Week 41: Patrizio

Family was in town this week and we can think of no better way to share time together than around the dinner table.  After careful review of close-by restaurants and reader input we decided to try Patrizio’s.  With a total of 6 locations around the Dallas Metroplex we opted to to stay close and try the Highland Village location.  While it wasn’t our first visit to Patrizio’s, it was our first time to try the pizza.  Located in the beautiful Shops of Highland Village, the restaurant had an elegant dining area and felt borderline “fancy.”  The upscale ambiance would be appropriate for a date night location but also very appropriate for kids of all ages (crayons not included).

One thing to note immediately was that while the sign stated “Pizza, Pasta and Vino” this is definitely an Italian restaurant that offers pizza, and not a pizza restaurant.  This is a fine distinction that must be noted.  Many pizza places we’ve been to this year just so happen to offer Italian style dishes as an afterthought. Patrizio’s felt as though Italian dishes were the focus, while the pizza was the afterthought.  Everyone at the table ordered some type of pasta or salad and I decided to try the specialty pizza.  Unfortunately, because it was on the inserted Specials Menu, I have no idea what it was called.  Imagine a pizza covered in shrimp, broccoli, mushrooms, red peppers, and corn...  Certainly an unusual selection of toppings, and therefore I requested to have one half of the pizza meatballs and black olives.  The additional toppings section on the menu consists of 17 different choices all for an extra $1.79.  The pizza comes in one size and will cost you $10.70 (with no toppings).

The waitress brought out a table full of delicious pasta and salad plates and I got to enjoy the pizza all by myself.  One thing I quickly noticed was that the entire pizza was the specialty pizza and half included my meatballs and olives.  My hope was that it would be split 50/50 which made for a very interesting 1/2 pizza with EVERYTHING.  The waitress was very apologetic and offered to make a whole new pizza, but we declined due to the fact that the kids were getting a little restless...  Overall the pizza was good, not great, but good.  I would defiantly not get the shrimp specialty again and stick to the more standard offering.  The crust was relatively thin and almost had a buttery cracker flavor to it.  The toppings, although not what I ordered, were fresh and plentiful.

The Final Report: 6 out of 10

Patrizio’s is certainly a place that we would recommend if you are looking for a nice Italian restaurant.  That being said, it probably wouldn’t make the top of our list if we were going to point you in the direction of delicious pizza.  The wine was good. The salad was good. The pasta was good. The pizza was OK. 

Week 40: Extreme Pizza

Time flew by this past week, but we always make time for pizza. As we head down the home stretch of 2011 - finding pizza locations has become slightly trickier. For our adventure this week we were looking for something, shall we say, "extreme." With what feels like a pizza chain on every corner, one way to distinguish yourself is with the name. If you find yourself staring at list of a bunch of restaurants chances are it's name will be what draws you in. We found ourself in that exact situation last week, and Extreme Pizza got the call solely because of our curiosity in the restaurant's name...



Tucked in the upscale neighborhood of the Park Cities we saw more Bently's and Ferarri's drive by than the past 40 weeks combined. The location looked the part with an "extreme" interior design and pizza menu. The place was empty and we got our order in right away. Because of all the options we got a little carried away with the toppings. On the meatless pizza we chose 1/2 Pandora's Box (Spinach, Artichoke Hearts, Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Feta, Fresh Garlic and spices) and 1/2 Peace In The Middle East (Hummus, Tomatoes, Olives, Onions, Feta, and Pepperoncinis). On the second medium pizza we picked 1/2 Ragin' Rooster (BBQ Chicken, Red Onions, Fresh Cilantro, Cheddar and Mozzarella) and 1/2 Everest (Italian Sausage, Pepperoni, Salami, Ground Beef). We also threw in a small cheese to keep the little ones happy. Our total for the order, including 2 Brooklyn Lagers totaled just shy of $50. Considering we got 3 "extreme" pizzas and some drinks the price was slightly higher than average, but not by much.


We grabbed a spot on the patio and enjoyed the people watching while we waited for the food. Being the only customers in the place on a Monday night, the food hit the table after a short wait and we begun our analysis....

Without diving deep into each pizza style, here are the main points: the topping combos were tasty and unique; the crust looked and tasted pre-made (although we actually saw it being hand stretched); the over all quality of cheeses, sauces, and toppings was high; it had more of a lunchtime "pizza by the slice" vibe rather than a family dinner night out location... Overall the presentation gave you the feeling that it was a higher end "franchise" pizza joint.

The Final Report: 7.0 out of 10

We have less than a dozen pizza visits left this year. It's hard to believe that we're almost done. Let us know which places we have missed so we can squeeze them in before we get to 2012. Thanks!

Week 39: Domino's Pizza

So this week we cheated.  At least we feel like we did.  Sitting on the couch, watching football, slowly growing more and more hungry, the same commercial kept popping up.  Domino’s is REALLY trying to sell their new “Artisan” pizza!  We had a busy week and we thought - why not?  Let’s see what they consider “artisan.”

We hopped on the Domino’s website, entered our online coupon code and ordered the Italian Sausage & Pepper Trio and the Spinach & Feta, plus one small plain cheese for the girls.  As the website showed us the progress of our pizza being cooked, we jumped in the car to pick it up, only 5 minutes from our house.

The Artisan pizzas were pretty cheap - $7.99 for each, although they really got us with the plain small for $8.99 (really!?!)  They were fast, and their website ordering is actually really fun... but guess what... Domino’s Artisan pizza is still Domino’s, just in a new shape.  The crust is the same, the toppings might be in a different combination, but they are the same too.  It is a step above DiGiorno, but not by much.  Don’t be sold by the creative looking chef in the commercial; it is still delivery, it is still Domino’s, and although your kids might love it (ours did) you definitely don’t get any of the originality, flavor, or freshness of a truly good pizza.

Disappointed?... a little.  Surprised?... not really.

The Final Report: 5.0 out of 10

If you must order from Domino’s - skip the Artisan pizzas and stick with their thin crust, it’s actually fairly decent.  

Week 38: Celio's Chicago Style Pizza

All year, one of our goals has been to find real authentic Chicago style pizza.  We continued our search this week after Google informed us there was a Chicago pizza place called Celio's in Keller (www.celioschicagopizza.com).  We have been to a few impostors and a couple that really hit the Chicago mark.  Like any style, we have found many variations - so we thought this week we would measure Celio's and catch some Rangers baseball while we're at it...

First of all, the location is not very easy to find.  Tucked back away from Keller Parkway behind the Lions Club, we passed right by and had to make a u-turn.  The bar area looked packed with baseball fans and we were greeted by what appeared to be the owners sitting outside enjoying the cool fall evening.  We headed over to the dining area  away from the bar where we had the entire place to ourselves.  The walls were decorated with Chicagoland maps where patrons had placed a sticker to show where they were from.  A little "hole-in-the-wallish," this place definitely had a Chicago feel  almost 1000 miles from the Windy City.

We came for one reason and one reason only: to try the deep dish pizza.  The owner stopped by to introduce herself and explain that the pizza was a mix between Giordano's and Lou Malnoti's (if that doesn't mean anything to you, Google it).  So with our hopes and expectations sky high we placed our order and began our wait.  True Chicago Pizza will take quite a bit longer than your standard cook time, but we came prepared to wait.  After about 30 minutes and a tasty $3 draft, our pizza was hot and on the table.  Our first impression was slight disappointment.  Chicago Pizza should be covered with a beautiful red sauce with a crust handle peaking high above the toppings.  Celio's had tomatoes sprinkled on towards the middle, but was far from a red sauce covered pie.  One half of the pizza was covered with veggies and the other half was a meat lover (Large Deluxe Pizza cost $18) .  The taste of the pizza was good but nowhere near the Giordano's/Lou Malnoti's mentioned during our order.  The crust was average and was thick on one side and much thinner on the other.  Another true test was that we almost finished the entire pie, which is near impossible with authentic Chicago Style pizza.

The Final Report: 6.0 out of 10


The staff at Celio's was very accommodating and filled with Chicago pride.  They certainly earned extra credit for keeping the Chicago Style theme alive in DFW.  The menu also included Chicago Hot Dogs and Italian Beef sandwiches.  Our guess is that Celio's gets packed when the Bears/Cubs/Blackhawks/Bulls are playing.  The hunt for delicious Chicago Pizza in Dallas/Ft. Worth will continue, Celio's didn't quite measure up to Chicago's Street Pizza (Week 11) or Chicago's Pizza Cafe (Week 24) but was WAY better than Chicago's Gourmet Pizza (Week 20).    

Week 37: Maurizio's

If you are looking for delicious pizza in the city of Coppell you can drive right past Maurizio’s on the corner of Denton Tap Road and Sandy Lake.  There aren't many "non-franchise" choices in the area, but we thought we'd experiment this week by trying it out.  Simply put, there was nothing that stood out as memorable.  It was Homecoming night for Coppell HighSchool and a few tables were taken, but other than that, the place was dead for a Saturday night.  The menu had several Italian staples which we steered away from, but there were a handful of pizzas listed on the centerfold.

Our waiter took our order, and we kept it simple by ordering a Margherita pizza, a “Verdure” pizza, and Bruschetta to start.  The appetizer was four slices of bread covered with tomatoes and some seasonings.  While it wasn't bad, the effort was pretty weak and something that could easily have been prepared by our 4 year old. After a short wait our $10 pizzas emerged from the kitchen.  Unlike Campania last week, the amount of "fresh" basil on this week's pizza was 6 small flecks evenly spaced, one per slice.  The Verdure pizza was almost as creative, their idea of seasonal vegetables was a nonchalant attempt to dump canned mushrooms, artichokes, and others carelessly across the surface of the pizza.  Everything about the experience was average at best, and the service - while not inconsiderate, was non-existent.

The Final Report: 5.5 out of 10

The pizza at Maurizio’s was certainly edible, but absolutely not worth a return visit.  Cavalli's is just 5 minutes south on Denton Tap (Beltline Rd) across 635, and they'll make you a pizza worth talking about....