August 26, 2023: A Pizza Catch-Up
I can't believe it's been 2 months since I last posted. I certainly haven't been trying new pizza places every week since then, but I do have 3 (very brief) reviews to share. I guess I determined what it takes to burn out on pizza - 6 months of eating it almost weekly. I also started eating a little more healthfully back in April, and pizza didn't fit in quite as often as it had.
So I'll just write a few sentences about the last 3 places we tried.
Johnny's Wife's Place - July 8, 2023
Chip and I have eaten at JWP several times, but we almost always get a sandwich or wings. I saw on Facebook that they had a special with a large 1-topping pizza and a dozen wings for $20. Not the wing dings, but JUMBO wings, so we couldn't turn that down. We got two specials, since our friends don't eat pork and you know we love pig on our pizza.
We got a pizza that was 1/2 sausage and shroom and 1/2 pepperoni and shroom; one pizza that was half extra cheese and half meatball; a dozen Thai chili wings; and a dozen dry seasoned ones.
The wings were good, if a little dry. The pizzas were good but not exceptional. The hand tossed crust was good, and the sauce was slightly sweet but not a distraction. The mushrooms were perfect: fresh, and sliced very thin. But the sausage didn't have much going for it, and the meatballs were a little bland.
The cheese is where this pizza stood out. It was flavorful and perfectly gooey.
Since JWP has a very good Reuben, I'm not certain I'd get the pizza there again.
July 29, 2023: Dewey's
Chip and I went to Columbus for my birthday weekend, to visit old friends and also go to the state fair. We decided to try a local or regional pizzeria while we were there. We landed on Dewey's in Worthington.
First, let me say that Worthington was a super charming little town, with a couple of blocks of downtown shops, bars, and restaurants that were hopping on a Saturday night. So that added to the fun of the evening. Dewey's was on the corner in the middle of the action. They had outdoor seating, but no good shade so we opted to eat inside.
The menu wasn't huge - just pizza, and salad. We opted to try two pizzas. The first was a white pizza. I had my half with ricotta and Kalamata olives, while Chip got onions and pepperoni. It was DELICIOUS. The crust was thin(ish) but supported the toppings beautifully. The olives were chopped small and were deliciously salty, and the ricotta wasn't overwhelming. The onions were caramelized but weren't super sweet. However, the sauce was pretty garlicky, so if you indulge you need to make sure that your companions do also.
We asked the waitress whether the red pizzas were very saucy, and she indicated that if we didn't like a lot of sauce we should order it light. So we did, but when the sausage and shroom pizza arrived it had almost NO sauce. That was disappointing. The fresh mushrooms were delicious and the mozzarella was creamy. The sausage was a tiny bit spicy, but the rounds were sort of strange.
All in all, Dewey's was a great experience and if we had one in western PA, we'd certainly eat there again.
Mythical Pizza: August 17, 2023
My friend Andrea and I went on a stitching getaway weekend to Berkeley Springs, West Virginia, and on our first night in town we drove south a couple of miles to this pizzeria with a great name. When we walked in, we understood the name - it was cryptid central. There were lots of cool cryptid and alien motifs everywhere (and a Mothman poster that I wanted ever so badly to steal).
There were a few other folks ordering carryout, but for most of the time we were there we were the only ones eating in. The staff was super nice. They also had this great selection of off-beat sodas that were privately labeled with their name. I had the raspberry lime rickey, and it was delicious.
The pizza, when it arrived, was absolutely delicious. The crust was exactly the way I like it - a little crisp on the bottom with a thin spongy layer above. The sausage tasted like what I call Louisville sausage, so it likely had fennel in it. The cheese was tasty with a good pull. I was most disappointed in the mushrooms; they were canned, and not browned at all. I guess you can't get everything. Still a highly rated pizza in my book.
Well, that's it, folks, you're all caught up! I'm certain I'll have a few more pizzas to review before all is said and done, so stay tuned!
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