Taste of Italy

Original Title: "Freedom of Choice"

Review from 2010:

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Originally uploaded by thejukeboxlean

It's the Friday before USA's birthday, so naturally the best place to go is downtown Nashville. That won't be painful at all, right?

Luckily there is some super solid pizza down there off Broadway. I still haven't made it to Manny's House of Pizza in the Arcade which has so far been the most suggested spot in town, but I did hit up Taste of Italy just down the street on 4th Ave North between Church and Union. The first time I saw this place was while we were walking towards the Christmas parade last year and it was freezing balls and I was starving. It was the first place we came across that looked decent and was actually open. We hopped in and I got an amazing calzone. I have always wanted to go back and try their pizza, but like most Nashvillians, downtown is not the first place I think to go when it comes to getting dinner or anything else. So we chose 4th of July weekend. Go figure.

We walked in, seated ourselves in a booth towards the back and were quickly greeted by our server whom I noticed while placing our order was actually Italian! Imagine that. This place might live up to it's name.

When the pizza came to the table I noticed that the pepperonis were buried but not completely invisible like they were at Sicily in Antioch. There was a little less cheese on this one which came in handy when serving the slices. They actually separated fairly easily which isn't very common around here I've noticed. The sauce was thinly spread as well which prevents the scalding of the mouth like I suffered at Obie's. The sauce had a nice actual tomato taste to it. It wasn't sweet. The pepperoni complemented it well. A Taste of Italy had the spiciest pepperoni I think I've had all summer (yup, beat out Pizza Perfect). That's the flavor really stood out the most. Pizzas weren't meant to be sweet, so the spicier you can get your pepperoni, the better for me. The crust was thick around the edges, but was actually rather thin throughout the pizza. It wasn't super floppy/messy thin, but more standard thin like Picnic Pizza. The crust was also really soft with a few crunchy spots which I love because I like to take the crust and use it to soak up grease left on my plate and eat it. While eating it cold the next day, the crust seemed to have more of a normal bread like texture, like an Italian loaf or something. It made for some good cold pizza.

Over all I'd say it was a great experience. The service was fast and friendly (and Italian!). The food was excellent, and it's not all the way out in Antioch. I'm glad I've discovered good pizza relatively close to home. The pizza's still not quite Picnic Pizza, but it's close. I'd put it above Sicily for the moment. It is so far the best thin pizza in Nashville proper.

Taste of Italy is located in the heart of downtown, just a few blocks north of Broadway on 4th Avenue. They're open til 10 most days and I think 11 or midnight on the weekends. They also have a lunch buffet during the week.

Caesar's Bistro (RIP)

Original Title: "Great Caesar's Ghost!"

Review from 2010:

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Originally uploaded by thejukeboxlean

So for this trip I invited along some old roommates and band mates. Unfortunately, due to typical circumstances only a few of the invited were actually in attendance. In tow were Commander and K.I.L.R.O.Y. of the Protomen, Armando Apache Putay of Makeup & Vanity Set fame and the ladies who love them. It was time to hit up an old favorite enjoyed by many on several occasions. Upon our arrival we all became a bit hesitant as we realized that none of us had actually been there for dinner before and the name had changed from Caesar's Ristorante to Caesar's Bistro. I think the whole dinner thing was freaking us out more though. We had been there for the lunch buffet countless times throughout our stint at the mighty Thundercon. Nevertheless, we walked on in and took our seat in the "plaza" area of the dining room. The dining room of Caesar's is designed to look like a tiny Italian village complete with a pathway marked in the floor tile and house numbers for the different sections of the room. Once settled, we ordered our drinks and food and they promptly brought out a plate stacked high with their bread sticks. Now, during the buffet hours, this bread is just pretty much ok, but during dinner, this bread is awesome. We were all pretty stunned with the difference in quality when they're not sitting out for 3 hours under a heat lamp. The bread was a lot softer and just basically better tasting. Commander ingested about 6 of these things before the pizza came out.

When the pizza came we were all pretty excited to try it out. I know I was curious if the quality difference between buffet and fresh order also applied to the pizza. Thankfully, it did. I've always loved Caesar's pizza, but getting a super fresh pie as opposed to one that may have been cooked 15 to 20 minutes ago, was a huge step up. The buffet food is good, but this really upped the ante. Caesar's pizza is known for being super heavy and both Commander and KILROY were out after one slice (though they did tear up those bread sticks beforehand). I somehow managed to eat 3 slices which is so far the most I've eaten in one sitting at Caesar's. When I hit up the buffet I'd get at most 2 slices. It's by far the heaviest pizza around town.

The pizza was a traditional American thin crust, which was soft, but not so thin and soft that it reqiured utensils. The sauce was very flavorful and full of tomato flavor. I don't really recall the pepperoni standing out too much, but that is probably due to the super spicy pepperoni I've had elsewhere in the past couple of stops. The pizza wasn't overly greasy either and it was ready to eat as it hit the table. No burned mouth roofs this time around. The food was also very cheap. Our bill which included the large pizza and 3 soft drinks came out to around $15 or $16, not like it really mattered... this stop was fully sponsored by Banana Buttons. And yes, there are now official Pizza Summer buttons! I've got a pretty much endless supply of these things, so if you want one, just ask me and I'll give you one.

As it stands now Caesar's is in the top 3 or 4 pizza joints in town.

Michaelangelo's (Elliston)

Original Title: "Spice Up Your Pizza Summer"

Review from 2010:

Yup, that's right, Mr. Spiced Justin was there to "Spice Up" the Pizza Summer. He even had his own testing method, which included mushrooms instead of pepperoni. Gotta respect a man and his methods. He summed his pizza up as "damn solid." My pizza was pretty damn solid as well.

Michaelangelo's is in the heart of "Pizza Alley" or as the other 619,768 Davidson County residents know it, Elliston Place. Their immediate competitors are New York Cafe and Obie's which will be visited as part of "Elliston Week" in the coming days. Jet's and Roma are also along the strip but of course will be avoided until after Labor Day. Michaelangelo's is a tiny little place located on 22nd Ave N directly behind the Corner Bar. It's an order at the counter and get your own fountain drink type place which I actually enjoy. Most of the staff there could seem to care less whether or not you're there. They were all very quiet and not really friendly, but who I'm assuming was the owner was really nice when he waited on a table behind us. On the Titans memorabilia wall, he was the one pictured w/ Steve McNair and he seemed to be the oldest dude in the place and also the nicest one, so that would leave me to believe he's the head dude. But anyways, the pizza! The "service" is at least quick. Our medium 12" pizza was silently delivered to our table in a very timely manner. Over all I do think the pizza was pretty "solid" as Mr. Spiced would put it. The crust was flavorful, soft, somewhat thick and not dry at all. The sauce, cheese and pepperoni all tasted a bit sweet. There wasn't a particular flavor that really stood out that I could describe. The pizza wasn't overly greasy either. The slices were average size, bigger than Venito's but smaller than the other places visited so far. I wouldn't really say this pizza stood out as amazing, but I did really like it and it's definitely on par with what I've visited so far. It may be tied with Venito's at the moment, though one person at the table ranked it lower. This was the first pizza of the summer to be completely finished before leaving the restaurant, though so keep that in mind. The total for a 12" pepperoni and 2 fountain drinks was just over $14.

Michaelangelo's is located at 205 22nd Avenue North, just behind the Corner Bar on Elliston. They're open 'til 3:00AM Monday through Saturday and 'til Midnight on Sundays. They had a buffet stand in the middle of the dining room so I guess they have a lunch buffet during the week but I didn't see any info on that while I was there.

This week is ELLISTON WEEK on Nashville by the Slice. We kicked it off last night at Michaelangelo's and will be hitting up Obie's and New York Cafe this week. Exact dates and times will be posted shortly.

(Spiced Up) Pizza Summer!

Chicago Italian Beef

Original Title: "They All Changed Their Names to Chicago"

Review From 2010:

Originally uploaded by thejukeboxlean

Acting on a tip I got from a buddy at work I added Chicago Italian Beef to my list of places to hit this summer. I had never even heard of this place before he told me about it, but as I started asking around, it seemed as though anybody who has ever eaten there loved it so I've been excited about this one for a while. As with DaVinci's and Manny's I was still skeptical of it's Nashville quality to actual quality ratio. Add to the fact it's Chicago style in Nashville in a weird part of town and my skepticism was growing bigger by the day. As soon as I had the chance I had to go and see what's happening down there for myself.


We knew what we were getting into with Chicago Style pizza and how long it takes to cook so we made sure to phone ahead. We placed our order for a large pepperoni deep dish and were told 45 minutes to an hour so we slowly made our way towards that part of town. Chicago is located in the same building as that gigantic pet store on Nolensville Rd called the Aquatic Critter so it was pretty easy to find. We arrived right at 45 minutes and when we got inside the girl behind the counter said it would be right out. Just a couple minutes later our pie landed on our table. Pretty good timing. The pizza looked and smelled amazing. I was still skeptical, however, as I have been fooled in the past.


Just looking at it, I knew the crust wasn't as thick as Obie's and actually reminded a bit of what Pizza Done Right was trying to accomplish out there in Joelton. The cheese was barely visible in the pool of sauce and seasoning. I've never seen a pizza that looked anything like this, but I've also never had real traditional Chicago style pizza. I've only had Obie's and a couple of chain versions. Surprisingly, the pieces separated quite easily when it was time to serve it up. We made sure to wait a minute or before digging in to avoid the same mouth scalding that Obie's gave us. When it was finally time to take a bite I did so with great caution and skepticism. I was very quickly turned around. This was the first really good discovery since Sal's which was 15 pizzas ago. It's been a long time coming.


The crust was thinner than you would expect with a Chicago style. Most of us think of them as being super think throughout, but that's not the case here. The crust was still thicker than a lot of pizza, though. The center crust was somewhat crispy but still flexible while the edges were super crispy and hard. No part of the crust appeared burned in any way, however, and full of flavor. It didn't really taste like any crust I've had in the past either, no garlic butter or anything, just really, really good. The cheese was somewhat scarce and didn't really stand out too much. The pepperoni seemed like it was almost mixed in with the sauce. It was pretty spicy and definitely plentiful and tasty. The whole pizza was also blanketed with Italian seasoning which may have been overpowering the cheese. My favorite part of this pizza was the sauce. The sauce was amazing. Probably the best I've had all summer. It was as if they smashed fresh tomatoes to make the sauce just for my pizza. It was really thick, yet not chunky. I'm not exactly sure what they're doing behind the counter there, but I hope they keep it up. The pizza as whole was definitely one of the best in the city, though it felt more like we were eating a baked dish than a pizza, but that's Chicago style for ya. Chicago is definitely among the Top Ten of the summer so far.


Chicago Italian Beef is located at 5017 Nolensville Pike. They're open daily 10AM-11PM. My large pepperoni deep dish pizza, a Coke and a tip came out to just $20. Make sure to allow 45 minutes or more for a deep dish pizza, it will be well worth it. I actually can't wait for the Pizza Summer to draw to a close so I can get back down there and get another pizza. Speaking of the Pizza Summer's end, there are only 3 entries left and 2 stops. We're currently working on the final pizza party event. Details will be posted by tomorrow evening.

Gyros Pizza

Original Title: "We Don't Need Another Gyro"

Review from 2010:

On a very hectic Monday evening it was time for another take-out pizza. This time I made the drive out to Hermitage to give Gyros Pizza a try. I noticed Gyros when I was on my way to Picasso Pizza after my day in Lebanon. I went into this with no expectations of greatness. I already had in my mind that this would just be a quick necessary stop that I needed to mark off my list.

I rolled into the tiny little storefront and ordered a medium pizza to go. When I got in there I noticed that they did actually have a dining room, but I had already made up my mind for carry out. Plus, I had a busy night ahead of me so dining in wasn't really an option. I put in my order and began to wait. I was expecting to be there for at least the next 15 minutes, but I was in there for exactly 11 minutes. I ordered at 6:43 and was at the door at 6:54. I only noticed this because I had so much to do and time was essential. Usually my wait times are just total estimates.

On the drive home I ran into some pretty sweet Monday Night Football traffic so I had to rack my brain and find an alternate route that would at least get me home a little bit quicker. I rerouted myself through some industrial areas of town that I frequented during past employment and headed towards home. On the drive I ran into some heavy game traffic anyway as I still had to go by the stadium, so I began to get pretty hungry. I went ahead and started in on the pizza even though I hadn’t had a chance to photograph it yet. By the looks of it, I knew the pizza wasn’t going to be very good, but I had no idea how bad it would really be.

This pizza showed its true colors with the first bite. The crust was really thin and flimsy which made for a pretty messy slice that was extra hard to eat in the car. It was also pretty flavorless. The sauce on the pizza was almost stomach turning. It seemed to be a bit acidic I guess from the tomatoes used. Thankfully it was used pretty conservatively. The cheese on the pizza didn’t even seem to be thoroughly cooked, which wasn’t a total surprise given the super short wait time. That was definitely a stomach turner. I don’t do so well with undercooked food, especially when it comes to pizza. The pepperoni on the pizza was extremely cheap tasting. It was like something from a budget grocery store such as Aldi or Sav-A-Lot. All of this combined was making the drive home especially frustrating and stressful. Too many cars, too few detours, and too terrible of a pizza. Maybe this place is better at the first word in their name, but I think they need to go ahead and give up on that second word.
 
Also on the negative side of things for this place was the price. My tiny little medium pepperoni pizza ran me $11.35, which is way higher than any other place in town that I’ve noticed. I think that even beats out Sir Pizza, which is notorious for high priced “food.” Gyros Pizza is located at 5751 Old Hickory Boulevard, where it crosses Central Pike in Hermitage. They’re open 11-10 daily. Have fun and good luck!

Venito's

Original Title: "Back to the Music City"

Review from 2010:

After a fantastic field trip to the homeland it's now time to get back to the mission at hand: conquering Nashville one slice at a time. The next stop was a pre-STALLION dinner at Venito's on Church Street across from the Downtown YMCA. I've passed this place several times while surrendering money to Elecman over the past year or so, but never made the stop. It was now time to explore the unknown. We walked into the small storefront to find 3 of Metro's finest inside dining, which to me was the first good sign. Cops know food. Venito's also has a pretty sweet mural on the wall that stole my attention more than a few times. Venito's actually reminded me a bit of pizza places I've been to in New York, except way bigger of course. I ordered my standard which I got as part of a special they're running right now where you can get a large pizza with up to 3 toppings for $9.99. That plus a 20oz bottle and 12oz can came to somewhere close to $14 or $15. The first thing I noticed about the pizza when it came out was that the slices were really small, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I usually prefer bigger slices, but when it gets to that point towards the end and you want just a little bit more, it's easy to grab another small slice. The crust was good and crispy without being too dry. The pepperoni was pretty spicy, definitely spicier than Picnic Pizza and the sauce wasn't really sweet, it was more tomotaoey if that makes any sense. The pizza wasn't overly greasy either. The whole thing was kind of like Roma Pizza but just a step above. Given the choice, I'd take Venito's for sure. I think it's good pizza and it's pretty cheap, plus it's right downtown so there's no driving out to the 'burbs to get good pizza.
They have pretty standard pizza hours. They're open 11am to 11pm Monday through Friday and 5pm to 2am on Saturday. I heard that they might be open as late as 5am, but these are the hours posted on their website.

Sicily Caesar

Original Title- "Beware the Ides"

Review from 2010:

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Originally uploaded by thejukeboxlean

Sometimes when you've decided you're going to eat at every independent pizza place in town, you get a little stuck, especially towards the end of your designated time line. It was last Sunday and I had no idea where to make the next stop. There are places like Davinci's and Mafiaoza's that a lot of people want to hit up with me and there are a lot of places that I wouldn't dare ask of anybody due to geographic location or simply because I know it's going to be bad. There are also some places that are carryout only, which works great on a night where I've got a lot of things going on and there are some places that I just have no idea how to get to and certainly wouldn't be able to help any of my friends make it there. Sicily Caesar in Metrocenter falls into that last category. On GoogleMaps, it's just a dot off the main road and when you do street view, it doesn't show up at all. It's just a picture of random store fronts in the former waterfront mall. So, I head over there not even really expecting this place to still be in existence and not really knowing where exactly I'm going. I pulled into the first entrance I saw and began driving around the building. Just as I was about to give up and head on my way, I saw it on my right behind a small line of trees. Tucked away in the back of the complex next to a BBQ place stood Sicily Caesar. The next question on my list was if they were open or not. I got out of my car and walked towards the dim store front and walked right in. It was totally open for business and we were the only ones there! I think it took a second for the employees to realize that a customer was actually in the store, but they did and I went ahead with my order. Large pepperoni and 2 fountain drinks would do the trick.


I left the counter to get my drink and there was no ice in the machine. I drank a little bit without ice anyways while one of the guys replenished the ice. Surprisingly, while we were waiting, another customer walked in to pick up an order he had called in. That would turn out to be the only other customer we saw the entire time we were there. The pizza arrived at our table in a reasonable amount of time and looked pretty standard. I could almost taste the pizza by looking at it and smelling it. I really wasn't expecting any surprises out of this one. As you can kind of see in the picture, it seemed as though one side of the pizza was cooked a little better than the other side. The crust was pretty thin, really soft and without much flavor. The sauce was your basic tomato pizza sauce, nothing fancy. The cheese and pepperoni both tasted really cheap. This stuff was definitely coming out of a bag in a cooler. I think the worst part, though, was when I took a big bite of seriously undercooked pizza. The cheese was still relatively unmelted and in big strands. This ruined the whole thing for me. I try not to hit these out of the way indie places so hard, but I can't handle uncooked food. I may have ended up with bad luck and maybe all their pizza isn't like this, but I don't think I will ever find out.


Sicily Caesar is located in a weird back corner of that white and blue building that used to be a mall and now houses the art college in Metrocenter. Their official address is 2200 Rosa L Parks Boulevard. They are open super late through the week which is a major plus. They're open 10:30AM-4:30AM Monday through Saturday and 4:30PM-Midnight on Sundays. They also have a lunch buffet on weekdays. A large pizza with 2 drinks ran us $17.50 which is a little pricey considering the quality and competition around town.