Attempt #2 - Sip N Stir

The Venue
Sip N Stir
1119 1st Ave SE
Cedar Rapids, IA 52402-5005
(319) 364-3163

On Sunday’s, they have a 2 topping, 13” pizza special for just $7, with one condition—you must eat it at the establishment.
Unfortunately, they do not serve anything but Pizza and Appetizers on Sundays. The bar was peaceful at 5:00 on a Sunday, and they had a lot more table room than I would have guessed for a little place next to Zio Johno’s.

The Pizza
Although, their pizza wasn’t Chicago style, by any means, they did pretty good job of having an even spread of cheese and toppings.
Everything that was prepared was made in-house, from the dough to the sauce.
The dough had a salty, crisp taste, with a fair amount of cheese grease to soak it in, as to soften it up (yummy). I found myself easily finishing off four pieces (1/2 of a single 13” pizza).
I found that the size was a bit small, however, the toppings were fresh and the cheese was very good.
We ordered two pizza’s, a Sausage and Onion, and a Ham and Pineapple.

The Verdict
For only $7, you can’t go wrong with the Sip ‘N Stir; However, if you are looking for something with a bit more substance and you are crazing that Deep Dish Flavor, head elsewhere.

Attempt #1 - Sam's Pizza

The VenueSam's Pizza & Deli
824 6th Street Southwest
Cedar Rapids, IA 52404
(319) 366-8406

This restaurant gets their ingredients straight from Chicago…and for their specialty—the Chicago style pizza, this is very fitting. Part of the restaurant is organized to be a pick-up-and-order counter, but there is a passageway to the other side, where tables and chairs are located. It’s very laid back. They have been around for nine years, and their pizza shows.

The PizzaThis pizza was a true Chicago style type of pizza. A firm, salty crust, loaded with TONS of cheese. The largest size (costing $27), takes about 30 minutes to cook, and weighs in at around six pounds. It certainly fed our group of six, with one piece left over for the missing seventh person. They were generous with the cheese, so much so that they mixed in the other toppings amongst the intense overflow of cheese. We were impressed that given the shear amount of cheese, there wasn’t more grease at the bottom of the pan after taking a slice. Overall, the pizza was still was very good. Considering we had a group of six, we ordered two batches of breadsticks, which were delicious. A blend of spices (parmesan cheese and garlic salt) were baked on to them, which enhanced their unique flavor.

The VerdictI would have liked this pizza a bit more if they had more sauce and a thicker curst. To me, the crust seems a bit on the thinner side for Chicago style. Compliments were given with the unique mixture of parmesan cheese and garlic salt that was provided to spice up the pizza and breadsticks.