Attempt #89 - Fong's Pizza

Venue Outside

Menu

The Venue
1006 3rd St SE,
Cedar Rapids, IA 52401
(319) 320-9992

Fong's pizza originated in Des Moines, Iowa and is well known for their oriental pizza combinations. The restaurant does not take reservations, and as a result, if you are trying to get a large group in on the weekends, you might have to wait. The restaurant has low table, high table, booth, and bar seating in a narrow room. This was the former Beta's restaurant, where Pizza Attempt #77 took place (http://iowanpizzachronicles.blogspot.com/2017/10/attempt-77-betas.html). 

The Pizza

Chicago Style: No

Crust Thickness: Thin

Menu: https://fongspizza.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Fongs_11x14_menu_CR.pdf

Participants: 11 (plus 5 children)

Pizza Ordered: 6

Sizes Offered/Ordered: 10” and 16"

Crab Rangoon (16", $22)

Crusts Offered/Ordered: Wheat or White, Glutten-free

Pieces Cut: Triangular

Crab Rangoon - Crab Rangoon base, surimi, green onion, asiago and mozzarella; topped with crispy wontons and a sweet chili lattice. (16", $22)

Fongolian Beef© - Mongolian sauce, sliced beef, roasted red pepper,green pepper, and sauteed green onions tossed stir-fry style with mozzarella. (16", $21)
Mac And Cheese - Big D’s mac and cheese topped with mozzarella, cheddar and Parmesan topped with toasted Parmesan; breadcrumbs. (16”, $21 with Bacon $22.50)

Bacon Popper - Cream cheese base with bacon, Graziano sausage, onion, green pepper, roasted red pepper, jalapeno, and mozzarella. (16”, $21)
Honey and Garlic - Alfredo sauce, fresh garlic, honey and mozzarella. (16”, $20)

Mac and Cheese (16", $22.50)

Street Taco - Pepper jack, cheddar, and mozzarella base, with Cajun corn and black bean blend, julienned red onion, jalapeno and mojo marinated beef steak. Topped with fresh lettuce, cilantro, and house made Pico de Gallo; served with cilantro lime sour cream and taco sauce. (16", $22)

The Verdict

Sauce: All pizzas were light on the sauce.

Cheese: Average.

Crust: The Fongolian beef was soggy, but the rest were thin. The taste between the wheat and the white was not significant, I couldn't  tell.

Fongolian Beef (16", $22)

Toppings: The toppings were unique. The Street Taco was superb bursting with flavor and the tasty lime cilantro sauce was awesome.

Final Comments/Considerations: The pizza was delivered in a prompt manner, and they were tastey, even if on the thin side. Given the low price

Here are our ratings, where 1 = worst and 10 = best.
Overall 8.68

Cheese 8.00

Sauce 8.00

Honey and Garlic (16", $20)

Topping 9.18

Crust 6.91

Venue 7.73

Favorite: Street Taco

Street Taco (16", $22)

Bacon Popper (16", $21)

Attempt #88 - Blaze Pizza

Venue Outside

The Venue
201 S. Clinton St #167,
Iowa City, IA 52240

(319) 519-0075

Blaze is a chain pizzeria where customers walk through a line and pay $7.49 for one pizza on a personal pan with either thin or average crust. The employees will ask you if you are okay with the amount of toppings placed on the pizza, which is a good idea, since often I found them to be a bit on the light side. Seating had booth or table, and each party serviced themselves.

Menu

The Pizza

Chicago Style: No

Crust Thickness: Thin

Menu: https://blazepizza.com/menu/

Participants: 6 (plus 2 children)

Pizza Ordered: 7

Sizes Offered/Ordered: Standard 12” pan
Crusts Offered/Ordered: Standard Thin Crust

Pieces Cut: Triangular

Topping Creations

2x Hot Link - Spicy red sauce, jalepeños, sausage, black olives, red onions, banana peppers, mozzarella

Meat Eater - Pepperoni, crumbled meatballs, red onion, mozzarella, red sauce

Art Lover - Artichokes, mozzarella, ricotta, chopped garlic, red sauce dollops

White Top - White cream sauce with mozzarella, applewood bacon, chopped garlic, oregano, arugula

The Verdict

Sauce: Good flavor.

Cheese: Loved the variety of cheeses.

Crust: Either burnt or soggy. The crust seemed inconsistent.

Toppings: Average to sparse. I had to ask several times for more toppings

More Toppings

Final Comments/Considerations: The pizza was delivered in a prompt manner, and they were tastey, even if on the thin side. Given the low price point, its a great concept for a college town, $8.43 after tax is hard to beat. However, if you are looking for a truly awesome pizza, I would suggest moving on. These pizzas are a lower end of the individual gourmet pesonal-style-pizza. Try Bata's in Iowa City for some truly gourmet, delicious pizza!

Here are our ratings, where 1 = worst and 10 = best.Overall 7.33

Cheese 8.00

Sauce 7.67

Half White Top Half Pepperoni

Topping 8.17

Crust 6.67

Venue 8.00

Favorite: Art Lover

     

Hot Link with Ham, Salami, and Pepperoni Added

Thicker Style Crust Pizza

Pizza Oven

Meatlovers

Attempt #87 - Kalona Brewing Company

Venue Outside

The Venue
405 B Ave.,
Kalona, IA 52247

(319) 656-3335

As seen on Travel Iowa, the Kalona Brewing Company has existed since 2012 serving beer and pizza. The clean restaurant, has a drinking lounge to the right and a restaurant area on the left side along with an outdoor seating area in the rear. There are booths as well as tables, and it is kid friendly. A stone oven cooks up the pizzas while the chief tosses the dough up into the air, like you see in the movies. 

Venue Inside Facing Brewing Company Section

The wait staff is incredibly friendly and easy going. It is a good idea to call ahead of time for weekend nights with a larger group. Forty-five minutes in advance on a Friday night and they still found room for a group of nine.

The Pizza

Chicago Style: No

Crust Thickness: Thin

Venue Kitchen

Menu: http://www.kalonabrewing.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Menu-Aug-2018.pdf

Participants: 5 (plus 4 children)

Pizza Ordered: 6

Sizes Offered/Ordered: Standard 12” pan
Crusts Offered/Ordered: Standard Thin Crust

Pieces Cut: Triangular

Meat Lovers - House-made sausage, beef, pepperoni, mozzarella, red onion, parmesan ($16)

Pesto Prawn - Shrimp, roasted peppers, tomato, red onion, feta, mozzarella ($15)

Sausage & Fennel - Sausage, caramelized fennel, grapes, red pepper flakes, mozzarella ($14)

Bacon & Scallion Pesto - Bacon, onion, scallion pesto, crème fraîche, mozzarella ($14)

Buffalo Chicken - Chicken, buffalo sauce, blue cheese crumbles, mozzarella, roasted peppers, pepperoncini, caramelized onions ($15)

Pepperoni - ($11)

The Verdict

Sauce: Good flavor and well placed.

Cheese: Wonderful cheeses that were fresh and unique. The meat lovers had large slices of a dryer mozzarella that was very tasty.

Menu

Crust: The rim was bready. The middle was slight soggy, but held up well.

Toppings: High quality with a great unique flavors.

Final Comments/Considerations: Everyone, even the kids, loved this place. No wonder it was on Travel Iowa.

The wait took some time, but the dough was fresh and homemade, while the pizza toppings were fresh and unique. For a thin crust you couldn't ask for a better one. In fact, it rates the highest to date for the toppings category, and the fourth highest for the overall category. If you can spare the time to drive out to this lovely town, its worth the effort!

Here are our ratings, where 1 = worst and 10 = best.Overall 9.00

Cheese 9.20

Sauce 9.00

Topping 9.80

Crust 8.20

Venue 9.00

Bacon & Scallion Pesto, $14

Buffalo Chicken, $15

Meat Lovers, $15

Pepperoni, $11

Pesto Prawn, $15

Sausage & Fennel, $15

Slices

Favorite: Meat Lovers

Attempt #86 - Big Grove (Solan, IA)

Venue Outside

The Venue
101 W Main St,
Solon, IA 52333

(319) 624-2337

Big Grove is an up and coming brewery in the eastern Iowa area. Two locations exist, one in Solan, Iowa and the other in Iowa City, Iowa. Only the one in Solan has pizzas. The retaruant has a bar area, plenty of booth and table seating indoors, and an out door patio for additional seating. Free sample are suggested, as beer goes along well with pizza.

The Pizza

Chicago Style: No

Crust Thickness: Thin

Menu: http://biggrovebrewery.com/menus-solon/

Beer

Participants: 8 (plus 9 children, 2 infants)

Pizza Ordered: 10 (all menu pizzas)

Sizes Offered/Ordered: Standard 12” pan
Crusts Offered/Ordered: Standard Thin Crust

Pieces Cut: Triangular

Pizza Margherita - San Marzano Tomato, Fresh Mozzarella, Basil, Olive Oil, Sea Salt ($12)

White Sausage - Crème Fraiche, House Made Fennel Pork Sausage, Fresh Mozzarella, Red Onion, Scallion, Marinated Tomato, Fennel Pollen ($14)

Traditional Sausage - House Made Fennel Pork Sausage, San Marzano Tomato, Fresh Mozzarella ($13)

Salumi - Pepperoni Style Sausage, San Marzano Tomato, Fresh Mozzarella ($13)

Menu

Heirloom Tomato And Smoked Burrata - Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Fresh Cracked Black Pepper, Fleur De Sel ($15)

Roasted Mushroom - Rotating Selection Of Locally Grown Mushrooms, Garlic Confit, Fontina Cheese, Arugula ($14)

The Verdict

Sauce: Good flavor and well placed.

Cheese: Average per the style they were serving.

Crust: The edges were great, but every pizza was soagy in the middle. This was the major downside commonly stated among participants.

Toppings: High quality with a great balance of flavors.

Final Comments/Considerations: I loved the flavors of the mushroom and the white sausage pizzas. They truly were unique and worthy of a order. The Salumi was also great, but predictable (who doesn't love meat, right?). The margherita and sausage were average, and the heirloom/burrata made the pizza soaking with juices. If you are going to try, I strongly suggest the White Sausage, Roasted Mushroom, or Salumi.

Kids Pizzas - 2 Cheese and a Salumi

Here are our ratings, where 1 = worst and 10 = best.
Overall 7.50

Cheese 7.88

Sauce 6.75

Topping 7.88

Crust 6.00

Venue 8.81

Favorite: White Sausage

Heirloom Tomato And Smoked Burrata($15)

Roasted Mushroom ($13)

Pizza Margherita ($12)

Salumi ($13)

'

White Sausage ($14)

Slices

Traditional Sausage ($13)

Attempt #85 - Mirabito's Italian Restaurant

Venue Outside

The Venue
40 Sugar Creek Ln,

North Liberty, IA 52317

(319) 459-1342

Back in 2011, I had a groupon for a Sushi place nearby. Being that it was closed up, I quickly choose Mirabito's for a meal that night. Since I saw they served pizza, it was been on my mind to take the group down to give it a try. The restaurant serves pasta, some traditional Italian dishes, and pizza. The cannolis and lemon cake were amazing!

Venue Inside

As far as seating goes, there is tables with chairs. Although this place isn't very big, they can pack the house if needed. They do not take reservations, although they will do your best to accommodate your party needs.

Even with pizza, they serve you warm bread, with olive oil, pepper/salt, and cheese. Although typical of Italian restaurants, this act of hospitality was a refreshing delight!

The Pizza

Chicago Style: No

Crust Thickness: Standard

Menu: https://www.mirabitos.com/eat/

Participants: 7 (plus 4 children)

Pizza Ordered: 5 (all menu pizzas)

Sizes Offered/Ordered: Standard 12” pan
Crusts Offered/Ordered: Standard Crust

Pieces Cut: Rectangular

Menu

Verrazano - Spicy sausage, cappicola, cherry peppers, caramelized onion and roasted garlic ($15)

Brooklyn's Best - Pepperoni, cappicola, prosciutto and Italian sausage ($16)

Ortaggio - Portobello muschroom, artichoke hearts, spinach, roasted red pepper, caramelized onion and roasted garlic ($16)

Clubland - Alfredo sauce, diced chicken, prosciutto, sliced tomato and red onion ($16)Pepperoni - ($12)

The Verdict

Sauce: Good flavor.

Cheese: Fresh, they also came around a .

Bread with the meal

Crust: The buttery crust was great, and not too thin. The spicy (Verrazano) had soggy middle pieces, but otherwise it was a hit.

Toppings: High quality. These toppings made the day. Traditional American meets Italian flavors! This is where the spicy (Verranzano) and Meat Lovers (Brooklyn's Best) really shined!

Ortaggio, $16 (Veggie)

Brooklyn's Best, $16

Clubland, $16

Final Comments/Considerations: I was most surprised and how filling the pizzas were. I was expecting more of a thin crust and leaving me 8 pieces in, and still feeling hungry. If you haven't tried out Mirabito's, I strongly recommend it.

Here are our ratings, where 1 = worst and 10 = best.Overall 8.50

Cheese 7.79

Sauce 8.00

Topping 9.79

Crust 8.71

Venue 8.86

Favorite: Brooklyn's Best (similar to a Meat Lovers)

Verrazano, $16 (Spicy)

Pepperoni, $12

Slices

Attempt #84 - Geyer's Oven

Entrance

The Venue
1259 Rohret Rd SW,

Oxford, Iowa 52322

(319) 828-4257

There are two Pizza farms in the eastern Iowa area that I am aware of. Stone wall (which we attempted back in Pizza Attempt #76 [September 2017]), and Geyer's Oven. From our knowledge, Geyers is the more popular, and closer to Iowa City, location. The Menu varies and during the summer months, one can find updates on their Facebook page.

All you can eat, however, you will need to wait in line. They usually run until 7:30 PM. $12 per adult, kids under 6 are free.

Long Lines

The Pizza

Chicago Style: No

Crust Thickness: Thin

Menu: https://www.facebook.com/Geyers-Oven-282157461899595/

Participants: 4 (plus 2 children)

Pizza Ordered: All

Sizes Offered/Ordered: Standard personal pan
Crusts Offered/Ordered: Standard Thin Crust

Pieces Cut: Triangular

Pepperoni/Cheese
BBQ Beef & Caramelized Onion

Meat Lovers – Sausage, Bacon, Pepperoni

Menu

Ham, Black Beans, Spinach, Balsamic Glaze & 3 Cheese Blend

Sriracha Chicken with Pickled Red Onion

Southwestern – Black beans, green onions, cheddar, cilantro, taco sauce

Mean Green – With Spinach, green onion, garlic oil, 3 cheese blend

The Verdict

Sauce: Average.

Cheese: The cheese curd one (Ham) was awesome with the cheese.

Crust: A lot of burnt pieces, so I was disappointed. Most likely this was due to them being in a rush on openning night.

Toppings: A lot of interesting topping selections, which made their pizzas unique. Some were a little over the top (veggie with no dairy), but it was decent to try and appetizing.

Pizza Chief

Final Comments/Considerations: Personally,I preferred Stone Wall's pizza farm to Geyer's. Less crowd, more pizza, and more traditional toppings. Overall we felt it was a little overrated, but it was a nice property, with a cool garden fir the kids to play in.

Here are our ratings, where 1 = worst and 10 = best.Overall 7.75

Cheese 7.75

Sauce 6.75

Topping 7.00

Crust 7.25

Slices

Venue 9.50

Favorite: Undecided