when i got to the restaurant, i explained that i was new to their pizza and i needed some help deciding what to get. they were really friendly but almost everyone who worked there claimed that they were so sick of the pizza from working there that they couldn't advise me on what to order. one guy said he liked the thick crust but that it was all good. so i didn't really know what to do. i called LF and we decided to do 2 mediums: one thin crust with just cheese, and one thick crust with pepperoni.
adriatico's, you have been hit by the cincinnati pizza questLF's husband really wanted us to get "the bearcat," but when i asked what that was, everyone was like "it's this big!" and held their arms out as wide as they could go. i did not think that we needed the bearcat for just the three of us so we didn't get it.
i got our pizza's and drove to LF's house. now here is the thing. she lives kind of out in suburbia. and i got lost trying to find 75 from the restaurant. so it was probably a good half hour between the time the pizza came out of the oven until the time it got to LF's house. so i am thinking that may have affected the pizza quality. on the other hand, a delivery could take just as much time, especially if there was more than one pizza stop on the delivery guy's list.
anyway, by the time i got there and we snapped a few photos and bit in, we were like "well this pizza is... ok." we did not think it was great. we did not think it was the best pizza in cincinnati. the flavor of the crust was good, but especially with the thick crust there was too much of it. i like a thick crust, but only if it is really dense and more crusty than doughy. this crust was puffy and there was not enough sauce or cheese to balance out the mouthful of just... bread.
thin crust with cheesethe sauce was good. it was spicy and rich and slightly sweet. i liked the cheese but LF thought it was kind of bland. also, it was not really melty anymore since it had been out of the oven for so long. the pepperoni was good but nothing special. i didn't really like the bigger than average size of the slices, but then again i just am really not a toppings person.
the husband really thought we should have gotten the bearcat (which is described on the menu as being huge and having a bunch of toppings) because he says it is their specialty and it is why people eat at adriatico's. however, based on the orders they were making in the restaurant, it seemed that most people were ordering large pies with just cheese or one topping. and anyway, i really do not like a ton of toppings on my pizza. plain cheese is my favorite.
the husband's position is that if we are going to be doing a pizza quest and writing about it on our blogs, then we should be trying whatever is the specialty at a given pizza place. and he claims that the bearcat is adriatico's specialty. therefore, since we didn't try the specialty, we can't really comment in a knowledgeable way about the place.
thick crust with pepperonii disagree with him. frankly, it's fun to share my pizza experiences with you guys and this blog is about informing people about cincinnati restaurants, but at the end of the day i'm doing this for me. i'm going to order the kind of pizza i want and if it's not the specialty, too damn bad. i'm not spending my money eating pizza i don't really want regardless of what people want to read about.
so readers, what do you say? have any of you had the bearcat? is that what is really good at adriatico's? did we miss out by not ordering it? you are also free to comment on what kind of pizza you want to read about, but i'm probably not going to be basing my ordering decisions on that (unless you want to fund my eating... hint hint... haha).
the official cincinnati pizza quest ratings (on a scale of 1 to 5 slices, 5 slices being the best):
crust: overall - 3.5 slices (thin crust - 4, thick crust - 3)
sauce - 4 slices
sauce - 4 slices
cheese - 3 slices
pepperoni - 3.5 slices
overall - 3 slices
i liked adriatico's pizza and i would eat it again if i was in the neighborhood. however, i'm not going to travel for it. it's a good local choice if you live in clifton, but otherwise i don't really think it's worth going there for, especially since they don't have anywhere to sit. but who knows, maybe the bearcat is worth the trip...
i liked adriatico's pizza and i would eat it again if i was in the neighborhood. however, i'm not going to travel for it. it's a good local choice if you live in clifton, but otherwise i don't really think it's worth going there for, especially since they don't have anywhere to sit. but who knows, maybe the bearcat is worth the trip...
15 comments:
Wow, I haven't had Adratico's since I was a grad student in Clifton many years ago. Other students used to buy whole ones, then sell it by the slice to raise money for clubs and events. I agree, it was OK, but for that area, I preferred to go to Pomodori's for their wood fired pizza. Not sure if they are still there, but sometimes I eat at the Montgomery location. Other pizzas I like are Deweys and Mios. Larosas is just too sweet and Papa Johns and Dominos just shouldn't be eaten by anyone period!
I was equally meh about Adriatico's. Be sure and have Pomodori's on your pizza list. Get one of the wood fired pizzas.
I enjoy Adriatico's and when I was a student it was a great choice for me and my roommate because it fed us for a few days. We, of course, were getting The Bearcat, but usually just with pepperoni. It is a far better choice than any of the chains and it was good both hot and cold... a must for college students.
When I was reading through the post I was assuming that their thick crust was the same as the crust on The Bearcat but from the picture they look different, I may be wrong. But in that case I would recommend getting a Bearcat, maybe the next time you have an event.
I completely agree with Hound Dog and Shawn, you must try Pomodori's wood fired.
ok guys i am not supposed to tell you this but pomodori's is our next stop. don't tell liberal foodie i spilled the beans.
and i just clicked over to your site from google reader to post a comment about checking out pomodori's. good thing i read the other comments first. :)
my first few years of pharmacy school we had a organization meeting every wednesday and every wednesday we had the bearcat with various toppings. needless to say, i am burned out at this point, but it was good the first 20 times. and i agree with sam l, the thick crust looks different from the bearcat crust. it's kind of fluffy through the middle and crispy on the bottom.
They were sick of pizza?
JEZUZ!
Nice salesmanship guys, with passion like that Adriatico's should be out of business here shortly.
As a partial Italian from Youngstown, I'll let you in on a secret, there is no great Cincinnati pizza. You'll have to take the plunge and drive to Cleveland or Youngstown.
Hmmm Avalon Pizza, I can taste it now.
The husband is right. The Bearcat is the way to go. Get 10 people and go back.
And before you screw up again, the way to do Pomi's is also to get several people and order several different pizzas and try a bit of everything (including the apple pizza).
Agreed...the Bearcat is the only thing to get at Adratico's. Pepperoni Bearcat - same huge pepperoni's as your pizza, but on top of a huge thick garlic crust.
I agree with West Ender about the Pomi's experience. Get several wood fire pizza's to taste their specialites...Don't forget to order the garlic cheese bread too!
I'd go back and try the bearcat w/ tomato slices. Mmmmmmmm. Also, it warms up great in the oven...
everyone loves the bearcat after all! dammit...
there's been so much action here and I didn't even notice. I guess maybe because I didn't hear all that noise coming from this post.
I am giving Adriatico's another try Liz.
There is also something magical about the shape of the bearcat. I like the bread-iness of the crust, and the corner pieces offer a better bite for me. I've generally been disappointed with the regular round pizza's from Adriatico's, but not sure if its just a mental thing. I would rate Adriatico's as definitely my favorite big box chain style pizza in Cincinnati due to the spicy sauce and crust, but its not really fair to compare it to any of the wood-fire artisanal pizza's like Pomodori's (unless you are talking pizza by the slice there...different story) and Dewey's, which are kind of a different genre that are more expensive and provide more refined ingredients and different tastes. I've heard good things about NYPD pizza (I guess specializing in NY style giant slice pizza) in Northside, and theres probably a few restaurants like Via Vite that have pizza ovens without that being their main product if you're going for the fancier pizza genre.
GET THE ZONI!!!! I went to school at UC and fell in love the the italian Zoni. It is kind of a calzone, but in sub form without the ricotta. I get the italian zoni with 1 pizza sauce, 1 garlic butter sauce and I dip in both each bite. I worked at Adriaticos for a short time as well. I live in Las Vegas now and have my fiance's parents(still live in cincy) send me 3 zoni's in the mail for my bday....yes, they are just as good left over. Do not judge adriaticos without tryin a zoni.
First I have to say that I have never read a blog and certainly never commented before but I came across yours while I was looking for Adriatico's menu online (which, by the way, isn't there). I had to comment here because Adriatico's is absolutely the best pizza (and I've never had a bearcat) but I have noticed a few times that it's a little "off", as though someone different was preparing it. Please give them another shot. I agree that Pomi's is good too but Adricatico's is still the best! :-) Re your blog, let me say that I thoroughly enjoyed your Adriatico's entry and your writing style - and since I'm a big foodie I will read your other entries as soon as I get a chance. You may have already tried it but another interesting (I've only been there once but liked it) pizza place is Betta's Italian Oven in Norwood...
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