I Dream of Pizza- Take 5- Rocco's

Well, I feel like I am losing steam with this blog, maybe it's the changing of the seasons.  Everything around me seems to be winding down- even the pizza.  I love Fall and all the fun that comes with it but lately I've been feeling uninspired.  This week's installment is simply that, uninspiring.  We chose Rocco's Pizza in the Stop and Shop Shopping Center and even though I devoured 3 slices in one sitting the only thing I took away from this experience was a grease stain on my pants.

The Viewing:

The Scoop:

As you can see from above, this pizza scores big points here in size.  It is literally pressing up against the side of the box.  So much so that it is curved.  There was a lot of crust to go around.  But that didn't make the pizza spectacular.  To be honest the pizza dough overall was pretty thin- not the crunchy kind of thin, the floppy kind of thin. To me it seems that the crust was almost wasted dough that could have been spread out more evenly.  Maybe I didn't have my 'A' game/pizza tasting face on this night but that's where the excitement ended.  The pizza was a bit tasteless.  It didn't taste bad but it was a one note kind of taste.  The only thing that I would deem bad or unfortunate was the amount of grease on the pizza.  It was so drippy greasy.  I almost pulled out the 'Long Island Napkin' trick when you place a napkin on the top of the pizza to adsorb excess grease.  Oh well.   

The Rating:

I give this pizza a 3 out of 5.  As I already said it wasn't bad by any means - it is just was okay.  There weren't any special high notes or anything that made this pizza stand out against it's competitors.  Dough- eh, Sauce- eh, Cheese, eh.  Size- :) Grease- yuck!  There was one thing actually that did stand out against all the other pizza places so far, it was the most expensive pie to date.  $14.50.  Yikes!

I Dream of Pizza take 4- Rino's Pizza

I'm not going to lie here I have eaten Rino's pizza before and really loved it.  The Grandma slice is one of my favorites.  But for this tasting I had to block that all out and enter this with a clear mind.

The Viewing

Are you excited?

The Tasting

I really did try to block out my previous tastings and experiences with Rino's but my expectations were high here. Most of my friends' love Rino's so it's hard not to be excited.  So this pizza had a lot to live up to.  This particular pie was good.  It had its ups and downs.  The flavor of the sauce is what stood out and sticks with me the most.  You can just taste the freshness of the sauce come through.  Which is such a nice treat, especially because I grew up on homemade sauce.  We were not a jar sauce family.  Not that there is anything wrong with jar sauce but it just doesn't taste as good in my opinion.  The other pluses here were the crust was a perfect thickness, size of the slices were even and big, and the overall size of the pizza hit the mark.  They definitely didn't skimp here.  

This pizza unfortunately was not a home run, maybe a triple.  The dough was really thin, which I usually don't mind.  However, when my husband picked up his slice it drooped down so much that the sauce and cheese dripped right off.  Not all the slices were like that, which to me showed a little too much inconsistency with it.  Maybe that end just had too much sauce on it.  

But the positives here definitely outshine the negatives.  I had a day old cold slice and it was so good.  I couldn't eat it fast enough.  It took so much will power to not eat the last slice but I am saving it for my husband.

The Rating:

I give Rino's pizza 4 out of 5 stars here.    There really was only one aspect of the pizza that was not out of this world amazing but the overall quality and taste was superior to most of it's competitors thus far.  I thought the pizza overall was great and I would hands down recommend them.

Kudos Rino's!  Thank you for a delicious and splendid dinner!

(Total side note too- the garlic  knots were cold.  We live pretty close to Rino's so it's not like they cooled down on the ride home.  That was also a bit disappointing.  I can't really include that in the rating but I couldn't not share it though.)

'I Dream of Pizza' Take 3- La Bella

La dolce vita!  Third times the charm. Thank goodness.  I was starting to lose my faith in the pizza that was being made in New Paltz.  Thankfully La Bella pizza saved the day, helped raise my spirits, as well as fill my belly with delicious ooey gooey cheesiness.  

First off here is an enjoyable tune to fully encapsulate the mood I was in while eating this pizza and writing this blog post.

"That's Amore'- Dean Martin

The Viewing:

The Tasting

As you can clearly see, this pizza hit all the high points I was looking for.  It filled the box it came in, barely able to shift around.  The slices were evenly cut and had the proper ratio of cheese to sauce.  When I opened the box the pizza smelled heavenly.  To be honest when we picked it up i knew it was going to be good.  The small bursts of steam coming out of the box gave a great preview.  I may have drooled on the box.  

The first slice was a blur to be honest.  It tasted really really good.  So, I simply went into a quick food comma or pizza utopia if you will.  But what I can recall was that the pizza wasn't droopy, it had great flavor, and made me want more.   My kids loved it too! Double bonus (literally).

So I definitely recommend getting a slice or a pie at La Bella.

The Rating:

I give them 4 stars out of 5.  Let's be honest it wasn't the most amazing pizza I have ever had in my entire life but it was really good and hit the spot.  I feel you can't go wrong with that!

Your comments are welcome.  I would love to hear what you all think too.

Take 2: Pasquale's Pizza

The Tasting

For this tasting my husband and I opted to take out and order a large pie.  The hubby went to pick it up and when he brought it home, placed it on our kitchen table leaving the the grand revealing for me.  The anticipation was building to see the pizza not only because was I excited to start the next official tasting but I was super hungry too!  I flipped the lid to open the pizza box and was immediately disappointed.  The pizza pie seemed small, it was haphazardly cut, and it just appeared to be a big cheesy mess.  This was not a great start.  To cut to the chase here after my husband and I both took our first bites it was confirmed; this was a 'no bueno' pizza.  It was very greasy, low in flavor, and unevenly cooked.  Enough said.

The Rating

I'm sorry to post this but I am going to have to give this pizza tasting a one star out of five.  It wasn't good and it was kind of expensive $15.  Granted we did add a topping so that raises the price but it didn't help in the value of the pie.  I would not recommend getting pizza here. 

Your comments are welcome.  I would love to hear what you think.  Please feel free to post below.

My Hero!

The Tasting
My first pizza tasting was quite a success I have to say.  I gathered all the troops (husband and toddlers in tow) and sat down for easy breezy afternoon lunch.  My husband and I ordered two cheese slices each and one for the babies to share.  Our first impression of the pizza was that the slices were BIG, which was great!  The crust was the perfect thickness, cheese pretty good, and the sauce about average.  I am picky about my sauce.  Now, as far as price goes- we should have just ordered a large pie and taken the leftovers home, it would have been the more economical thing to do.  So I guess we'll call that my 'rookie mistake'.  It was only my first tasting so next time we are going to order a large pie!

Some Ups Some Downs
They do have specials on Wednesday and Thursday for a large cheese pie for $9.99.  Not a bad price. They don’t have a website or a Facebook page.  Unfortunately, you won’t be able to pull up their menu before you visit.

The Rating
So for the official pizza rating, (Said in a positive tone) the actual pizza was 'Okay'.  It didn't really wow me but my overall experience at My Hero was really good.  It was a pleasant surprise that they had high chairs available, they were clean, and the straps and buckles were intact.  This is such a rarity at most restaurants.  Most importantly my kids ate the pizza.  I have picky eaters and to see them smile, eat, and enjoy themselves was great.  Those two factors made the whole ‘eating out in public with toddlers' experience’ easy.  This is not a word that I think most parents use in association with eating out at restaurants.  It sure isn't one I use very often.

Thank you My Hero pizza for the lunch.  Out of 5 stars I give you a 3.
 

 Your comments are welcome.  I would love to hear what you think.  Please feel free to leave a comment  below.

I dream of pizza

My newest mini project is "Project Pizza".  My goal here it so try out every pizza place in New Paltz to find the best overall large cheese pie [price and taste], best price for a slice, and of course eat as much pizza as possible.  This seems like it would have been a better idea to work on while I was pregnant instead of post pregnancy but I'll worry about those details another day.  

First things first, how many pizza parlors are there in New Paltz? My guess was 10 because there just seem to be so many.  Well, after a quick Google search the answer is: 8

In no particular order:

1. Rino's
2. Pasquale's
3. La Bella's
4. My Hero
5. Grimaldi"s
6. Village
7. Fat Bob's 
8. Gourmet 

I could go about this by breaking the tastings up geographically; uptown, village, and downtown.  This seems the most logical but I know I won't truly stick to any special order so I'm going to be flexible here- I mean we are talking about eating pizza.

My first pizza tasting (drum roll please) is going to be at My Hero Pizza on Main St, which is technically uptown New Paltz.  I'll keep you posted and of course will fill you in on all the cheesy details.  (Pun intended by the way)

Bounty of the Hudson!

I wanted to post this upcoming event that is sure to be a great time.

Bounty of the Hudson Wine Festival 2011

 

Date: Saturday, July 30, 2011

 

Time: 12:00 PM- 5:00 p.m.

 

Venue: Adair Vineyards, New Paltz, NY

 

Not only will it be featuring wine from all over the Shawangunk Valley but the venue is beautiful!  Be sure to bring your camera and your appetite so you can stay the whole day.  There will be live music too!

 

The cost (including a tasting glass) is $27 in advance & $38 the day of.

Don't forget to bring a designated driver! Entrance fee in advance is $5.40 & day of is $8.

 

Hope to see you there!