THAT’S AMORE!!! – Order #2 Giordano’s Pizza
Filed Under : 
Apr.20,2012
Taste
This is not Chicago style pizza… this IS Chicago pizza! You don’t have to hitch hike to
Chi-Town to enjoy this one of a kind pizza pie.
I would not say that this pizza is a close second to what you get at any one of Giordano’s 40 locations. IT IS what you would be served right there at the original location on North Rush Street. Even in a fully stocked kitchen with a team of component minions it would be pretty darn difficult to replicate the flaky crust and the well-balanced flavors of the filling… “Filling,” you say? Yes this is a “stuffed pizza,” so it is stuffed rather then topped, making it like a pie! Ah! Maybe that’s why it’s called Pizza Pie 
No need for grated Parmesan or red chilly flakes. The cheese has such an amazing flavor and texture that when you cut into it you could stretch it across the room. It was said that maybe the sauce is not as saucy as when you eat it fresh but we all agreed that the marinara had fantastic flavor and added the right amount of acidity to the pizza. Eat this pizza with a knife and fork and you are in for a REAL Chicago treat!
TASTE: 40/40
Shipping
Ordering was simple. The website is loaded with information and has an easy to understand breakdown of how delivery works. They make and half bake your pizza at the time of order and then freeze package and ship to you in dry ice. They do use a Styrofoam box so make sure to check with your local recyclers. We knocked off a couple points for shipping because of the use of a Styrofoam box, as this is our practice. We would like to note that there was NO over packaging, which is awesome! The food also arrived on time and from a food safety standpoint it was in good order. We received the pizza before noon and stored it in the refrigerator. It was ready to bake by dinnertime.
SHIPPING: 19 / 20
Preparation
It’s been said that the devil is in the details… and this might be why we got a little lost. The cooking instructions where simple: “Pre heat oven to 450°f and bake for 20min until pizza is brown.” If we had used these instructions, instead of our common sense, we would have wound up with some VERY cold, sad pizza. After the suggested baking-time we temperature checked the center of the pizza with a butter knife, which we poked into the middle and held there for five seconds. It came out stone cold.
WHAT TO DO??? We reduced the heat down to 375° and baked for another 25min. Taking the cook time from 20min to 45min, which was a bit of a disappointment with a room full of hungry guests. We then waited to make sure that the top was bubbly (a better indicator than a browned crust) and the core temperature was nice and hot. Seeing as the pizza comes half-baked you are not running much risk from under cooking other than that this is a pizza you want to serve it piping hot. We would like to see more information on how to cook and serve, it was not as simple as the six lines of instructions would make it seem. Please keep in mind we have not calibrated this oven and times/temperatures may vary.
Oh, and since we felt like getting a little fancy, we cooked one of our two pizza pies on a heated pizza stone. It was a nice touch but not necessary for delicious results.
PREPARATION: 15 / 20
Quality and Value
The price range on ordering one of these bad boys is between $17 and $25 (shipping not included). Seeing as it a specialty food item with incredible, high-quality ingredients we felt that the price was reasonable and certainly a lot cheaper than a plane ticket to Chicago. We served five adults and had an entire pizza left over. It is a very decadent pizza and should be eaten with a knife and fork. We ordered two types of pizza from Giordano’s. The Chicago Classic, which has cheese, green peppers, onions mushroom, and pepperoni. We also had the Sausage Pizza, which has lots of delicious sausage and cheese. This is not a food for someone that is counting calories or is faint of heart. Overall, we found Giordano’s Pizza to be a fantastic and highly recommendable pizza choice.
QUALITY and VALUE: 20 / 20
Overall: 94 Points to Giordano’s Pizza!!!
We can wholeheartedly say YEAH to Giordano’s! Incredibly hard to find authentic flavor is only a click away. We do hope that they help us out in the future by offering more detailed instructions on how to prepare this item once it is received. If you miss the taste of Chicago, or if you just want to impress the heck out of your friends the next time they come over to watch the game, this is the ticket! Great “back at home” pizza and you don’t have to tip the delivery guy!!
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Taste
This is not Chicago style pizza… this IS Chicago pizza! You don’t have to hitch hike to Chi-Town to enjoy this one of a kind pizza pie.
I would not say that this pizza is a close second to what you get at any one of Giordano’s 40 locations. IT IS what you would be served right there at the original location on North Rush Street. Even in a fully stocked kitchen with a team of component minions it would be pretty darn difficult to replicate the flaky crust and the well-balanced flavors of the filling… “Filling,” you say? Yes this is a “stuffed pizza,” so it is stuffed rather then topped, making it like a pie! Ah! Maybe that’s why it’s called Pizza Pie
No need for grated Parmesan or red chilly flakes. The cheese has such an amazing flavor and texture that when you cut into it you could stretch it across the room. It was said that maybe the sauce is not as saucy as when you eat it fresh but we all agreed that the marinara had fantastic flavor and added the right amount of acidity to the pizza. Eat this pizza with a knife and fork and you are in for a REAL Chicago treat!
TASTE: 40/40
Shipping
Ordering was simple. The website is loaded with information and has an easy to understand breakdown of how delivery works. They make and half bake your pizza at the time of order and then freeze package and ship to you in dry ice. They do use a Styrofoam box so make sure to check with your local recyclers. We knocked off a couple points for shipping because of the use of a Styrofoam box, as this is our practice. We would like to note that there was NO over packaging, which is awesome! The food also arrived on time and from a food safety standpoint it was in good order. We received the pizza before noon and stored it in the refrigerator. It was ready to bake by dinnertime.
SHIPPING: 19 / 20
Preparation
It’s been said that the devil is in the details… and this might be why we got a little lost. The cooking instructions where simple: “Pre heat oven to 450°f and bake for 20min until pizza is brown.” If we had used these instructions, instead of our common sense, we would have wound up with some VERY cold, sad pizza. After the suggested baking-time we temperature checked the center of the pizza with a butter knife, which we poked into the middle and held there for five seconds. It came out stone cold.
WHAT TO DO??? We reduced the heat down to 375° and baked for another 25min. Taking the cook time from 20min to 45min, which was a bit of a disappointment with a room full of hungry guests. We then waited to make sure that the top was bubbly (a better indicator than a browned crust) and the core temperature was nice and hot. Seeing as the pizza comes half-baked you are not running much risk from under cooking other than that this is a pizza you want to serve it piping hot. We would like to see more information on how to cook and serve, it was not as simple as the six lines of instructions would make it seem. Please keep in mind we have not calibrated this oven and times/temperatures may vary.
Oh, and since we felt like getting a little fancy, we cooked one of our two pizza pies on a heated pizza stone. It was a nice touch but not necessary for delicious results.
PREPARATION: 15 / 20
Quality and Value
The price range on ordering one of these bad boys is between $17 and $25 (shipping not included). Seeing as it a specialty food item with incredible, high-quality ingredients we felt that the price was reasonable and certainly a lot cheaper than a plane ticket to Chicago. We served five adults and had an entire pizza left over. It is a very decadent pizza and should be eaten with a knife and fork. We ordered two types of pizza from Giordano’s. The Chicago Classic, which has cheese, green peppers, onions mushroom, and pepperoni. We also had the Sausage Pizza, which has lots of delicious sausage and cheese. This is not a food for someone that is counting calories or is faint of heart. Overall, we found Giordano’s Pizza to be a fantastic and highly recommendable pizza choice.
QUALITY and VALUE: 20 / 20
Overall: 94 Points to Giordano’s Pizza!!!
We can wholeheartedly say YEAH to Giordano’s! Incredibly hard to find authentic flavor is only a click away. We do hope that they help us out in the future by offering more detailed instructions on how to prepare this item once it is received. If you miss the taste of Chicago, or if you just want to impress the heck out of your friends the next time they come over to watch the game, this is the ticket! Great “back at home” pizza and you don’t have to tip the delivery guy!!
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