Did Someone Say Pizza?

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, 50 and sunny, so we decided to trek to Mount Pleasant. It's a cute small town, population ~4200, about 30 minutes from where we live. There was an antique store in town we wanted to hit (Janford and Son - yep, you read that right) and then we parked downtown and walked for a bit. The town serves as a sort of gateway to the Laurel Highlands, part of the Allegheny Mountains. Mount Pleasant once had a thriving glassmaking economy (an item in the antique store was a tote bag that read "Stay Glassy, Mount Pleasant") which means the town once had money - and there are some beautiful old homes and commercial buildings to show for it. There are also four pizza places on my list in Mount Pleasant. One of them, The Village, was recommended by a staff member at Laurel Highlands Meadery early in our pizza journey, so I was excited to finally give it a try. Neither the website nor the Facebook page has any information about the history of the rest

We had a pizza visit planned for the weekend, but wanted to first take advantage of the return of a popular fish fry on Friday night. The Claridge Volunteer Fire Department cancelled its fish fry in 2022 because of supply chain issues, but in prior years it consistently showed up on Top Ten fish fry lists for Westmoreland County so we were excited to see it back. The fish fry is held at Colton Hall, a banquet facility in the small town of Claridge, PA (population around 600). Because of the past positive press, the fish fry draws folks from all over the county and the Pittsburgh metro region in general.  We arrived at about 5:25 and were happy to see that the line was, while out the door, fairly short. Claridge has its order takers sit right inside the door. You order, pay, get a number, and then go inside to get drinks, grab a seat, and wait. The menu is neither the smallest nor the most extensive we've seen, but what is unusual is the availability of both broiled fish and spicy b

NOTE: Because Chip and I are fish fry aficionados, my pizza reviews will be interspersed with brief fish fry reviews during Lent.  ********** Last year was an absolutely miserable year for fish fries in western Pennsylvania. Although COVID restrictions had loosened, widespread supply chain issues led to the cancellation of most of our favorite fish fries. And of those that were left, most were just doing drive-through or carryout rather than dine-in.  It's interesting to see that while most of the VFD and social club fish fries have returned for 2023, the church ones have not. Many have permanently cancelled their fish fries, with a few moving to carryout only. There are only two churches on my list of about a dozen that interest us this year, and one is actually a joint church/VFD initiative that was held last year at the VFD and this year at the church (I think it's a cool partnership for other communities to consider). Only about a third of the participating organizations ac

Last night's pizza outing was our first dine-in experience in a few weeks, and it was a good one. We went to a pizza place called Little E's in Greensburg. Chip and I had tried it years ago but didn't remember much about it. Our friends Jim and Beth (who had joined us at Jioio's) accompanied us. But first, a little about the beginning of our evening. We'd originally intended to try a different   pizza joint, but our interaction there was so weird that I was convinced it was the start of a classic horror movie. Or a really bad dining experience. Or maybe both. Welcome to Abie & Bimbo's. Abie & Bimbo's has operated in Greensburg since 1967, and wins local awards not only for their pizza but also their massive fish sandwiches during Lent. Chip and I ate there once years ago and I remember really liking the pizza. They also serve bottled beer, always a plus when chowing down on a hot, fresh pizza pie. We pulled into the parking lot at about 5:30, and the

With Chip still recovering, we opted for another carryout experience this weekend. A local friend mentioned about a decade ago that one of his favorite pizzas was Prime Time Pizza, just a few miles (8, to be exact) up State Route 66 from us. Ten years later and we hadn't tried it, so we decided it was time. We invited our friends Jen and Tom to join us. Even though we live in a relatively small town environment, we're still suburban enough that we can typically be at one of six or seven pizza shops within 10 minutes. Prime Time Pizza is just far enough out of the suburban bubble that a) there's nothing else around it except a small office building, and b) it's probably the only pizza shop in an 8-mile radius. This is what SR 66 looked like on our trip to pick up the pizza. Normally you would think a pizza joint that has been around for so many years has to be pretty good, right? But because it's the only option for so many miles, I didn't have super high expecta

Chip's surgical procedure this week and subsequent recovery means that for the next few weeks, we'll be sampling some of the carryout-only pizza places in the area. Luckily there are a few within 15 minutes of where we live, which makes it more likely that the pizza will arrive at home hot and fresh. We decided to try a spot that's been open less than a year, Five Points Pizzeria. The intersection where it's located is called Five Points because it's where PA State Routes 22, 819, and 1031 come together, making a five-pointed star. In other words, this intersection gets lots of drive-by traffic every day.  But somehow, nothing seems to make it in this location. At least four pizza places and a c afé have occupied the building in the last 15 or 20 years, but none have made it more than four or five years. Chip and I patronized at least one previous iteration, and found the food good but the atmosphere dingy. Maybe the building is cursed? Or haunted? It certainly look