The Venue
3234 Center Point Road NE
Cedar Rapids, IA 52402
(319) 364-4313
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| Venue |
Cedar Rapids based online community group Hoopla awarded
Tomaso's the best pizza place over the last five year (2008 it received
2nd). After trying their unique Detroit
crust, it is easy to see why, since the caramelized cheese is a great finisher
off each piece. The staff consists of
mainly high school/college kids, which in a sense is refreshing to see someone
putting our kids to work these days. The
pizzas are prepare in an open kitchen, so you can see exactly what the
preparers are doing when creating the pizza.
I noticed that after each pizza is cooked, the pizza gets taken out of
the pan (or cast iron pan for the Detroit/Chicago style crusts), and then
entered back into the oven for another 3-5 minutes. This provides some durability to the crust which
although it is crispy, it is also bready!
Some locations have been known to serve a more consistent pizza -
Marion, and Center Point Road (in Cedar Rapids) are the ones which I would recommend. The Hiawatha one is a bit spotty, although
the restaurant is much nicer inside. Each
patron gets his/her own drink and plate/silverware, which is nice since you
don't have to wait for a waitress.
Although you can find pizza specials from their mailing list, there is
no nightly deal from my knowledge. Their
menu is posted online, you can find it here:
http://www.tomasospizzeria.com/#!locations/cfin.
The Pizza
Chicago Style: Yes
Crust Thickness: Thin/Regular/Bready Thick
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| Out of the Oven! |
Our group consisted of 4 participants; so we ordered 2 pizzas. We ordered them in the large 16" size. Overall, with tip it came up to about $11 per
person, with few leftovers. They offered
seven specialty pizzas that vary in their toppings-but nothing too out of the
ordinary (I'm not sure how Great Garden really tastes different from the Veggie
Combo). The pizzas that we ordered were
basic, but favorites:
Pepperoni - (Large, Detroit Deep Dish Crust (no lip, instead caramelized cheese on the edge) [16”], $21.24)
Italian Sausage - (Large,
Chicago Style (Same as Detroit except with a lip) Crust [16”], $21.24)
The Verdict
This pizza was awesome, with
the only drawback being the price and lack of delicious sauce. I had to ask for a side of extra sauce, since
I like my pizza a bit more saucy. They
serve the sauce on top of the pie, usually in a swirl fashion. I sometimes wish they were more generous with
the toppings, but being a single topping pizza, they hit it just right. One of the best parts of Tomaso's is that the
cheese blends in beautifully with the bready crust, making each bite a tasty
treat. The pieces were cut into
triangular-shaped slices. Although the
participant size was small, the vibe was pretty positive on the pizza
itself. One participant even commented
that this "pizza is still crispy when it's cold". The Pepperoni-Detroit Crust was the winner
with 3-1 votes. If you are in the mood for a good pizza, try the Detroit Pepperoni!
Here are our ratings,
where 1 = worst and 10 = best.
Overall 9.25
Overall 9.25
Cheese 9.50
Sauce 8.75
Topping 9.63
Crust 9.75
Venue 6.50
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| Large (16"), Italian Sausage, Chicago Style Crust ($21.24) |
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| Large (16"), Italian Sausage, Detroit Style Crust ($21.24) |
