Food and Loathing Restaurant Guide -- Episodes 9 & 10: The Pizza Episode & Leftover Pizza
Our recording sessions for Episode 9 included so many great guests that we had to break them down into two episodes. But the overriding theme of both is pizza – specifically The International Pizza Expo.
So we’re combining all of the pizza places mentioned in the both
of them, and any other cool businesses we mentioned, in a single blog entry.
Enjoy!
Ep 9 begins with Jason, Rich and I in Good Pie on
Main Street, during a Las Vegas Pizza Alliance party to benefit Slice Out Hunger. But
before we get into the pizza talk, we run down some of the things we did over
the past week.
Jason and I both attended friends/family/media dinners at
the recently re-launched Valencian Gold (photos below), which is offering Spanish
cuisine in the southwest corner of our valley. We compare and contrast it to another
Spanish spot we love, EDO Gastro Tapas & Wine in “Chinatown,” and mention
some of our favorite dishes. I also
mention a visit to a brunch spot on Ft. Apache Road near Russell, called
Neighbors.
Good Pie’s Vincent Rotolo then joins us at the table. He name-checks a few of the pizza pros who are in the house, including:
Canadian Champion Thomas Schneider (Timmy Tom’s and Tommy’sPizzeria in Winnipeg)
Food and travel writer and pizza historian Arthur Bovino
(@arthurbovino)
Pizza historian Scott Wiener (Scott’s Pizza Tours, NYC)
Mia Marco (Mia Marco’s Pizza, Selma TX),
Michael Vakneen (Pop Up Pizza in The Plaza Casino, Las
Vegas)
John Arena (Metro Pizza, Las Vegas)
Gio Mauro (Pizzeria Monzu and Old School Pizzeria, Las Vegas
and North Las Vegas)
Mimo Ferraro (Pizza Forte and Ferraro’s, Las Vegas)
Justin Ford (Yukon Pizza, Las Vegas)
When Gio exits, Jason runs down some of the desserts he had
at Valencian Gold (see above). I play a brief clip of Angela Sweetster, owner
of the Henderson tea room Queen of Hearts. Jason shows a little love to BombTacos, on Durango Drive near Dessert Breeze Park. And Rich discusses the press
box at Allegiant Stadium, and his view of Evel Pie’s stadium location.
At this point, we take a break, before returning with Episode
9’s centerpiece: a pizza conversation with Metro Pizza’s John Arena and James
Trees (chef/owner of Esther’s Kitchen in The Arts District, Al Solito Posto and
Ada’s Wine Bar in Tivoli Village and Mozz Bar in Resorts’ World’s Famous Foods).
Over the course of our conversation, quite a few great local pizza spots get
mentioned. They include:
Pizza Rock (Downtown Las Vegas, Green Valley Ranch and
Allegiant Stadium)
Good Pie (Main Street, Las Vegas Arts District – see above)
Guerrilla Pizza (inside the Hardhat Lounge in Las Vegas – 1675
S. Industrial Road, @guerrillapizzalv)
Pop Up Pizza (The Plaza Hotel, Downtown Las Vegas)
Pizza Forte (Maryland Parkway near UNLV & inside Virgin
Las Vegas)
Yukon Pizza (Vegas Test Kitchen in Downtown Las Vegas)
Marc Marrone (Gemma Gemma’s pizza ghost kitchen and BeerZombies Draft Room in Downtown Summerlin)
After wrapping up our segment with John and James, we return
with a report from the International Pizza Expo floor.
Jason then shares a quick interview with one of the Expo’s competition winners, Chef Dominic Tedesco of Unique Eats on Durango Drive.
Rich speaks about preparing a prime bone-in rib roast he
purchased at Featherblade Craft Butchery on West Charleston Boulevard.
I give my weekly edibles review – this week it’s some Herve
brand salted caramel macarons I picked up at Exhale, on Flamingo Road across
from The Palms.
The brings us to the END OF EPISODE 9, AND THE BEGINNING
OF EPISODE 10
In this episode, we share some more great interviews from
the party at Good Pie that kicked off Episode 9.
Scott Wiener, creator of Scott’s Pizza Tours in New York
City, sits down with us for a few minutes.
Representing the Women in Pizza movement, champion pizza
makers Nicole Bean and Laura Meyer drop by the table to discuss the strides
that woman are making in a traditionally male-dominated field. Laura, who was
once best known for her work with the famed Tony Gemignani, recently launched a
series of pop-ups under the name Foccacia de Laura (@laurameyercreations and
#FocacciaDaLaura on Instagram). Nicole is based in Texas, where you can taste
her creations at Pizaro’s Pizza in Houston.
Next up was Ismaele Romano, who is preparing to open a sandwich shop called Via Focacci to the Ellis Island Casino on Koval Lane.
And wrapping things up, we have a great conversations with my
very, very good friend, the creator of the Good For Spooning blog and cooking video
series, LeAnne Notabartolo.
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