Pizzeria Bianco

Reviews 3

TE

Terri S

Best Pizza Ever, Hands Down I had some shopping to do at Town & Country Plaza, but hadnt had a thing to eat all day. I saw the sign for Pizzeria Bianco and decided to see if they were too busy to accommodate me. (I had heard that there was always a line to get in.) Well, it was apparently my lucky day. When I entered the restaurant, I was promptly shown to a nice seat at the bar and provided with ice water and a lunch menu. The menu wasnt large, and my eye immediately focused on the pizza selections. There were 6 pizza offerings, 3 with red sauce, and 3 without. I wanted something straightforward, so I settled on the pizza margherita (tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, and basil) and asked them to add garlic. I was assured that the crust would be thin and crisp. I also ordered a glass of the house red wine, and settled in to wait. While I was waiting, the couple next to me generously offered to share their pizza with me since they had more than they could eat. I let them know I appreciated the offer, but that I was reserving my appetite to be able to finish my own pizza. It came out moments later, and looked perfect. Biting into my first slice was even better. The crust was super thin, crisp, and tasty. This was not going to be one of those pizzas where part of the crust would be left on the plate. Every bit of each slice demanded to be eaten. the tomato sauce was just acidic enough, and married well with the fresh mozzarella, basil, garlic and the crust. Each mouthful was light and delightful. There was nothing heavy at all about my pizza. I was glad that I had kept it simple rather than ordering a pizza heavy with ingredients. Pizza devoured, I became curious about the dessert offerings. I hadnt seen any on the menu, and so had to quiz my server about the possibilities. I settled on a pear tart, garnished with a dip of nutmeg Italian ice. The pear tart was nice, but the nutmeg Italian ice was out of this world. Yum!!! It almost tasted perfumed with the nutmeg, and slightly custardy. I didnt even need the pear tart. I have to go back again for the pizza, but I dont intend to leave without having the nutmeg Italian ice again. My entire lunch was such a treat. This is now at the top of my list for best pizza. The service, while very friendly, was a little spotty. I wasnt sure at several points, who was supposed to be taking care of me, and about the time I finished my pizza, everyone disappeared. I had to solicit someone to discuss dessert, and again, to pay my check. I enjoyed my meal so much that I really didnt mind too much. ------------------------------------------------­Second Visit 9/8/15------------------------------- OK, I am now still a fan of the pizza, but NOT a fan of the service. It was worse than spotty this time. I was able to place my order, but then there was apparently a shift change. Someone did bring me the piping hot pizza I had ordered - and it was perfect again - but then no check back to see how it was, no service period until someone finally noticed my plate pushed away and came to take it around 10 minutes after I had finished. It wasnt busy, there were all kinds of staff standing around across the room talking to each other. I stand by the pizza, but the service was so poor that I cut way back on my tip. Reduced my rating to 4 stars from 5.

HO

Hopson Review

Pizzeria Bianco leaves us feeling conflicted. After having eaten at both this location and their Town & Country offshoot several times (Phoenix doesnt leave us with too many options), we can securely say that the food is almost always more than satisfying, and even when its not, its not abysmal, just on the plainer side of things. The sourcing quality varies a bit too much for our liking – the flours that serve as the base for all their breads, crusts, pastas and the like are made from local Hayden Flour Mills ancient grain flours (fantastic), they offer grass-fed beef but for only some of the dishes (why only some?), and have a few organic ingredients amongst others of more ambiguous quality throughout the menu. Obviously Bianco recognizes the value in this stuff, so its a little disappointing that they dont find it worthwhile to commit more fully. That said, we appreciate that their breads, crusts, pastas and sauces are all made in-house (or in one of their three houses, rather) – an unfortunately rare feature that most certainly helps shape Biancos distinctive flavour. The Marinara pizza is wonderful, especially with added wood-roasted mushrooms. The Rosa, though far from plenty of peoples idea of what a pizza should be, is similarly scrumptious, but should be eaten before the parmesan has had time to cool and turn to rubber. Seeing other reviewers discredit Pizzeria Biancos quality simply because theyve never had a pizza without sauce is massively depressing, and helps us understand why its now become common for our servers to clarify at every meal that "such and such pizzas do not come with sauce." Despite being ultimately a single entity, the two locations (the third being not a Pizzeria, but a Pane) are pretty different. The most notable difference being that the original location seems to specialize in pizza, while Town & Country specializes in pasta (though they too offer pizza, its just never quite as good). The service Downtown is decidedly worse, with most of the staff being at least unprofessional, if not rude - whereas at Town & Country, more often than not, its excellent, or at its worst mildly awkward but sweet. Downtown, they dont serve complimentary bread with every meal, T&C does. The list goes on. Though Pizzeria Bianco is not without its problems, it does keep us coming back. And for good reason – this location serves great pasta, and the fact that theyre handmade in-house from local ancient grains seals the deal.

CH

Charlie Lindstrom

The pizza was the best Ive had in years. I called to order carryout and was told 10-15 minutes it would be ready so I rushed over to try and get the freshest I could get it. I arrived in about 20 minutes and was told it wasnt ready and was invited to sit at the bar to pay and wait. After waiting 15 minutes after sitting down, waiting, and paying...another couple came in and sat down also that had ordered takeout. They were promptly greeted and bread w/ dipping oil was brought over to them upon first greeting (it was not requested). The busser said it was to offer them something while they waited for their pizza to get done. "Why wasnt I offered bread?" I thought..... I waited another 10 minutes before asking the hostess how much longer. She informed me they had some large parties while delayed the other orders. Ive worked in the restaurant industry for many years so I understand how this works, but expressed my disappointment because the person whom took my order over the phone said it would only be 10-15 minutes. There appears to be either some miscommunication or the person didnt even know (or care) to check with the kitchen when I called. I ended up leaving to drive across the street to buy a bottle of wine to take home with the pizza which took about 10 minutes total and the pizza was ready for me when I got there. Back to the good part......the "Wiseguy" pizza was amazing. I scarfed it down as fast as I could. Im still going to give this place another shot as Im hoping I was a fluke and not the norm.