Pizza for Bubba!!

Constance: We learned last night that pizza order takers don't have the best handwriting skills - but how do you get "Bubba" instead of Matt? It was just LOL funny! "in economic times like these" (don't you hate hearing that everywhere???), we are doing our part with economic stimulation and our weekly pizza and wing visit; however, we did find an online coupon that was even better than the coupon in Coupon Carnival. Go to Foupons.com - we did and saved about $2! Whoo! Whoo!

This week's adventure was Steel City Pizza and Sandwich Co. I've eaten there over the years beginning when they were on 29th and Raspberry. So many places started there but I can't recall any of them that have experienced the success of Steel City!

My turn to pick the pizza topping ... banana peppers, shocker! And Matthias picked honey mustard wings. Coupon cost $16.99. Large one item pizza and two pounds of wings ... we felt good about everything. My shotgun ride home was warm and toasty too for this record setting annual snowfall 2nd in the nation day!

(Mathias: We received about 16 wings; they were the biggest wings we've had so far. Back in Amish Arizona we grew 'em big too. One of them was so large I had to have Constance act as a spotter for me. The honey mustard dipping sauce was quite tasty and spicy; we used up one of the two containers we got and dipped the Saturday morning pizza in the other. Yeah, it was good.)

The pictures shown will save thousands of words. The pizza was amoeba-shaped but they had me at when the guy was hand tossing the crust! Oh, I forgot to mention, that the place was so busy, it was like the soup Nazi out of a Seinfeld episode. Step up, say name (it takes longer when your name isn't Bubba though), pay, get your goods and go! It was streamlined and efficient. And in spite of this busy Friday evening - only 30 minutes for our pie!

The wings were a surprise. They serve em up plain with a KFC-emulated seasoning and then you get your dipping sauce separately. Matthias was looking forward to wet wings this week. I wasn't sure how I'd feel about the honey mustard flavor. But good eats were had by all! (Except the cats and dogs-sucks to be lower on the evolutionary chain).

I don't know about this rating scale we've developed, because Steel City is getting a 7.5 out of 8 slice rating from me. Erie is definitely pizza and wing proud!

(Mathias: The banana peppers were real fresh and had a good kick. I would have liked more sauce and less crust but no one listens to the Amish it seems)
The 411:

Steel City Pizza & Sandwich Co.
4801 Peach Street
In the Peach Tree plaza
866-0337

Oh, KC the kitten even loved Steel City! Maybe Matthias can tell you about the morning after ...

Porky's: Best $14 Ever Spent

Constance: I began my quest at about noon last Friday as I asked FaceBook friends if anyone knew about the new(er) pizza place down on West 8th Street. Everyone thought I meant Pizza Joe's which had recently moved. But I meant the place owned by policemen. My friend Vik came through - she works in the area and said I was looking for Porky's at 8th and Myrtle, northwest corner. She vouched for me how good their lunches are - good enough for me! (Mathias: the cops are always busting my chops about the horse and outfit-can't we all just get along?)

So, my turn to pick the wings this week and Mathias' turn to pick the topping. Mathias called and asked about any specials d'jour (Mathias: that's Amish for "what can I get for the change I found in the barn?)... as luck would have it, they had a phone special for a medium, one topping pizza and ten wings for $14. Thirty minutes later, a hot pizza on my lap, we headed home and were excited with our latest discovery.

We opened the box. The pizza reminded me of Luchetti's - thin crust, and little pepperoni saucers curled from cooking. The steam rose ... it looked fantastic and smelled even better. Sounds picture perfect, doesn't it? We were so consumed from the presentation and smell and didn't even remember to take a photo. We thought of taking an after photo of the empty plate and wing bones ....

Speaking of the wings?

Cranch should be a new addition in the dictionary ... Cajun + ranch = yummiliscious as my Florida niece would put it. They were dry and I went for the wings first. They even threw in a side container of ranch dipping sauce, included in the price.

I carefully balanced between wings and pizza and when my 5 fair-share wings were gone, I thought about swapping with Mathias for some of his wing quantity, but the pizza was just too good and I didn't want to do that either. So needless to say, there were no leftovers for Saturday a.m. spoiling.

Porky's is getting my highest review yet - 8 of 8 slices!! I highly recommend it. Here's the 411: (Mathias: Constance thinks she's a cop).

Porky's Pizzeria
302 West 8th
454-5000

I don't know where we will be headed this Friday but I'm already calling shotgun as there's nothing like a hot pizza on your lap on a cold winter's evening. If you have any suggestions as your read our blog, let us know. Places to try? Things to add as we blog? I'd like to start asking each establishment about their "signature" items too. Who will our next 8 out of 8 slice place be ... promise to write as the Saturday morning leftovers are enjoyed (if there are any that is!!).

Mathias: Because of the impending super bowl and defeat of the Steelers, we feel it would sooth the ultimate shame of Pittsburghers if we got a pizza and wings deal from Steel City on Peach street. Hear it first: Arizona cardinals in an upset, 23 - 20. Don't mess with the Amish of Arizona!!!

Valerio's is always great!

Constance: I called shotgun to have the hot pizza on my lap for the ride home. (Mathias: I see a trend here). WEEK THREE: I got to pick the topping for our pizza at Valerio's. I drive by Valerio's at 32nd and Pittsburgh Avenue at least three times a day on the way to and from work and errands, so it's like a Point-of-Sale subliminal advertising message for me.

It was another snowy night and for a Friday night, during peak hours it was only going to be a 30 minute wait (hey, like Domino's, remember the Noid?) (Mathias: we had Noids back on the Beet farm but my brother Leviticus chased them down with the sythe) till our pizza and wings would be ready. Good thing because I was starving!

So bring on the banana peppers for our pizza. Mathias picked the wings - Mississippi Stingers - Booya! (Mathias: We Amish aren't allowed to cuss, so that's the extent of my potty mouth). We used a coupon for ValPak for about $16 for a large 1-item pizza and 20 wings. We'll get more precise with the details when we get into the routine of writing more timely about our pizza and wing blog.

The pizza was great - I left slices for breakfast the next day. Wish they would have had jalapenos but the banana peppers were suitable. The wings were as Mathias would say, "ooey-gooey" but not too messy. The flavor is like a store brand emulation of Quaker Steak and Lube's Louisiana Lickers (remember, this girl's from Sharon - home of the original, and spoiled by it too!) but the wings were really good too. I've been on a dry kick lately, so I liked that they were just right - not too wet and not totally dry. I ate the wings first and carefully counted out my 10 to be fair. Mathias went for the pizza first. Probably says something about who liked what best!

I will say that Valerio's pizza is great the morning after. I don't even heat it up - just cold, straight from the box. (Mathias: Constance still hasn't figured out the microwave yet)

My rating? I'd say a 6-1/2 out of 8 slices. You just can't go wrong with Valerio's. Side bar: great lunch specials too - must try the rigatoni with salad (hold the chick peas and olives) with their house Italian dressing - did I mention they're a block from my work?

ValPak Brought a Pizza Pasta Coupon; We've Never Been There!

JANUARY 9, 2009: Pizza Pasta (3018 State Street)

Constance: Even in the middle of a snow emergency, the pizza and wing blog must go on! Mathias drove for pick-up cause he's more fearless than me! (Mathias: she had a musket on me). Our coupon for $9.99 was for a medium 12" pizza with one topping and 10 wings. Mathias got to pick the topping, (Mathias: again, the thing with the musket) and rightfully so, he picked pineapple, his favorite! I picked the wings though. The conversation went like this: what kind of wings? I said ranch. What kind of ranch? Regular? Cajun ranch? Mmm, cajun ranch. Wet or dry? Wow, I remember when there were only 3 wing choices (mild, BBQ and hot!!). So dry cajun ranch. (Mathias: Who's on first?)

I looooved the wings! They were absolutely perfection. Nose dripping hot, but not too unreasonable. Crispy, flavorful ... incredible! (Mathias: Constance did, in fact, wipe her nose after each bite; she is dutifully devoted to etiquette).

The pizza didn't do it for me though. I should mention that my stomach was a little creepy from something I ate earlier in the day though. The cheese was really delicious. The crust was the typical bakery style pizza crust. The sauce was uneventful, except I did like the oregano tang! I managed to eat three small pieces. I picked the ones with extra cheese and few pineapples since I know that's Matthias' genre. And he could have my extra slice for breakfast since he loved this pizza better than I did. (Mathias: and I did have it for a midnight snack as Constance has a habit of getting up in the middle of the night to churn butter; since I was awoken, I figured I'd finish off the pizza).

My rating for the wings would be 8 slices and for the pizza, we're only on week two here, so I don't know how my scale will be developing, but I'm going to give it 2 slices, and I would definitely go back for wings, but probably not the pizza, even with a coupon. (What Constance failed to mention was the item she ate earlier that upset her was a Ring-Ding from 2002 she found in the pantry. With that making it's way through "the system", the pizza had an uphill climb. I thought it was decent, the sauce was tasty and I'd give it 4 out of 8 slices. I might add the people at the pizza joint were really nice and easy to chat it up with. Sometimes when I'm in full Amish garb, I get some stares and under the breath commentary, but not here.)

Oh, I admire their marketing too. They have a loyalty card to accumulate purchases for a reward and they also cross-promoted another business on the pizza box, Sam Catania Painting, perhaps another business owned by the family?

Forgot to mention the wait time ... 45 minutes in a snow emergency. Kinda on my long side of tolerance, but not unreasonable. And it was ready when we got there, and I had the warmth of the pizza on my lap on the drive home ...

Valkyrie and Luchetti's ... My Happy Place

JANUARY 2, 2009: Luchetti's Pizza

Constance: To start things off right, I thought it would be best to start at the top. That meant Luchetti's Pizza to me. I'm originally from Sharon, and grew up with the thick crust of Plaza Pizza, so Erie's Luchetti's crust took some getting used to. And after living in Erie 23 years, I'm a HUGE fan!

We both had time off from work with the holiday, so we went to a Valkyrie matinee followed by Luchetti's. As we start the blog, we're going to use coupons along the way to save as much money as possible on our 52-week adventure. So, we found a coupon from one of the phone books for a large pizza with one topping.

Each week we're going to trade off who gets to pick the topping, so I picked one of my favs, sausage. Luchetti's has a crumbled sausage too, versus some places where they slice sausage like pepperoni.

The wait time for a holiday Friday was 20-30 minutes ... pretty reasonable and perfect distance to get there from Tinseltown. Matt went in for pick-up since my brother just called me on cell. I don't like to be one of "those" loud cell talkers in public places unless I have to!

The pizza was ready on time, and let me tell you, there's nothing like the warmth of a fresh pizza on your lap in 20 degree weather to warm up on the drive home!

Well, my foreshadowing earlier on in this post has already tipped this eater's review of the pizza I'm sure. Still my favorite. Thin, crispy crust. Unique sauce with a mix of spices that add layer upon layer add to a taste explosion in my mouth, and really luscious cheese and crumbled sausage. I ate three pieces to save one for breakfast.

I'd give Luchetti's Pizza and 8 out of 8 slice review! And the extra slice for breakfast the next day - served at fridge temp, did not disappoint! The only sad thing is having to wait a whole year before going back, unless we have pizza twice in a week. That sounds like a plan!

Mathias: Woah, how can I follow that? I'm one of few words and some of my favorites are 'nefarious', 'pragmatic' and 'go to hell'.

I came to Luchetti's later in life, having been raised on Erie's east (worst?) side and never dared dream of crossing the implied border of State Street. I was raised on Pizza Plus, DiMichael's (you old ones may remember that place on East 26th and East Avenue) and grade school pizza from Holy Family. As I recall, aside from the nefarious mental abuses suffered at the hands of loving nuns, the old ladies in the school cafeteria made some hellaciously good pizza. However, it's not pragmatic to review that place as the nun wanna-be's are probably six feet under anyway. Oh, by the way, Sister Salasia, go to hell. There-worked all my favorite words into my review.

Anyway, Luchetti's is probably known for staying open late, coupons, wings by the pound not the quantity and its thin crust pizza. I discovered thin crust a bit ago and use it as an excuse for my diet violations ("At least it's not thick crust!"). My Amish girlfriend Constance really loves the place and the sausage pizza and I've come to like it myself. The pizzas are pretty big, always have a good taste and are a welcome sight at 4 in the morning when I pull a slice out of the fridge for a midnight snack. I'm keen to more sauce than they put on, but until I open my own place, I should just be quiet, especially since Constance used her horse-shoeing money to pay for the stuff.

I'd give the place 6 slices out of 8 (and I'll eat the other 2 for breakfast the next morning).

What this is about

Okay, Constance and I (Mathias) decided last year to create a blog at the beginning of 2009. However, it's primarily going to be our comments and reviews of local pizza and wing joints, as that is one thing (of many) Erie is known for; hence the name of the blog. Every so often we may just add something that's on our minds or things we think are memorable and want to share with whomever may read our entries. Besides, we eat healthy every day of the week (usually)-Fridays we get to fall off the wagon.