Show me a restaurant that does the small things well, and I will bet the price of a good lunch that it does the big things well too. So it is with Locals Food Hub & Pizza Pub, a combined local food market and quick-service eatery on East Broadway in Louisville’s Smoketown neighborhood.
Continue reading Doing good by eating well at LocalsCategory Archives: Italian (and Pizza)
Wheated brings great pizza and a taste of Flatbush
By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
You wouldn’t expect Brooklyn’s Flatbush neighborhood to have a deep resonance with Louisville, but that erroneous conclusion overlooks the importance of Harold Henry “Pee Wee” Reese.
Continue reading Wheated brings great pizza and a taste of Flatbush
Perso gets the small things and the big things right
By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
One of the first things I noticed when I took my seat at a table in Perso was the high quality of the table itself: Burnished wood, smooth as silk, it reminded me of the work of Shaker artisans.
Then I unrolled the black cloth napkin and noticed something unusual about the quality stainless flatware: Every surface was mirror-shiny, without a single dishwasher spot in sight, almost as if each piece had been wiped clean by hand before service.
And speaking of service, that was great too: Friendly but not smarmy, attentive but not bothersome, there when we needed them, good with eye contact and a smile.
So what, you say? How about the food?
Continue reading Perso gets the small things and the big things right
Looking for Mr. Goodpizza: The Post
By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
I love pizza. You know that. I consider it one of nature’s most perfect foods, a balanced and nutritious blend of fat, protein, and mmm, mmm. carbs in a delicious meal on a plate that you can eat with your fingers or, if you must, knife and fork.
I’m so fond of this treat from Naples by way of New York City, widely modified across the United States and made indisputably our own, that I could review it every week if only my editors would let me.
But lately, it seems, I’ve been striking out on pizza just often enough to make me wonder if my tastes are changing or if pizza is.
Continue reading Looking for Mr. Goodpizza: The Post
From Napa to Osteria: Italian seafood in Westport Village
By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
Napa River Grill enjoyed a very good run before it renovated and rebranded as Osteria Italian Seafood last month.
Its name recently foreshortened to just-plain Napa, the upscale Northern California-style eatery had endured for 24 years, a long life for a restaurant.
Continue reading From Napa to Osteria: Italian seafood in Westport Village
We pick a plate of pickle pizza at Craft House
By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
I’m sure I’ve confessed this before: I’m a pizza snob. I learned pizza in New. York City, with graduate studies in Italy, and I want my pizza authentic, artisanal, and made according to tradition. Pineapple pizza? Harrumph! I’m not even comfortable with jalapeños or broccoli on my pie.
But then I spotted a pickle pizza with Pop’s Pepper Patch Spicy Habagardil pickles on top. Hey, now! A strange yet irresistible call lured me out to Craft House Pizza’s new shop on Hurstbourne Parkway. I need this in my life! Continue reading We pick a plate of pickle pizza at Craft House
Lupo’s pizza is tops … and that’s not all
By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
I did a quick double-take when I heard that Pizza Lupo had won “Best Pizza” honors in LEO Weekly’s Reader’s Choice awards.
Not that it isn’t worthy. Lupo’s wood-fired, leopard-spotted pies with their quality toppings are a go-to for me whenever I have pizza in mind. After all, “Pizza” is the restaurant’s first name. Continue reading Lupo’s pizza is tops … and that’s not all
MozzaPi’s pizza remains near and dear to my heart
By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
I’m pretty sure I’ve told you before that pizza is one of my favorite foods. I can’t think of a one of Louisville’s 60-some pizzerias that I would flatly reject. Well, possibly some of the national chains, unless I was really hungry.
I mean, what’s not to like about pizza? It’s relatively healthy, a thin base of bread that, excepting the occasional deep-dish pie, imparts barely enough carbs to bother anyone. A layer of delicious tomato sauce, a layer of delicious cheese, some tasty meats or veggies of your liking on top … why, you’ve got all of the food groups on your plate! Continue reading MozzaPi’s pizza remains near and dear to my heart
Goodfellas makes us an offer we can’t refuse
By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
Let’s welcome Goodfellas Pizzeria to Louisville! The first local outlet of a small but quickly growing Lexington-based chain, this corner spot in the Baxter Apartments at Bardstown Road and Baxter Avenue joins sibling eateries in Indianapolis and the Cincinnati area.
The pizza is good, the meatballs impressive, and the scene looks like a spot in New York City’s Little Italy. Well, a little bit, anyway. Continue reading Goodfellas makes us an offer we can’t refuse
Derby City Pizza scores with pizza and pasta
By Robin Garr
LouisvilleHotBytes.com
Everybody knows that I’m a huge fan of pizza, but I have my standards! I like pizza best the way they make it in New York City, or even Italy: It’s good bread, flatbread, with toppings added proportionately, not overloaded.
You want a thin but substantive crust, and you want a puffy browned edge – the “bones” – dotted with plenty of browned leopard spots.
Or that’s what I thought until I picked up a pizza to go from Derby City Pizza in Clifton the other day. Continue reading Derby City Pizza scores with pizza and pasta