compete? Stay tuned for the upcoming Friday Night Slice installments from the Pizza Buds food truck and City House.





Lupi's Pizza Pies
four locations in Chattanooga and Cleveland, Tennessee
dine in, delivery, carry out, take-and-bake and catering

* * * * *

Cold Pizza:
Friday Night Slice, Part 1: MAFIAoZA's and Joey's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 2: Pizza Perfect and Pizza Perfect Kebobs
Friday Night Slice, Part 3: Rudino's Pizza and Grinders
Friday Night Slice, Part 4: Chicago Style Italian Beef
Friday Night Slice, Part 5: Pie In The Sky
Friday Night Slice, Part 6: Castrillo's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 7: California Pizza Kitchen
Friday Night Slice, Part 8: Ahart's Pizza Garden (Murfreesboro)
Friday Night Slice, Part 9: New York Pizza Depot (Clarksville)
Friday Night Slice, Part 10: Matteo's Pizzeria
Friday Night Slice, Part 11: Angelo's Picnic Pizza (Antioch)
Friday Night Slice, Part 12: Manny's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 13: Nashville Pizza Co.
Friday Night Slice, Part 14: Brick's Cafe
Friday Night Slice, Part 15: Sal's Pizza (Hermitage)
Friday Night Slice, Part 16: Painturo's (Mt. Juliet)
Friday Night Slice, Part 17: Brothers' Pizza (Franklin)
Friday Night Slice, Part 18: Snappy Tomato, Roma and Jet's
Friday Night Slice, Part 19: Geadello's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 20: Michaelangelo's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 21: Caesar's Ristorante Italiano

Got any suggestions for places that I should cover? Let me know!

Friday Night Slice, Part 21

Caesar's Ristorante Italiano Yes, technically it's an Italian restaurant and not a pizzeria, but they make one of the best pizzas on this side of town, and by far the best one that will deliver to my house. Caesar's is located in the heart of Lion's Head on White Bridge Road. Those of us who've been around awhile will remember that the corner space that Caesar's occupies was once home to Q-Zar. Many birthday parties and Saturday afternoons of fun were had there. And not to brag, but I was pretty dominant in the Q-Zar arena. I had this strategy for scoring at the other team's base that was rock solid. By the way, apparently Q-Zar is still alive and well in other cities, and I have to admit that that makes me more than a little jealous. But I digress. Behold the Caesar's story:

Born in Carini, Palermo, a small city in Sicily, Caesar Randazzo graduated as an engineer. Because of the work shortage, he came to America and worked as a dishwasher and pizza delivery boy for his uncle's pizzeria in Brooklyn, New York. There he worked his way up and learned much about the restaurant business. Caesar migrated to Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1976, and opened five Italian restaurants, only to sell them all seven years later and move back home to Sicily. Caesar spent two years in Sicily before deciding that his future was in the U.S. He returned to Nashville, got lost, and ended up on White Bridge Road. Says Caesar, "I saw the parking lot at Lion's Head full of cars and people standing in a long line. I thought it was Times Square in New York." The people had come to the movie theater, and Caesar noticed that the restaurant space next to the theater was for rent. He contacted the landlord, and three months later opened his Ristorante Italiano.

Caesar's serves a full menu of Southern Italian and Sicilian favorites. You can order off of the menu, or they have a lunch buffet Monday through Friday. The place has a certain kitschy Italian charm, and the staff is very laid back and friendly, so it's a fun place to eat. The real appeal for me, however, is their delivery service. They deliver their full menu until...wait for it...4 AM! - seven days a week! That's right - if you have a craving for Veal Saltimbocca at 2:30 AM on a Tuesday, you can get it. Or you could get a pizza.

The pizza usually comes in one of those generic "PIZZA" boxes. This time it arrived in a plain white box.

They call it a Neopolitan-style pizza, but to me it seems like a New York style pie. It's got that thin, hand-tossed crust and it's very foldable. The crust is fantastic - crisp and chewy on the outside, and soft and warm on the inside. What really makes this pizza great, though, is the sauce. It's got vibrant tomato flavor, with lots of basil and oregano and some red pepper - it's definitely got some zip to it. The cheese is classic mozzarella, and there's plenty of it. Pull-away factor is high. Pepperoni is meaty and spicy.

Overall, a very good pizza, in my opinion. I don't think it's quite as good as the Manny's/Joey's gold standard, but I'd definitely put Caesar's among the best pizzas in town. Thank you, MRS, for letting me guest host F.N.S. the last two weeks! It's been fun! 

Caesar's Ristorante Italiano

72 White Bridge Road (Lion's Head Village), Nashville, TN 37205

615-352-3661

dine-in, delivery, carry out 

* * * * * Cold Pizza: 

Friday Night Slice, Part 1: MAFIAoZA's and Joey's House of Pizza 

Friday Night Slice, Part 2: Pizza Perfect and Pizza Perfect Kebobs 

Friday Night Slice, Part 3: Rudino's Pizza and Grinders 

Friday Night Slice, Part 4: Chicago Style Italian Beef 

Friday Night Slice, Part 5: Pie In The Sky 

Friday Night Slice, Part 6: Castrillo's Pizza 

Friday Night Slice, Part 7: California Pizza Kitchen 

Friday Night Slice, Part 8: Ahart's Pizza Garden (Murfreesboro) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 9: New York Pizza Depot (Clarksville) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 10: Matteo's Pizzeria 

Friday Night Slice, Part 11: Angelo's Picnic Pizza (Antioch) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 12: Manny's House of Pizza 

Friday Night Slice, Part 13: Nashville Pizza Co. 

Friday Night Slice, Part 14: Brick's Cafe 

Friday Night Slice, Part 15: Sal's Pizza (Hermitage) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 16: Painturo's (Mt. Juliet) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 17: Brothers' Pizza (Franklin) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 18: Snappy Tomato, Roma Pizza and Jet's Pizza 

Friday Night Slice, Part 19: Geadello's Pizza 

Friday Night Slice, Part 20: Michaelangelo's's Pizza

Friday Night Slice, Part 20

Hey, it's the guest host edition! While The Mrs is tending to some other things, I am going to take the next couple of weeks to tell you about the pizza options in my hood of West Meade. I apologize in advance for the photography, which will not live up to the high standard that The Mrs has established in this series of reports. Michaelangelo's Pizza

I guess Michaelangelo's has been around for about 10 years now. It was started by that South African guy who they bring in to talk about soccer on 104.5 The Zone. They started out with a location in Green Hills and a location on Elliston Place. The Green Hills location is no more, but they have replaced it with a location in Belle Meade. There is a website for the Elliston Place location. And another one here. But neither of them mention the other store. Maybe it is under different ownership? The location in Belle Meade, which is the one that I ordered from, is carry-out and delivery only, while the Elliston Place location has a dining room.

Like The Mrs, I prefer my pizza with pepperoni and extra cheese. This one is a large, and it was very reasonably priced at about eleven bucks. It's an attractive looking pie, with the cheese nicely browned and the edges of the crust nice and crispy. About that cheese - at Michaelangelo's, when you order "extra cheese," you get mozzarella and cheddar. The cheddar definitely gives the pizza unique taste, but it cuts down on the "pull-away factor" significantly, as melted cheddar just does not have the same stretchy, stringy qulaity as mozzarella. The pepperoni slices were of average quality, not especially spicy. My biggest disappointment with Michaelangelo's pizza is with the sauce. The sauce lacks any character whatsoever. It is bland, and completely fades into the background. Michaelangelo's pizzas are pan pizzas, which are not usually my perference, but definitely have some redeeming qualities. I like the crispy ring that is formed around the edge of the crust. But overall, the crust has a bready consistency and lacks any degree of chewiness. As a result, their crust always seems slightly undercooked to me. I'm not sure if The Mrs has mentioned this before, but one of the best things about pizza is eating it leftover and cold the next day. In this situation, I think Michaelangelo's pan crust works well. As it cools down and perhaps slightly stales, it tightens up. And out of the refrigerator, or even at room temperature, the crust becomes almost like focaccia, with a chewier texture. The result is a kind of savory pastry that makes for a good breakfast.

Michaelangelo's Pizza

5133 Harding Pike, Suite B-9, Nashville, TN 37205

615-352-8066

delivery, carry out

205 22nd Ave N, Nashville, TN 37203

615-329-2979

dine-in, delivery, carry out 

* * * * * Cold Pizza:

Friday Night Slice, Part 1: MAFIAoZA's and Joey's House of Pizza

Friday Night Slice, Part 2: Pizza Perfect and Pizza Perfect Kebobs

Friday Night Slice, Part 3: Rudino's Pizza and Grinders 

Friday Night Slice, Part 4: Chicago Style Italian Beef 

Friday Night Slice, Part 5: Pie In The Sky 

Friday Night Slice, Part 6: Castrillo's Pizza 

Friday Night Slice, Part 7: California Pizza Kitchen 

Friday Night Slice, Part 8: Ahart's Pizza Garden (Murfreesboro) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 9: New York Pizza Depot (Clarksville) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 10: Matteo's Pizzeria 

Friday Night Slice, Part 11: Angelo's Picnic Pizza (Antioch) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 12: Manny's House of Pizza 

Friday Night Slice, Part 13: Nashville Pizza Co. 

Friday Night Slice, Part 14: Brick's Cafe 

Friday Night Slice, Part 15: Sal's Pizza (Hermitage) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 16: Painturo's (Mt. Juliet) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 17: Brothers' Pizza (Franklin) 

Friday Night Slice, Part 18: Snappy Tomato, Roma Pizza and Jet's Pizza 

Friday Night Slice, Part 19: Geadello's Pizza

Friday Night Slice?

I know, I know...more like Friday Night Slackers.

This week's pizza review takes us a little north of our normal sphere of pizza influence: Louisville, Kentucky. Louisville is home to the famous Kentucky Derby, the Louisville Slugger baseball bat factory, the Bluegrass Balloon Festival, the world's largest Beatles festival, the original Lebowski fest, the former recipient of my paychecks: ear X-tacy, and the questionably safe Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom.

Louisville offers a wealth of local restaurants across every ethnicity and style. The streets are lined with unique bars, restaurants, bakeries, delis, and bistros in lieu of Logan's, Applebee's, Ruby Tuesday's and Chili's. And while Louisville also houses the world headquarters of Papa John's and Pizza Hut, there are an incredible number of local pizza parlors. After asking around and consulting Where The Locals Eat and the local alt-weekly, we decided to go with the 2009 people's choice winner.

Boom Bozz Famous Gourmet Pizza



In 1989, Tony Palombino opened Boom Bozz Pizza in Louisville. What began as a modest little parlor has evolved into a dominant force in the city with four packed locations where various local and international awards line the walls.

Boom Bozz, of course, does it all from scratch with a very thin and tangy tomato sauce base coated in 100% mozzarella cheese. The dense cheese has little pull away and gets a bit greasy, but boy is it tasty. The pepperoni surprises with its flavor and spice, building upon itself with a little heat as well. The crust is a little disappointing for a place that has everyone falling at its feet - it's a basic hand-tossed crust that's cooked well but has little to no flavor.



While I do it pepperoni-and-cheese-only-style for these reviews, it's clear that Boom Bozz brushes its shoulders off with its specialty pizzas. The D'Sienna (International Gourmet Pizza Winner) has a tomato cream sauce, mozzarella, asiago and romano cheeses along with fresh chopped spinach. The Pollotate (2008 International Pizza of the Year) has marinated grilled chicken with roasted potatoes and onions on a garlic olive oil crust with asiago and mozzarella. Boom Bozz offers starters (the fried ravioli is excellent), salads and sandwiches as well along with over 30 microbrews (the Magic hat has more than just a hint of apricot) from its new "Ice Bar" at the Bardstown Road location.

For the exotic specialty pizzas, I'll give it to you Boom Bozz...but c'mon Louisville, the hand-tossed pepperoni pizza just barely snuck above average.


Boom Bozz Famous Gourmet Pizza
Louisville: Springhurst, Clifton, the Highlands and J Town
dining in, delivery, carry out and catering

* * * * *

Cold Pizza:
Friday Night Slice, Part 1: MAFIAoZA's and Joey's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 2: Pizza Perfect and Pizza Perfect Kebobs
Friday Night Slice, Part 3: Rudino's Pizza and Grinders
Friday Night Slice, Part 4: Chicago Style Italian Beef
Friday Night Slice, Part 5: Pie In The Sky
Friday Night Slice, Part 6: Castrillo's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 7: California Pizza Kitchen
Friday Night Slice, Part 8: Ahart's Pizza Garden (Murfreesboro)
Friday Night Slice, Part 9: New York Pizza Depot (Clarksville)
Friday Night Slice, Part 10: Matteo's Pizzeria
Friday Night Slice, Part 11: Angelo's Picnic Pizza (Antioch)
Friday Night Slice, Part 12: Manny's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 13: Nashville Pizza Co.
Friday Night Slice, Part 14: Brick's Cafe
Friday Night Slice, Part 15: Sal's Pizza (Hermitage)
Friday Night Slice, Part 16: Painturo's (Mt. Juliet)
Friday Night Slice, Part 17: Brothers' Pizza (Franklin)
Friday Night Slice, Part 18: Snappy Tomato, Roma Pizza and Jet's
Friday Night Slice, Part 19: Geadello's Pizza


While my pizza reporting will continue to be sporadic throughout the remainder of the year, the quest for the best pizza isn't dead! Got any suggestions for places that I should cover? Let me know!

Friday Night Slice, Part 19

Geadello's Pizza

I was very excited when I recently spotted a brand spankin' new banner for a pizza parlor that I'd never heard of: Geadello's Pizza.



Yes that's right - a banner - it's not even old enough to have a permanent sign up yet! The business cards are printed, but it may be a bit early to have provided that web address.

Geadello's isn't entirely new though - just new in the realm of a neighborhood pizza shop. Geadello's has been operating as a catering company for several years in the area, offering pizzas for parties, events and corporate gatherings.

Starting with a modest menu of pizzas, subs, calzones and chicken wings, Geadello's offers hand-tossed pizzas in three sizes (small, medium and large) with all of the traditional topping options from pepperoni to mushrooms. There are only delivery and carry out options available as Geadello's has no dining room (the guest pickup room wasn't really even ready). But owner Joe LoCasto is friendly, flexible and works quickly. I popped in on the way home from "work" one afternoon, placed my order and in no time I was carrying out a piping hot large pepperoni and cheese pizza (that only cost me $11.00).



The thin, New York-style pie had a soft, floury crust that was without any outstanding notable flavors, but very good in its plainness with a great texture. There were occasional spots of powdery flour on the base, but sometimes that's just there to let you know that its handmade. The thick tomato sauce was a on the medium side in terms of spiciness, and despite the visible seasonings, the flavor was pretty average as well. The cheese and pepperoni, however, were outstanding. The mozzarella was fresh, gooey and great. I could have used a little more towards the edges though (which would have improved a low pull away score). The pepperoni was equally fresh and delicious - spicy and a little tangy as well. These two worked together beautifully in terms of taste, but they created quite a bit of grease. The blot was required.



Overall, it was a pretty darn good carry-out pizza, made to order with fresh ingredients. Simple, but tasty. Good luck Geadello's and welcome to the neighborhood!

Geadello's Pizza
4811 Trousdale Drive, Suite 1, Nashville, TN 37220 (map)
Call for more info and ordering: 615-832-5044
delivery, carry out, take-and-bake and catering

* * * * *

Cold Pizza:
Friday Night Slice, Part 1: MAFIAoZA's and Joey's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 2: Pizza Perfect and Pizza Perfect Kebobs
Friday Night Slice, Part 3: Rudino's Pizza and Grinders
Friday Night Slice, Part 4: Chicago Style Italian Beef
Friday Night Slice, Part 5: Pie In The Sky
Friday Night Slice, Part 6: Castrillo's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 7: California Pizza Kitchen
Friday Night Slice, Part 8: Ahart's Pizza Garden (Murfreesboro)
Friday Night Slice, Part 9: New York Pizza Depot (Clarksville)
Friday Night Slice, Part 10: Matteo's Pizzeria
Friday Night Slice, Part 11: Angelo's Picnic Pizza (Antioch)
Friday Night Slice, Part 12: Manny's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 13: Nashville Pizza Co.
Friday Night Slice, Part 14: Brick's Cafe
Friday Night Slice, Part 15: Sal's Pizza (Hermitage)
Friday Night Slice, Part 16: Painturo's (Mt. Juliet)
Friday Night Slice, Part 17: Brothers' Pizza (Franklin)
Friday Night Slice, Part 18: Snappy Tomato, Roma Pizza and Jet's Pizza

Got any suggestions for places that I should cover? Let me know!

Friday Night Slice, Part 18

While I typically turn my nose in snobbery, I'm dedicating this edition of Friday Night Slice to a few of the express chain pizza options - those second tier pizza delivery conglomerates that attempt to marry the quality and variety of the smaller shops with the prices and portability of Pizza Hut, Domino's and Papa John's.

I've often heard that one of the most appealing aspects of large-scale chain restaurants (in any genre - McDonald's, Olive Garden, Starbucks, etc.) is the concept of reliable consistency. There is something comfortable to a consumer about the fact that anywhere in the world, a Big Mac tastes like a Big Mac and a slice of Papa John's pizza tastes like rubber. It makes them feel a sense of control, perhaps, in this mysteriously chaotic and uncertain world? Anyway, with these less-than-global chains that I've chosen for this week's discussion, that uniformity is missing - which is probably a good thing. I have had different experiences at different locations and even with the same location on different days. So here are my general thoughts. What are yours?


* * * * *

Snappy Tomato



Snappy Tomato popped up in our area not long after we did (along with their ridiculous snapping tomato logo and some poor soul dressed in a life-sized version of it, standing outside in the hideous August heat). Started in Kentucky over 25 years ago, the franchise now has locations in Ohio, Indiana, Missouri, Florida and Alabama with four locations here in Middle Tennessee.

Snappy Tomato has a variety of carefully crafted (and heavily branded) pizzas from the Snappy Veggie™ to the Snappy Hawaiian™ and a few pizzas that start with alternate sauce bases such as the Buffalo Grilled Chicken Pizza™ and the BBQ Chicken Pizza™ that start with hot wing and BBQ sauce respectively, and the Snappy Ranch Pizza™ (guess what it starts with). Outside of their rectangular deep dish pizza The Beast® (not to be confused with the real The Beast), the standard pizzas are round, triangle-cut hand-tossed pizzas. The basic red sauce is unique with a big dose of sweetness in the tomatoey base. The medium-thin crust is rather sweet as well, pushed out to a thicker edge with a light, puffy roll. The cheese and other toppings are totally ho-hum, dabbling into CiCi's territory with some of the dessert pizzas (here you go, it's a can of chocolate pudding and peanut butter chips melted on top of a pizza crust).

Pricewise, you'd think they'd have a better logo based on how much they charge for their pizzas. They line up alongside the local spots with their cost, but more closely find themselves matching up with the big chains in terms of taste. The only reasonable value is found in the buffet, and you'll need to come hungry to get your money's worth. The restaurant on our side of town (the Nipper's Corner location) has been clean and staffed with friendly folks when I've stopped in, and despite the fears that usually rise inside of me when I hear the word buffet, theirs has been kept neat and freshly stocked on my visits. I think of Snappy Tomato as fast food that's better than most fast food, but fast food really isn't about the food.


* * * * *

Roma Pizza and Pasta



The locally owned Roma Pizza and Pasta has 19 locations across Middle Tennessee from Bellevue to Bordeaux, Dickson to Donelson and Madison to Murfreesboro. Started in 1999 by a business entrepreneur and an "old country" Italian baker, Roma offers homemade pizzas, calzones, pastas, wings, strombolis and salads - all prepared fresh daily using the freshest herbs, spices, oils, cheeses and other toppings. They prepare pizzas with both the standard toppings and more "gourmet" / offbeat options including a Philly Cheesesteak pizza and a Mexican Feast jalapeno and ground beef pizza. Their delivery prices are set up to seriously compete with the chains and they offer incredibly low take-out specials as well.

Roma's pizza is pretty middle-of-the-road in terms of flavor using a basic tomato-based sauce, a standard mozzarella cheese and the typical pepperoni rounds with minimal spice. I usually find that the sauce is applied somewhat thinly (not necessarily a bad thing) and the cheese pull-away factor is medium to medium-high. The crust is a medium thickness hand-tossed base with a good doughy flavor, but it has the tendency to harden quickly as you're eating.

Roma tends to get mixed reviews from everyone though, myself included. There was a time when I thought that it was pretty darn good and (especially since they delivered and were close) it was a great, cheap and easy Friday night option. Apparently, the quality varies from location to location with certain spots (i.e. the Donelson location) getting the dreaded low health ratings. For any restaurant, you can always check this out yourself, you know.

Of course, it's still better than Domino's.


* * * * *

Jet's Pizza



Jet's Pizza began as a small, single-location pizzeria in Michigan in the 1970s. Now located in 11 states, Jet's has 10 franchises in the Middle Tennessee area alone. Having never tried Jet's pizza, I was excited when they opened up a location nearby us in The Nip earlier this summer.

While known for their variety of crust flavors (poppy seed, butter, parmesan, garlic and more) and their variety of shapes and folds that create all kinds of crust quantity options, what sets Jet's apart is the incredible Eight Corner Pizza. The rectangular, deep dish pizza measures over an inch in height, cut into eight equal slices that each have their own corner crust.

The buttery crust has a soft, fluffy bottom and middle with a very crisp edge. The sauce ranges from decent to good with a little more spice and flavor than the average chain and small chunks of tomato throughout. The cheese is very good, applied heavily with a very high pull away factor. The pepperoni is very juicy (and pretty oily), but almost always cooked beautifully as each little round begins to turn up on the edges and get slightly crisp.

The prices are decent - comparable to the chains. If you must choose a delivery pizza place, this one gets my recommendation so far.


* * * * *

Cold Pizza:
Friday Night Slice, Part 1: MAFIAoZA's and Joey's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 2: Pizza Perfect and Pizza Perfect Kebobs
Friday Night Slice, Part 3: Rudino's Pizza and Grinders
Friday Night Slice, Part 4: Chicago Style Italian Beef
Friday Night Slice, Part 5: Pie In The Sky
Friday Night Slice, Part 6: Castrillo's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 7: California Pizza Kitchen
Friday Night Slice, Part 8: Ahart's Pizza Garden (Murfreesboro)
Friday Night Slice, Part 9: New York Pizza Depot (Clarksville)
Friday Night Slice, Part 10: Matteo's Pizzeria
Friday Night Slice, Part 11: Angelo's Picnic Pizza (Antioch)
Friday Night Slice, Part 12: Manny's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 13: Nashville Pizza Co.
Friday Night Slice, Part 14: Brick's Cafe
Friday Night Slice, Part 15: Sal's Pizza (Hermitage)
Friday Night Slice, Part 16: Painturo's (Mt. Juliet)
Friday Night Slice, Part 17: Brothers' Pizza (Franklin)

Got any suggestions for places that I should cover? Let me know!

Friday Night Slice, Part 17

Brothers' Pizza Company

Every pizza place you'll visit strives to have the best pizza in town, but Brothers' Pizza Company has a different mission: they serve "pizza with a purpose." Brothers' Pizza pledges to donate 100% of their proceeds to faith-based organizations.

Founder Devin Cundall had enjoyed a successful run in the internet industry as CIO of local real estate database powerhouse RealTracs. He decided to take a few years off and spend time with his family doing missions work around the world, visiting countries such as Sri Lanka and India. When they returned, they decided to open a new kind of businesstry (business + ministry) - "creating business to help fund community outreach and development." Choosing the name based on the concept of all men being brothers in Christ, Cundall and his family opened Brothers' Pizza Company, supporting such organizations as Against the Grain, Franktown Open Hearts, Compassion International and locally-based African Leadership. Photos of their travels are displayed in the restaurant:



So, how is the pizza?

Brothers' Pizza Company serves New York-style, hand tossed pizzas using a homemade sauce and fresh cut ingredients. Each pizza is made to order and ours arrived piping hot (seriously, straight out of the oven hot) at our table.



The basic tomato sauce had a good flavor: it was a rich, sweeter sauce with tasty tangy pops in places. The crust was thicker than most New York pies, but it was wonderfully dense to the edge then rolled under, creating a few little air pockets. The taste was excellent with a good crunchy bite on the bottom.

They weren't overly generous on the cheese, leaving just a medium pull-away. It was a good, solid cheese that certainly beats the chains but it wasn't anything spectacular. The pepperoni fell into the same ho-hum category, predictably tasting like the pepperoni slices I've had all over town.



At first, I would have given the pie an average review, noting the highlights of the sauce and crust. But with each bite I took, I found myself liking the pizza more and more. Hmmm. The restaurant itself was very clean with a friendly, helpful staff. I'll definitely visit again and certainly recommend that you give it a try as well.

Brothers' Pizza Company
1441 New Hwy 96 W, Franklin, TN 37064 (map)
Dine In, Delivery, Carry Out and Catering



* * * * *

Cold Pizza:
Friday Night Slice, Part 1: MAFIAoZA's and Joey's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 2: Pizza Perfect and Pizza Perfect Kebobs
Friday Night Slice, Part 3: Rudino's Pizza and Grinders
Friday Night Slice, Part 4: Chicago Style Italian Beef
Friday Night Slice, Part 5: Pie In The Sky
Friday Night Slice, Part 6: Castrillo's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 7: California Pizza Kitchen
Friday Night Slice, Part 8: Ahart's Pizza Garden (Murfreesboro)
Friday Night Slice, Part 9: New York Pizza Depot (Clarksville)
Friday Night Slice, Part 10: Matteo's Pizzeria
Friday Night Slice, Part 11: Angelo's Picnic Pizza (Antioch)
Friday Night Slice, Part 12: Manny's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 13: Nashville Pizza Co.
Friday Night Slice, Part 14: Brick's Cafe
Friday Night Slice, Part 15: Sal's Pizza (Hermitage)
Friday Night Slice, Part 16: Painturo's (Mt. Juliet)


Got any suggestions for places that I should cover? Let me know!

Friday Night Slice, from Africa

Friday Night Slice has been on hiatus throughout July, but will return next week continuing on our quest to find the best pizza in Middle Tennessee.

I took a break from the blogging as I traveled to Kenya to work with children in Kitui and in the Kibera slum of Nairobi.



During my stay in Kenya, I was served many local dishes (rice, kale, potato, roots, pumpkin leaves and other things), but pizza is not a commonly served dish.



Around Nairobi, there are several "Pizza Inn" take-out and delivery locations (unrelated to the American franchisee) that serve a wide variety of pizzas with unique topping combinations - a popular one, interestingly, is the barbecue pork pizza. But where I was able to order a slice of pizza towards the end of my trip was in the upscale Westgate Centre on the west side of town.



The pizza was a rustic, farmhouse-style pie baked in rectangular metal pans inside large electric ovens. The crust was good; it had a very average doughy flavor with a heavy dusting of flour where it was hand-rolled and pushed into the pan. The sauce was very distinct and while it was a thick, tomato-based sauce, it had spices that my palette was unable to identify. Overall, it was somewhat sweet with very earthy flavors and a little tiny bit of heat. Pepperoni was not a topping option (prosciutto, mushrooms, spinach and broccoli are the most commonly chosen), so I simply went with cheese. Like the Italians, these Kenyan chefs used a thick, creamy buffalo mozzarella. All of the buffalo mozzarella that I've tasted in the past (primarily on pizzas throughout central and Northern Italy) has a rich, buttery taste. The cheese on this pizza had the rich, complex flavor that I would expect, but it was a little more on the sour side and a lot heavier on the salt than I enjoy. Thankfully, I was not in Kenya for the pizza.

I had an extraordinary trip, but am glad to be home with my family and will get back to talking pizza with you again very soon!


* * * * *

Coming Soon - Brothers' Pizza Company in Franklin, Mineo's Wings, Pizza and Raw Bar in Cool Springs and more!

Friday NIght Slice, Part 16

Painturo's



Painturo's is local-grown Italian restaurant started by brothers Nick and Chad Painter and Nick's wife, Lisa. They first opened for business in their Lebanon location in 2000 (for reader's outside of the Middle Tennessee area, here that's pronounced Leb'nun), expanding to Gallatin in 2006 and Goodlettsville in 2008. They've won awards across surrounding counties, winning "Best Pizza in Sumner County" and "Best Pizza in Wilson County" just months after opening locations in each. In our quest for the best pizza in Middle Tennessee, we headed to the newest location: Mt. Juliet. Without my camera. Oops.

I don't usually mention the dining experience before the pizza, but as I walked through the door (a door that was held open for me by a staff member), I was immediately impressed. Painturo's is an order-and-sit, full service / fast food hybrid restaurant - and these types of restaurants typically lean towards the fast food column in the areas of service, cleanliness, lighting and decor. Painturo's, however, was pleasantly opposite as the staff was very friendly, the restaurant was extremely clean and the service was prompt. The interior dining room imitated an outdoor alley cafe with wooden shutters and string lights.

Now onto the pizza. Painturo's offers "Everyday Pizzas" (cleverly named classics such as the Cumberland Calamity and D's Delight) as well as "Exclusive Pizzas" - pizzas that are described as "edible works of art" and include more non-traditional, California-esque toppings. In addition to the pastas, calzones, sandwiches, salads and desserts, you can design your own pizza; ours was a small pepperoni and cheese.

The medium/thin crust pizza arrived piping hot. The modified St. Louis-style pie was divided with a diagonal party cut leaving diamond shaped "slices" to share. While unique, this cut makes it hard for crust lovers to find a good piece and there are plenty of odd, one-inch bits left around the edges.

The crust had a soft base with a crisper, no-rise edge and a light dusting of cornmeal. It's a wonder that it held up with all of the mounds of gooey, hot cheese draped on top of this pizza. This is some of the highest quantity of cheese I've seen on a pizza with a subsequent pull away factor that was very high. The flavor was mild and unexciting - a simple mozzarella blend - but the sheer amount was incredible. It clung to itself and was almost chewy. On top of the cheese were small, square chunks of reasonably spiced pepperoni that were wading in their tiny pools of grease.

The most notable element of the pizza was the sauce - though for me, that wasn't such a good thing. The sauce was slightly grainy with a bit of grittiness from the fresh spices. It was somewhat spicy, increasing in heat with each bite, but nothing could escape the overwhelming taste of fennel. Over the top on the fennel. Maybe you like fennel. Painturo's loves it. The spice was overpowered, the heavy presence of onion powder was overpowered, even the tomatoes were overpowered by the heavily aromatic FENNEL.

So, the dominant sauce flavor killed it for me. But that shouldn't stop you. Give it a try and tell me what you like. I would certainly go again and try a different pizza.



Painturo's
Lebanon, Goodlettsville, Gallatin and Mt. Juliet
All Locations Open Monday - Saturday
Dine In, Carry Out and Catering

* * * * *

Cold Pizza:
Friday Night Slice, Part 1: MAFIAoZA's and Joey's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 2: Pizza Perfect and Pizza Perfect Kebobs
Friday Night Slice, Part 3: Rudino's Pizza and Grinders
Friday Night Slice, Part 4: Chicago Style Italian Beef
Friday Night Slice, Part 5: Pie In The Sky
Friday Night Slice, Part 6: Castrillo's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 7: California Pizza Kitchen
Friday Night Slice, Part 8: Ahart's Pizza Garden (Murfreesboro)
Friday Night Slice, Part 9: New York Pizza Depot (Clarksville)
Friday Night Slice, Part 10: Matteo's Pizzeria
Friday Night Slice, Part 11: Angelo's Picnic Pizza (Antioch)
Friday Night Slice, Part 12: Manny's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 13: Nashville Pizza Co.
Friday Night Slice, Part 14: Brick's Cafe
Friday Night Slice, Part 15: Sal's Pizza (Hermitage)

Got any suggestions for places that I should cover? Let me know!

Friday Night Slice, Part 14

Brick's Cafe



Brick's Cafe is one of the relatively newer joints in town, opened in 2003 in its Franklin (Fieldstone Farms) spot. The locally owned and operated restaurant now has three locations across town, taking a spot in the recently renovated Brentwood Place Shopping Center (next to Five Guys) and taking over the space formerly occupied by Uncle Gio's Pizza (R.I.P.) on Nolensville Road in the South Nashville Cane Ridge area.

A friend of mine has been recommending Brick's for a few weeks now and she was kind enough to join me at the Brentwood location to split a pepperoni and cheese pizza for this week's installment of Friday Night Slice.

Side note about aforementioned friend: She used to be a vegetarian. She is currently married to a butcher / meat manager. *Used to* be a vegetarian.

Brick's touts itself as a causal restaurant that specializes in brick oven pizzas. Unlike other places I've visited, there was no denying the authenticity here as a huge, open face, fiery brick oven overlooks the dining room. The place was much jazzier than I was expecting with skinny beverage glasses and swanky black linens, and the menu was far more expansive than I had anticipated as well. Brick's offers soups, salads, sandwiches and pastas along with a large, inventive pizza menu including a Crawfish and Hot Sausage pie.



Our pepperoni and cheese pizza arrived piping hot. Steam escaped as we removed the first triangular-cut slice to reveal a heavy, high pull-away factor cheese that was immediately promising. The cheese and the sauce equally vie for attention in the first bite as both are unique and delicious. The sauce is thick and sweet with small tomato chunks and fresh spices that step out of the standard Italian comfort zone. The cheese is a tangy mozzarella with a smoked provolone that is thick, smooth and absolutely amazing. The crust was distinct and surprising as well - a thin crust with a soft, flexible base, fluffy interior and cracker-crisp outside edge. The pepperoni was rather mild, but fresh, tasty and a perfect complement to the sauce.



Everything about Brick's was a pleasant, welcome surprise. We've all had the ho hum wood fired pizzas in "regular restaurants" where chefs attempt to cover a multitude of sins with a heavy sprinkling of random spices (I'm pointing to you, Bosco's), but Brick's appropriately marries unique flavors and offers a great pizza that is different than what you'll find in most places around middle Tennessee. I'll definitely be back to explore the menu more. Thanks, Rachel!

Brick's Cafe
3 Locations: Nashville, Brentwood and Franklin
Sun-Thur 11am-9pm, Fri-Sat 11am-10pm
Dine In and Take Out

* * * * *

Cold Pizza:
Friday Night Slice, Part 1: MAFIAoZA's and Joey's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 2: Pizza Perfect and Pizza Perfect Kebobs
Friday Night Slice, Part 3: Rudino's Pizza and Grinders
Friday Night Slice, Part 4: Chicago Style Italian Beef
Friday Night Slice, Part 5: Pie In The Sky
Friday Night Slice, Part 6: Castrillo's Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 7: California Pizza Kitchen
Friday Night Slice, Part 8: Ahart's Pizza Garden (Murfreesboro)
Friday Night Slice, Part 9: New York Pizza Depot (Clarksville)
Friday Night Slice, Part 10: Matteo's Pizzeria
Friday Night Slice, Part 11: Angelo's Picnic Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 12: Manny's House of Pizza
Friday Night Slice, Part 13: Nashville Pizza Co.

Got any suggestions for places that I should cover? Let me know!