Palumbo's Pizzeria
It's been a long time since I've been very "foodie" in this blog (despite recently joining the MN Food Blogger's group), so I thought I would throw in a review of Palumbo's Pizza, which just opened in my neighborhood on Snelling Avenue. It's in a slightly cursed space, which has already closed down Blondie's and Geordie's. The new owners have started out well by pointing out how much parking there is! Still, I don't like the space (and never have) — there's something loud and strip-mall-like about it, and always a lingering musty smell.
I met co-workers who had been there before and loved it, and we all had the margherita pizza (my standard way to measure a pizza place). It was well-priced at $6 — in fact, almost everything on the menu is under $10. Most of the vegetarian items seemed almost TOO veggie heavy, though (really? zucchini in a calzone? doesn't that get mushy?), so I stuck to the old standard.
To be fair, my lunch mates loved their pizza. I was ... underwhelmed. I found it overcooked and dry, even with a sprinkling of olive oil. The tomato was sort of melted in to the cheese, which was overcooked, and the crust dry. I've had much worse pizzas, but this was nowhere near what I have come to love at Punch, or the excellent margherita at Pazzaluna, or oven the one I sampled at Scusi last week. Something was off in the balance of salt and flavor to me as well. But again, my lunchmates loved it, so what do I know!
The gelato, from Ring Mountain Creamery in Eagan, was lovely. Very creamy and fresh tasting, with samplers available at just $1 per generous scoop. They told us the salted caramel was the best seller, but I loved the stradella, with large chocolate chunks. The chocolate was actually a little icy and low on flavor for my taste. And I didn't even get to try the other three flavors.
(since it was lunch, I didn't try the wines or beers...)
The owner stopped by to see how we liked our meals, and in general the staff was friendly. Prices were good, and again, others seem to enjoy it more than I did. I'll likely be back, but it is not going to be at the top of my lit anytime soon.
I met co-workers who had been there before and loved it, and we all had the margherita pizza (my standard way to measure a pizza place). It was well-priced at $6 — in fact, almost everything on the menu is under $10. Most of the vegetarian items seemed almost TOO veggie heavy, though (really? zucchini in a calzone? doesn't that get mushy?), so I stuck to the old standard.
To be fair, my lunch mates loved their pizza. I was ... underwhelmed. I found it overcooked and dry, even with a sprinkling of olive oil. The tomato was sort of melted in to the cheese, which was overcooked, and the crust dry. I've had much worse pizzas, but this was nowhere near what I have come to love at Punch, or the excellent margherita at Pazzaluna, or oven the one I sampled at Scusi last week. Something was off in the balance of salt and flavor to me as well. But again, my lunchmates loved it, so what do I know!
The gelato, from Ring Mountain Creamery in Eagan, was lovely. Very creamy and fresh tasting, with samplers available at just $1 per generous scoop. They told us the salted caramel was the best seller, but I loved the stradella, with large chocolate chunks. The chocolate was actually a little icy and low on flavor for my taste. And I didn't even get to try the other three flavors.
(since it was lunch, I didn't try the wines or beers...)
The owner stopped by to see how we liked our meals, and in general the staff was friendly. Prices were good, and again, others seem to enjoy it more than I did. I'll likely be back, but it is not going to be at the top of my lit anytime soon.
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