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Posts tagged ‘Pizza in Oklahoma’

Food Friday: Ben & Jay’s Pizzeria

I would never expect to find some of the best pizza in Oklahoma in the small town of Chickasha but here we are. In an unassuming building on the east end of historic downtown Chickasha sits Ben & Jay’s Pizzeria.

We had been walking around the downtown area, it was getting hot and we were ready to sit down for lunch. We found the pizzeria and decided to try it. We started with the mozzarella sticks. These came out pretty quick and were pretty good. But the real star of the show was the Italian pizza we ordered. Didn’t have to wait long for this delightful treat to come out. A thin crust pizza with Alfredo sauce and lots of salami, pepperoni, Italian sausage, and banana peppers. Every bite was full of flavor. The pizza was also easy to pick up, the thin crust didn’t get soggy. This was truly one of the best pizzas I’ve had in Oklahoma.

The service was great as well. The staff was friendly and we never had empty cups. The building is historic as well, built in 1940, it was originally a Trailways Bus Depot. The dining room area was a covered loading area until sometime after 2007, when it was enclosed. Ben & Jay’s Pizzeria looks to have been in Chickasha for many years, for a while under the name BJ’s Pizza. So if you are in Chickasha, check them out. I’ll give the m 5 strips of bacon.

Address: 208 W. Chickasha Ave., Chickasha.

Food Friday: Donatos Pizza

Once again, I don’t often review chain restaurants but I will let this one slide. Donatos Pizza is big in Ohio and came to Oklahoma a while back. We had heard good things about them, so one night Big K stopped by to get takeout.

We started with the garlic asiago cheese bread. This was as good as it sounds. Lots of asiago cheese melted to the top of the bread with a good amount of garlic butter slathered on top of it all. Judging from the bread alone I knew the pizza was going to be good as well. We got a Founders Favorite to try. It is a good pizza. Pepperoni, sausage, shaved ham with banana peppers. I enjoyed every bite. We got it on thin crust which had a nice light flavor. The only thing that threw me off at first was the fact the pizza wasn’t cut like normal, it was in squares. Interesting, didn’t affect the taste. On a second visit we got the hot honey pepperoni. This is an awesome pizza. I’m really starting to like the hot honey trend and it really works on this pizza.

Overall we really liked Donatos Pizza and are looking forward to trying more of their pizzas in the future. I give them 5 strips of bacon.

Address: 1148 S. Bryant Ave., Edmond.

Food Friday: Dado’s Pizza

We’ve both heard a lot about Dado’s Pizza over the past few years, it has been called the best pizza in Oklahoma City. I finally got to try them out a few weeks ago and even though I haven’t experienced New York pizza yet, this might be as close as I get in Oklahoma City.

It’s actually hard to find at first, stuffed in the middle of a strip mall. Dado’s Pizza is small, when you walk in you are greeted by a huge case with slices of pizza. You can get the pizza by the slice or a whole pie. Because Big K was hungry, we went with a whole pizza as well as an order of mozzarella sticks. Now the restaurant isn’t very big since many of their customers do take out, there is some outdoor seating, as well as a few spots near the door and in the back. We went to the back and waited for our food to arrive. It didn’t take long for the mozzarella sticks. These were big sticks that were almost a meal by themselves. Really good, lots of cheese pull. Then the pizza arrived. We went with the three meats pizza, loaded with sausage, bacon, and pepperoni. It was huge and meant to be eaten the way they do in New York, by folding it. To be honest, I’ve never eaten a slice of pizza that way but it worked. The crust was light, the crushed tomatoes weren’t overpowering. Loved the flavor of the meats, the only downside was I thought there could have been more cheese.

Overall we both loved it. I think next time, I’ll just get a slice or two and not a whole pizza. Maybe try some of their other varieties. I give them 5 strips of bacon.

Address: 10942 N. May Ave., Oklahoma City.

Food Friday: Dan’s Pizza

After a long afternoon of investigating ghost towns and cemeteries in southern Logan county, we stopped for dinner in Waterloo at a small place called Dan’s Pizza. It was a good decision because they have a really good pizza that shouldn’t be missed.

Tucked in the corner of a small trip mall on the corner of Waterloo and Broadway in far north Edmond. It has just a simple store front, with tables and chairs inside. After we ordered our supreme pizza and cheese sticks, we got some Dr. Pepper from the fountain machine. Now it’s hard to find somewhere that has the right mix on their fountain machines but they did and that Dr. Pepper tasted really good. We had a chance to talk while waiting for our pizza, lots of people came in to pick up but no one else sat down to eat in. After a short wait our cheese sticks were served and the pizza not long after. The cheese sticks were great, buttery handmade crust with cheese covering the top. The pizza was similar, a thin handmade crust that had a hint of garlic butter covered with pepperoni, sausage, ground beef, mushrooms, black olives, and green peppers. I was really impressed with the quality of the pizza for such a small place. The prices weren’t outrageous either, we got out with plenty of pizza left over for about $30.

Now I say that this restaurant is in the town of Waterloo, actually at this point it’s just a community but at one time it was a town. From not long after the land run until the 1930’s, Waterloo was a town. It is now part of Edmond. I will definitely be back to try their other pizzas as well. It is worth the drive. 5 strips of bacon.

Address: 121 E Waterloo Rd., Edmond.

Food Friday: Rendezvous Pizza

I had never heard of Detroit style pizza until a few years ago, truthfully it has become one of my favorite types of pizza. There are getting to be a couple of places here in the Oklahoma City metro that have good Detroit style pizza and Rendezvous Pizza is one of them.

My first visit was last year, we went to their Bricktown location. On that visit we ordered Italian nachos, which were outstanding, and a meat lovers Detroit style. Didn’t have a long wait and everything was good. The only downside was it was in Bricktown, parking was hard to find. I was excited when a few months ago they opened a second location near Quail Springs Mall. This is much closer to me and being a standalone building, better parking. I visited that location a few weeks ago, the only thing I was disappointed about is the fact that the Italian nachos aren’t on the menu any longer. I have checked and the Bricktown location doesn’t have them either, not sure why they aren’t on the menu but I did miss them. So I ordered the fried mozzarella instead, this was really good as well, large flat patties of fried cheese. They don’t look like regular mozzarella sticks, more like a mozzarella hash brown. We got the meat lovers Detroit style again and it was just as good as the first time I tried it. Lots of meat with crispy cheese on the edges. Detroit style pizza is similar to Chicago style, deep dish with lots of cheese. They then put the toppings on, followed by the marinara sauce. It’s called Detroit style because it did originate in Detroit and was cooked in used (but cleaned) oil pans. This is why it’s a rectangle or square.

They also have New York style pizza as well, I haven’t tried it yet but need to. Service was good and parking was easy. I’ll give them 5 strips of bacon.

Address: 27 E. Sheridan Ave., Oklahoma City

Food Friday: Luigi’s Pizzeria

While out on a road trip to see small towns in Oklahoma, I went through Blair just north of Altus. Cute town, lots of old buildings still being used, including a few restaurants. It was lunch time so I was early for Backdoor Steakhouse (it opened at 5p, I would like to try it though), so I tried the small Luigi’s Pizzeria right next door.

Located on their Main Street, just to the east of US Highway 283, if you aren’t looking for it you’ll miss it. Painted up in blue, you go in through the front door and are greeted with a beautiful tin ceiling. There are vintage signs around the small dining room with a cool old Coke machine in the corner. We were told to sit anywhere, so we sat next to that Coke machine. We were quickly brought some toasted garlic bread with a vinegar and olive oil dip. It was so good, crisp on the outside and buttery soft in the middle. We ordered a medium pizza with a garlic crust, alfredo, pepperoni, black olives, and mushrooms. We waited about 15 minutes for the pizza to be done, and it came out piping hot. Everything was great and the garlic crust gave it a bit of extra flavor.

Luigi’s has been serving pizza and other Italian dishes to southwestern Oklahoma for over 20 years, they have a second location on the east side of Altus. I loved the atmosphere of the Blair location, quiet with an old time charm. I’ll be happy to drive to Blair to get a pizza with them again, 5 strips of bacon.

Address: 118 E Main St., Blair; 20650 US-62, Altus.

Food Friday: 405 Pizza

I love trying new local pizza places. 405 Pizza has been in west Edmond for a couple years and over the summer I had a chance to try it. Since then, we’ve been back a couple times. They are just a simple small pizza restaurant.

To start, we have their garlic cheese bread. This is just a cheesy goodness. I like when there is more cheese than crust and this cheese bread is perfect. Next up is their pizza, we’ve had a couple different kinds and they have all been great. A nice light flavor to the crust and plenty of cheese and toppings. We also tried a calzone on our last visit, that was also good. Stuffed so full that it got messy (and messy is always good with food).

The customer service has always been good and the restaurant clean. We have also gotten takeout, which went well. I give them 5 strips of bacon.

Address: 815 E Main St., Yukon.

Food Friday: Basic Knead

I don’t often get to eat on the campus of the University of Oklahoma, but when I get to Norman, I try to stop by Basic Knead. This is a small university run cafe that specializes in personal pizzas and pastas.

I learned about it last year when Mae was a freshman. She was trained to work there just in case someone called out. Soon I was hearing about the pasta she was eating almost every night and I wanted to try it. So one Saturday night last year, we drove down and got our own personal pasta dishes. The have several options but I went with a penne pasta, drizzled with alfredo, then added pepperoni, mushrooms, and olives. After a topping of cheese, the dish is placed in a brick oven to be fired. After a wait, my pasta dish was delivered and it was glorious. The pasta was perfectly cooked and the cheese was melted crisp. On my next trip, I got a personal pizza. This was prepared similarly, personal sized crust, with alfredo, pepperoni, mushrooms, olives, and topped with cheese. Baked in the same fired oven, this pizza was just as good as a pizza you would get at Hideaway (and much better than the national pizza places).

Basic Knead was her go to dinner spot for the fall semester but it was shut down in the spring due to not enough employees. Mae was anxious when she went back to campus this fall, would her beloved Basic Knead be open again. Fortunately it is and she says it’s just as good as last year. So if you find yourself on campus and looking for some pasta or pizza, try Basic Knead. You can find it south of Lindsey in Cross Village.

Address: 1695 Asp Ave., Norman.

Food Friday: Woodward Pizza

Detroit style pizza is somewhat new to Oklahoma but is taking off quickly. One of the newest places to offer this style of pizza is Woodward Pizza at the Icehouse Project in Edmond.

We visited on a quiet Saturday morning right before the lunch crowd showed up. We started with spicy cheese curds. These deep-fried cheese curds have plenty of heat with them, they do come with ranch to put the fire out. If you have someone with you who might not like spicy, this definitely isn’t for them. As for the pizza, we ordered the trippple XXXtra pepperoni. This pizza is really good. Nice flavor to the deep-dish crust. The cheese and pepperoni were piled high with crispy cheese burnt around the edge. The red sauce goes on last and it was good (to tell the truth I’m not a red sauce fan). Now for a brief history of Detroit style pizza, it was of course developed in Detroit. The square shape comes from using automotive drip pans to bake the pizza. It’s been a thing in Detroit for many years but only recently has spread through the country.

I really enjoyed our first visit to Woodward Pizza and ready to go back. The service was great as well, the employees very friendly. They told me that the menu will most likely grow in the future. This is part of the new Icehouse Project, there will be more restaurants in this space. I’m giving them 5 strips of bacon.

Address: 119 W 2nd St. Suite 100, Edmond.

Food Friday: Falcone’s Pizzeria

Falcones Pizza

I first heard about Falcone’s Pizzeria many years ago when the owner decided to tell off the Edmond Planning Commission back in 2007. Danny Falcone had just opened a new location in Edmond and the city didn’t want him to put up an awning in the colors of the Italian flag, so he banned them from his restaurant. Hey anyone who didn’t like members of Edmond city government couldn’t be that bad, so we stopped at the Edmond location and visited many times until the location was closed. The only location left is on North May Avenue.

I’ve never been to New York to try New York style pizza but I think Falcone’s is about as close as I can get in Oklahoma. We usually get the 18 inch pizza with pepperoni, mushrooms, and black olives. This pizza is so big, you can feed a family of four on it easily. The crust is light and thin, the cheese and toppings thick on the top. Now I’m also not going to lie, it’s got some grease on it as well but my dad would always say, “The greasier the better”. You can get smaller pizzas but why? Seriously they do have a personal pizza so you can do your own thing. We always start with mozzarella sticks that are big and chunky. Now unfortunately they have no ranch for dipping but I can get over that. If you aren’t full from the pizza, or even if you are, get some cannoli. Either plain or chocolate dipped, doesn’t matter, these are some of the best in town.

I highly recommend a visit. Service is always good along with the food. I give them 5 strips of bacon.

Address:6705 N May Ave., Oklahoma City; 216 S. Santa Fe Ave., Edmond.