Saturday, May 14, 2011
Thursday, June 18, 2009
PI - The Ultra-Hip Pizza Joint in the Loop
WHERE:
Pi
Delmar Blvd., just east of Skinker Blvd.
http://www.restaurantpi.com/
WHEN:
Lunch on 6/18/2009
ORDERED:
19” Bucktown – Mozzerella, Roasted Chicken, Artichoke Hearts, Red Bell Peppers, Green Olives, Red Onions, Feta, Sun-Dried Tomato
HOW MUCH:
$23
THE EXPERIENCE:
FOOD
When the leader of the free world has a pizza joint’s phone number in his Blackberry, you’d expect some damn fine Pi. For my first ever review, I went straight for the hippest, most pretentious pizza spot in the Lou.
Pi, located on the south side of Delmar Blvd., just east of Skinker, is an urban bistro that focuses on prissy pizzas. Choosing between a deep dish and thin crust was easy (I’m a deep dish guy), but choosing a specific style wasn’t so. Since one of my peeps doesn’t like sausage on pizza (surely a communist), we compromised on the Buckhorn. The waitress warned us that a deep dish would take about 25 minutes, but – since we beat the rush – we went for it. It only took about 20 minutes for the “pi” to arrive, which I attribute to beating the rush.
Upon arrival, I noticed that Pi’s deep dish style is similar to a true Chicago deep dish – light tomato sauce on top. What was different, though, was the corn meal style crust which gave the dish a crisper (rather than chewy) crust. Also like a Chicago-style deep dish, mozzarella was thick and plentiful. The topping selection was quite good, but about what you would expect.
With (only) an hour for lunch, we were able to get our eat on and back to work in the allotted time. Had we not arrived at 11:40, we’d have been screwed.
STYLE
Pi is not your typical pizza joint. The aura of the space oozes an urban vibe. The Pi logo even looks somewhat fancy. We sat in the main dining area just inside the front door where we could view the bar and look out the floor to ceiling glass windows looking across to the Pageant Theater. Overall, Pi is as visually appealing as it is gastronomically.
OVERALL
I just realized that Pi is a double entendre (Pi = Pie & 3.14, with 314 being STL’s telephone area code). Take it easy on me. I’m a little slow…
I would recommend Pi to anyone who is interested in a snazzy bar/restaurant that serves better than average pizza for a high-end price. I’m sure that this place loads up with the twenty-somethings on any given weekend evening. If that’s not your crowd, try Pi for an early lunch or early dinner. Keep in mind that Pi closes during the mid-afternoon slump from 2:00 to 4:30 pm, when they reopen for the dinner crowd. Take out is also available, but only when their in-store business is not booming.
Give Pi a try. Just don’t go in with high expectations… or less than $25.
Pi
Delmar Blvd., just east of Skinker Blvd.
http://www.restaurantpi.com/
WHEN:
Lunch on 6/18/2009
ORDERED:
19” Bucktown – Mozzerella, Roasted Chicken, Artichoke Hearts, Red Bell Peppers, Green Olives, Red Onions, Feta, Sun-Dried Tomato
HOW MUCH:
$23
THE EXPERIENCE:
FOOD
When the leader of the free world has a pizza joint’s phone number in his Blackberry, you’d expect some damn fine Pi. For my first ever review, I went straight for the hippest, most pretentious pizza spot in the Lou.
Pi, located on the south side of Delmar Blvd., just east of Skinker, is an urban bistro that focuses on prissy pizzas. Choosing between a deep dish and thin crust was easy (I’m a deep dish guy), but choosing a specific style wasn’t so. Since one of my peeps doesn’t like sausage on pizza (surely a communist), we compromised on the Buckhorn. The waitress warned us that a deep dish would take about 25 minutes, but – since we beat the rush – we went for it. It only took about 20 minutes for the “pi” to arrive, which I attribute to beating the rush.
Upon arrival, I noticed that Pi’s deep dish style is similar to a true Chicago deep dish – light tomato sauce on top. What was different, though, was the corn meal style crust which gave the dish a crisper (rather than chewy) crust. Also like a Chicago-style deep dish, mozzarella was thick and plentiful. The topping selection was quite good, but about what you would expect.
With (only) an hour for lunch, we were able to get our eat on and back to work in the allotted time. Had we not arrived at 11:40, we’d have been screwed.
STYLE
Pi is not your typical pizza joint. The aura of the space oozes an urban vibe. The Pi logo even looks somewhat fancy. We sat in the main dining area just inside the front door where we could view the bar and look out the floor to ceiling glass windows looking across to the Pageant Theater. Overall, Pi is as visually appealing as it is gastronomically.
OVERALL
I just realized that Pi is a double entendre (Pi = Pie & 3.14, with 314 being STL’s telephone area code). Take it easy on me. I’m a little slow…
I would recommend Pi to anyone who is interested in a snazzy bar/restaurant that serves better than average pizza for a high-end price. I’m sure that this place loads up with the twenty-somethings on any given weekend evening. If that’s not your crowd, try Pi for an early lunch or early dinner. Keep in mind that Pi closes during the mid-afternoon slump from 2:00 to 4:30 pm, when they reopen for the dinner crowd. Take out is also available, but only when their in-store business is not booming.
Give Pi a try. Just don’t go in with high expectations… or less than $25.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Welcome to StLPizzaGeek!
Have you ever been to a pizza joint with the best pizza you've ever had and wanted to tell everyone you knew about it? I've eaten a lot of pizza in my day – some good, some great, and some I can not express in words. I’ve eaten thin crust and deep dish, wood fired and brick oven baked, “Super Pig” and Veggie Delight.
Pizza is one of the world’s most popular dishes. There are so many toppings, crusts, cheeses, and sauces that there’s no possible way that one person could experience every kind of pizza this world can offer. That’s where I come in. My goal is to provide folks with well formed opinions about St. Louis’ local pizza joints. Not only will I provide a review of the food, but I’ll also discuss the other qualities – cleanliness, accessibility, ambiance, price range, and other notes. I will only be posting about the local joints, so don’t expect to see any reviews about the Hut.
Since the internet is a forum for the exchange of ideas and opinions, I challenge my readers to post their own reviews and suggest additional joints for me to review. Hopefully – at some point – your hard work may be rewarded.
I’m also posting on Twitter @stlpizzageek. It’s a new account, so don’t expect too much right away. New reviews will be posted as soon as they’re available. Feel free to tweet me any time with your thoughts or where you’re headed to sample a new pie.
Thanks for visiting and I look forward to sharing a pie with y’all soon!
Pizza is one of the world’s most popular dishes. There are so many toppings, crusts, cheeses, and sauces that there’s no possible way that one person could experience every kind of pizza this world can offer. That’s where I come in. My goal is to provide folks with well formed opinions about St. Louis’ local pizza joints. Not only will I provide a review of the food, but I’ll also discuss the other qualities – cleanliness, accessibility, ambiance, price range, and other notes. I will only be posting about the local joints, so don’t expect to see any reviews about the Hut.
Since the internet is a forum for the exchange of ideas and opinions, I challenge my readers to post their own reviews and suggest additional joints for me to review. Hopefully – at some point – your hard work may be rewarded.
I’m also posting on Twitter @stlpizzageek. It’s a new account, so don’t expect too much right away. New reviews will be posted as soon as they’re available. Feel free to tweet me any time with your thoughts or where you’re headed to sample a new pie.
Thanks for visiting and I look forward to sharing a pie with y’all soon!
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