Cheese Pizza at Pizzeria at the Creamery, originally uploaded by Aaron Landry.

About a week ago, Grand Ole Creamery opened a pizzeria in it's overflow area, headed up by Robert Lampe. Andrew Zimmern, noting the Punch Pizza across the street selling Grand Ole Creamery's primary competitor's ice cream wrote:

The folks at Grand Ole Creamery, taking a page out of my five-year-old's Pre-K playbook were so outraged that Punch was selling Izzy's product just a stone's throw from the Creamery's front door that they decided to sell pizza from a space next to the scoop shop. Vengeance!!!!

I don't have the kinds of sources that Zimmern has, but I asked three different people at Grand Ole Creamery on two different days why they started the pizzeria. All the answers were different but had a common theme: they wanted to diversify their business. "Ice cream sells better in the summer, pizza in the winter," a girl behind the counter explained, also noting the tanning beds they own upstairs. I was also told they had considered creating a bakery and thought of focusing on cupcakes before deciding on pizza. Robert Lampe noted his history in bread making and he simply wanted to start a pizzeria. Those familiar with Peter Reinhart or are into making pizza know this is an ideal transition.

Regardless of what side of the story you believe, the pizza here stands on its own and I don't see it as a direct head-to-head competition with Punch. While Punch arguably creates the most authentic Neapolitan-style pies in the state, Pizzeria at the Creamery sells American-style slices and 16" pizzas. Punch sells beer and wine and is open for lunch, Pizzeria at the Creamery stays open much late to cater those that are done drinking, even until 2:30am on Fridays and Saturdays.

One very late weekday evening, a friend and I stopped by to find a very long line out the door. They were waiting for ice cream, not pizza, and seemingly most of the people there were unaware that a slice shop opened up under the same roof. We ordered the "Cheese Pizza," which is a poor name due to its understatement: homemade mozzarella, aged mozzarella and parmesan make up the cheeses, San Marzano tomatoes create the sauce, and it's topped with fresh basil and oregano.

The crust was a little bit puffy, a little airy, chewy and had a solid, crispy edge. It's nicely charred on the bottom and the sauce is notably sweet. The cheeses tasted very fresh and were even a bit stringy. The balance of flavors was good and it's surprising what good basil will do to pizza sometimes. Slices could be held with one hand and a fork is unneeded. It's filling: a whole pizza would reasonably feed three to four people. It's light enough, however, where two hungry people could plow through the entire thing -- which I'm almost ashamed to admit my friend and I did. It's flavorful and difficult to not keep eating. Great ingredients for a "Cheese Pizza," and this pizza is balanced. Quite satisfying.

As we left, there were still a line out the door waiting for ice cream and the Punch Pizza across the street had its lights dimmed, doors locked, and chairs on the tables. While I don't see myself going to Punch any less, I'll certainly be stopping by Pizzaria at the Creamery again soon. A slice shop has been needed around here for awhile and this one fits the bill quite well.

Pizzeria at the Creamery
at Grand Ole Creamery
750 Grand Ave
Saint Paul, MN 55105
651-291-8931

Pizza Margherita at Pazzaluna, originally uploaded by Aaron Landry.

The area of downtown Saint Paul near the Ordway, Saint Paul Hotel and Landmark Center may not be an obvious place to hunt for pizza. After a very positive tip from Andy I decided to visit the generally upscale Pazzaluna for pizza. Having been to Pazzaluna's bar a few times previously for drinks, I never even thought to look for pizza on the full menu.

In a recent visit, I was surprised to find that the Margherita was on their happy hour (4-6 and 9-10 PM) for five bucks. I asked my bartender what size the special was, indicating with my hands what I was guessing. "No, no, it's full size," he replied. Luckily showing up during their happy hour I quickly ordered it and a glass of their "featured red wine" for the same price. Pazzaluna's clientele during their latter happy hour on a weekday was a mix between businessmen in suits out late, couples on nice dates and a few random scruffier men at the bar. I sat at a portion of the bar where there were 4 empty stools on either side of me. A large, beautiful interpretation of the face from Botticelli's "The Birth of Venus" encompasses the far wall from floor to ceiling. The wood-fired pizza, which is apparently modeled after Brandi Pizzeria in Naples, took a bit longer to arrived than I expected but when it did I was pleasantly surprised. Beautiful and smelled fresh. Crust done to a crisp on the edges, but not charred at all. The blots of mozzarella were nice but without much flavor. Liberal amounts of basil, oregano and olive oil augmented noticeable flavor to the sauce. The cornicione of the crust was especially crispy and airy. A good derivative of Neapolitan style and overall quite tasty. For five bucks during happy hour in this area of town, it's a real steal. Pazzaluna 360 Saint Peter St Saint Paul, MN 55102 651-223-7000

Large Pepperoni Pizza at Mama's Pizza, originally uploaded by Aaron Landry.

Since 1964, Mama's Pizza has been a local staple north of the capitol in Saint Paul on Front and Rice Streets. Serving classic midwestern style pizza, many come for the the pasta too, which has equal weight on the menu.

After a recent closing and remodel a couple years ago due to a pipe leak and water damage, the interior now drowns in kitsch: a mural of stereotypical Italian landmarks, large christmas lights dangling around and fake grapes hang from fake vines climbing brick arches. Even though the old coin-operated televisions have been yanked out, they're replaced with small, wide-format flat-screen encased in wood trim in some of the booths. You still have to pay: they've rigged even these modern boob tubes to be coin-operated somehow. While a friend and I were waiting for our pizza, a woman sat alone at the table next to us wearing a large bib, scarfing down a ton of spaghetti. The staff treated her as a regular, but I can't assume she was because they treated us the same way. I recalled the first time I stopped by Mama's: even though they were closed, owner Tony Mudzinski (son of the namesake of the restaurant) immediately greeted me graciously and apologized almost profusely that he couldn't make a pizza for me yet. On this visit, the staff was just as friendly and we were asked directly by Tony on our way out if the pizza was up to par. Up to par it was: our pepperoni pie had crispy crust with more sauce and much more cheese than I'm used to on midwestern-style pizza. Not too much grease and the pepperoni was tangy. Balanced and quite filling, actually. Solid for midwestern style but slightly unique in flavor -- but I can't nail exactly what made it different. Perhaps some secret zing in the sauce? I also really appreciate it when the cheese doesn't slide off on square cut slices. We noticed another party enjoying mini soft-serve ice cones after their pizza and we were offered the same. Why not, right? Many in the neighborhood consider Mama's Pizza to be the best around -- even though competitor Red's Savoy is a mile and a half away. I'd certainly take Mama's over Red's. I'll be back. Mama's Pizza 961 Rice St Saint Paul, MN 55117 651-489-2005 UPDATE August 2010: A fire, suspected arson next door, has damaged Mama's Pizza and are closed for the time being. I've been told "Tony Mudzinski is a tough pizza maker. They will be back."

Personal Pepperoni at Eden Pizza, originally uploaded by Aaron Landry.

Tucked away in the Hamline-Midway neighborhood of Saint Paul, west of Snelling and north of University is a little gem of a pizzeria, Eden Pizza. Having lived in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area my whole life and living in Saint Paul for many of those years I had only found out about Eden Pizza until recently.

They're on the corner of Aldine Street and Lafond Avenue, surrounded by homes and inside it's split in two: kitchen on the left and seating on the right. There's three tables and a selection of old board games and neighborhood newspapers. Although there was only one person taking orders and making pizzas and I was the only customer sitting in, Phish jamming over the speakers kept the place upbeat.

Although they are only open for lunch on Fridays, I ordered their "lunch special" on a Saturday: an 8-inch personal pizza with two toppings and a soda for $6.50. I chose pepperoni and Dr. Pepper. I noted that their ingredients and specialty pizza list is extensive -- a lot to explore later.

In about ten minutes I received a beautiful pepperoni pizza, sharply cut into 6 triangle slices. My eyes were drawn to the crust, which was rolled in a way I haven't quite seen before on pizza (the see photo). Biting in, the cheese tasted very fresh and stringy. Pepperoni was meaty and there was just a nice, small layer of sauce for base. The crust was crispy at the edges albeit a bit on the floury side. Overall a very satisfying and tasty pizza. Not too greasy either, especially compared to their more trafficked neighbors a few blocks away, Checkerboard Pizza.

With their friendly service, great pizza, extensive menu and home delivery, Eden Pizza is a real treat in this neighborhood. I'll be back soon -- it would be convenient before a show at the Turf Club, a St. Paul Saints game or an event at Hamline University.

Eden Pizza
629 Aldine St
Saint Paul, MN 55104
651-646-7616

The Daily Show Set, originally uploaded by Aaron Landry.

If you were as lucky as I was, on May 1st, 2008 you got to reserve tickets to one of the nights The Daily Show with Jon Stewart is taping at the History Theatre in Saint Paul this week. I was there today and got a lot of questions. Here are the answers:

Q: If I don't have tickets, what are the chances of me getting in? A: Almost nil. I'm not sure if it's even worth trying. Q: I have tickets; what time should I show up? A: I got there at 2:00 and my group, Ann Friedrich, Rex Sorgatz and Ana Marie Cox got decent seats. My friend and coworker Ian Davis got there about 2:50 and he was seated in the balcony. Ed Kohler got there at 3:20 and got seated in the "simulcast theater." Jeremy Gibbens, Angie Dezelske, Max Sparber and Courtney Mault arrived before I did and got great seating. Get there around two. Update: Angie Dezelske states that for Wednesday's show, there was a line of 100 people not long after 2:00. Q: How do I get to the History Theatre? A: The History Theatre is at 30 10th St E. I was surprised I found a place to park. There's a lot at Jackson and 7th that was only four dollars and there were a number of open spaces. Make sure you have exact change. There's another lot nearby that's ten bucks. Metro Transit has rerouted buses and many drop you off a block away from the theater. Here's a map PDF. Q: I heard there are riots in Saint Paul. Is it safe? A: I'd say yes, for the most part. As you've likely seen in photos and video, there are forces in riot gear and an incredible police presence in Saint Paul. The Daily Show blog even calls Saint Paul a "police state". It sure seems true at times. It's unnerving, but the law enforcement outnumber the rioters by an enormous margin. Unfortunately, the History Theatre is humorously smack dab in the middle of the approved protest route. After the taping on Tuesday we were told we were on "lockdown" due to protestors outside that had the potential of getting violent. We had to remain in our seats. After most of it passed, we were given the option to leave at our own risk. Walking back to the car we had to wait to get permission from police in riot gear to cross an intersection. Q: How strongly do they enforce the no-food, no-phone, and no-camera rules? A: Ann took a photo and got her camera taken away. Ana was told to turn off her iPhone. It's enforced. I snuck the above photo before taping started and turned off my phone. I don't recommend trying it because everyone's watching. Q: When and how do we get in? A: While in line, you're asked for your name and you're given plastic tickets with handwritten numbers on them. You are given one ticket per person that you are with, up to the amount of tickets you reserved. The email tickets imply this happens at 3:31 but it happened a bit later for us. If there are more people in your party that are not present yet, I do not believe they will get tickets. By 4:30 or so they started letting people in to the theater lobby where you go through metal detectors. Around 5:15 we were seated by the numbers on the plastic tickets. Q: When is the actual taping? The opener (for us it was Paul Mecurio), started just after 6:00. Jon Stewart came up and continued to warm up the crowd, mostly by taking questions from the audience. Taping then began and it was done around 7:15. Q: Is it fun? A: It's seriously hilarious. More from David Brauer, Jeremy Gibbens, Rex Sorgatz, KARE 11, The Daily Show's Indecision 2008 blog, Bob Collins and photos of us waiting in line.

Yarusso Bros. Pepperoni Pizza, originally uploaded by Aaron Landry.

Lesley and I decided to check out Yarusso Bros. Italian Restaurant as she's a current and I'm a former Saint Paul resident and neither of us had been before. Yarusso's, as it's more commonly called, has been around for 75 years and many people regard it as an staple of old Saint Paul restaurants. The building is recognizable with a Statue of Liberty on top if you drive down Payne Avenue.

Yarusso's was brought up in a thread on MNspeak and Steve Sundberg chimed in that they are "more famous for their giant meatballs and garlic bread than they are pizza." I would attest that this is likely true as when we arrived we didn't see any pizza at all but many people dining on pasta.

We each ordered a Brewer's Cave Golden Caramel Lager as their menus indicated they were related to the brewer. It wasn't our favorite beer but couldn't exactly put our finger on as to why. Brew52 has more on this beer, including my short experience with it. I'll order it again the next time I'm back. We also got a basket of slices of white bread and bits of butter in pre-packaged containers.

Our pizza arrived it looked a lot better than we expected. The pepperonis were good and it was loaded with cheese. Topped with some grease but not overwhelming. There wasn't much sauce but most notable was the crust: it was surprisingly thick and crispy. We had a hard time comparing it but we kept agreeing it was most like a higher end "self-rising" frozen pizza. We felt bad with that comparison because the pizza was actually good, but it wasn't good enough to avoid the similarity.

One of the owners or managers stopped by our table and asked if we wanted some free carrot cake as well. A nice little bonus.

Overall, not bad. Yarusso's is a well established, family owned and operated joint in Saint Paul and worth a visit if you haven't been. If pasta's your game, you may want to try that instead of the pizza as that's what their known for. Also, for their 75th anniversary they're having "1930's costume night" on the first Thursdays of each month. Sounds like a hoot.

Yarusso Brothers Italian Restaurant
635 Payne Ave
Saint Paul, MN 55130
651-776-4848

Rob Dewey of Green, originally uploaded by Aaron Landry.

While many people say that Saint Paul is dead after 4:30 P.M., residents and regulars know its secrets. There's jazz on Monday nights at the Artists' Quarter with Rob Dewey and his band Green.

Green goes on stage around 7:30 P.M. The crowd is usually small but a good mix. It's not uncommon to see a few local residents, a couple suits and ties after a late day, people dropping downstairs after dining at Great Waters above and artists and poets scribbling in notepads before the open mic night after the show.

Depending on the night Green may be a three or a four piece act. Rob might be behind the Artists' Quarter's Yamaha grand piano or he may bring along his Fender Rhodes keyboard or a synth. They put on a good mix of original jazz pieces and improvisations as well as their take on jazz classics. Sometimes they'll throw in an unsuspecting cover that you wouldn't expect to hear at a jazz club and you'll be surprised how they pull it off so well.

The kicker: it's a free show (if you buy two drinks). One of Saint Paul's secrets.

Green - Something - Live at the AQ (MP3) [via]

Artists' Quarter
408 Saint Peter St
Saint Paul, MN 55102
651-292-1359

Four Cheese Pizza at Great Waters Brewing Company, originally uploaded by Aaron Landry.

Great Waters Brewing Company is known for its beer. They always have a good selection of cask conditioned and pulled beers. I'm not into all of them but what keeps me coming back is their willingness to try a bunch of different styles and they switch out their seasonal beers frequently. Sometimes they put out a really fantastic brew. Either way I love drinking something new when I'm there. I'm a big fan of Great Waters.

Tucked and hidden in a back page of their menu under "Sandwiches, Etc.," is a four cheese pizza. It's not a pizza you'd expect to find at a brew pub: no sauce and they chose provolone, asiago, bleu and mozzarella cheeses. It's sized around 12 inches like a neapolitan style pizza but it's much heavier. The crust is thicker and the cheese is piled on liberally. While this pizza lover has enjoyed this entire pizza in one sitting before, it is a bit much sometimes for one person. Last night I shared this as an appetizer with a friend and it worked out great for both of us.

Great Waters' pizza is easy to hold and pulls apart nicely from the other pieces even though they've melted back together in the time it took to go from the kitchen to your table. This pizza is certainly almost all cheese and you can easily taste through all four of them. It's a good blend and the aftertaste is especially biting. The crust is a bit plain but doesn't take away from anything -- the focus here is the cheese. It's a fantastic compliment to a pint or two.

Great Waters Brewing Company
426 Saint Peter St
Saint Paul, MN 55102
651-224-2739

Red's Savoy Cheese Pizza, originally uploaded by Aaron Landry.

I used to live in the Lowertown area of downtown Saint Paul and could barely see Red's Savoy Pizza in the distance out my window. I would always know where it is at night because police cars will be always there with their blue and red lights on.

Red's Savoy Pizza has a reputation for having some of the slowest service, gritty staff, good crime stories and a dark, windowless interior but many regard it as having the best pizza in Saint Paul.

Sean emailed me about a month ago saying I needed to go back and post something about it so Heidi and I got a group of seven of us to head down.

Everything was as expected: Service was a bit slow but our server was somewhat entertaining. She was a intentionally mean and sarcastic but would shout out to everyone in the place (mimicking an Italian accent) that she has a hot pizza when she delivers one to a table.

The pizza itself is a sloppy, tasty mess. The crust was crispy, the sauce was plentiful and flavorful and the cheese was about as "traditional" as you can get. Look at the photo. Do I need to describe this kind of pizza any more?

We ordered a total of three pizzas as well as some orders of cheese bread and it all went by fast. It's nothing special or all that unique but it's good pizza.

Also, as expected, we heard police sirens about four times during our visit. It's part of their style. If you haven't been, check it out. It's a staple of Saint Paul.

Red's Savoy Pizza
421 7th St E
Saint Paul, MN 55101
651-227-1437

Also, We Got Served posted about Red's Savoy Inn a week ago and it's worth reading. They sum up the place quite well.

Drink at Señor Wong, originally uploaded by Aaron Landry.

Andy, Brian, Amber, Ang, Jeremy, Lesley, Ian and I stopped down at Señor Wong in Saint Paul. They opened earlier this month in Kellogg Square. The owner apparently is the son of the man behind the Red Dragon in Minneapolis. Co-owner Lam Truong's brother owns N'Gon on University, and his father was the original guy behind Caravelle. The bar manager's father owns Red Dragon in Minneapolis. (Thanks to Dave Parker for the correction.)

Speaking of Red Dragon, the menu is a bit similar but the "Señor" bit adds some tacos to the menu. Apparently the famous Wondrous Punch is secretly there as well under another name. But don't think this is anything like Red Dragon. It's much more laid back, a lot more roomy and they have a decent pool table and darts in addition to their restaurant, bar and lounge areas.

Our wonderful waitress Jill handled our larger group well and served us some sake that they just got in and wasn't on the menu yet. Brian, Ian, Lesley and Andy went off to shoot some pool on the other side of the bar and she kept all of us straight.

I didn't eat much - only having their sweet potato fries - but they were some of the best I've had. I have a problem with sweet potato fries being just too sweet but the ones here hit the mark. Our party ordered a bunch of other food and everyone enjoyed what they got. Andy had been before and had a full dinner and spoke highly of the food.

They had a good selection of beer and mixed drinks but their taps weren't operational yet. Not a problem for me considering all the sake I drank.

With the amount of space they have, the great happy hour specials and friendly staff, I'll be back soon. I think their biggest problem right now is that I'm not sure anyone knows they exist. Works for me though as this place is great if you want a laid back atmosphere. If you're in Saint Paul, check them out.

Señor Wong Restaurant and Lounge
111 Kellogg Blvd E (Enter on Robert Street or 4th Street)
Saint Paul, MN 55102
651-224-2019

Check out the photos on Flickr.