Catching Up: Part 2 of 3 (Johnny V's Italian Restaurant)

Good evening!  Today has been a long day, so I don't expect this post to be as full of life and humor as usual.  I'll keep this post to the point for anybody who actually uses this blog for informational use. (How many of you are there?  I'm genuinely curious what type of audience I have reading this blog.  Is it weird that I still have a hard time considering myself a "blogger?"  I guess I feel like there's a negative connotation with it.  You guys would tell me, right?)

This post is about the second pizza restaurant we visited during my hiatus:  Johnny V's Italian Restaurant in J-Town.

Catching Up: Part 1 of 3 (Jet's Pizza)

Sorry for the hiatus everyone!  Things have been crazy lately.  We moved into the new house, cleaned and made repairs to the apartment, Katie started a new job, and I've had my hands full with school and work.  As my very astute mother told me recently, I tend to bite off more than I can chew.  (Hasn't stopped me yet. Except this, I guess.)  I needed to take some time off from the blog for a few weeks, and I wasn't happy about it.  I only want to write when I've got time...writing rushed isn't fun, and you guys don't get my best-selling writing style.

(What do you mean I've never sold a book?  I've never put a book on the shelves that WASN'T a best-seller.  Think about that for a second.)

Continue on for more bad jokes and some intermittent pizza writing.

Uncle Maddio's Pizza Joint

I've noticed that over the last few weeks, the time between when we actually visit the pizza places I write about and the time that I post the reviews is getting longer and longer.  Be not afraid, it isn't because I'm losing interest or that I somehow forgot to have pizza one week.  The reason?  March Madness.  No, not basketball.  It's become crunch time at school, and much unlike senior year in high school, the end of the year does not mean we get to coast to the finish line.  Why does grad school have to be so much work?  Stupid engineering.

Alright, now that I've got that off my chest, how are you?  I assume you're doing well.  How can you not be?  March Madness (the basketball kind) is here!  I don't root for any schools other than my own, but I do fill out brackets.  I've got the TV set on basketball right now while writing, and I'm not doing much more than keeping an eye on the score.  I only keep it on to watch when the upsets start to happen...everyone loves a good upset!  (Unless it ruins your bracket and you lose your office pool by a slim margin, that is.)

I digress.

Pizza!  Specifically, Uncle Maddio's Pizza Joint! (Love the name.)

Mid-Week Pizza News and Notes

Happy March Madness, everyone!  I'm currently watching the Big East tournament, and I love this time of year.  Here are some pizza-related news and notes for you to read between games.

California Pizza Kitchen

To make up for a delayed post, I'll give you this article that lists the top 10 pizza cities around the country.  I won't ruin it for you or anything, but it's total blasphemy that Louisville isn't #1....or any other number in the top 10.  However, if you'd like to start a nationwide pizza blog, I'm all for it.  Just give me credit for your inspiration, and I want a cut of your profits when you write a book based on my ideas.

The following post is the result of a rookie mistake on my part.  This week's pizza visit was supposed to be at Perfetto's on Hurstbourne Lane.  (For future references, they open at 4 PM.  Not open for lunch at 1. I'll remember that, Perfetto's.)  Because we were starving and sitting in front of a closed pizza joint three hours before they opened, we had to improvise.  And while I typically don't like to go to a popular pizza place two weeks in a row, we had little to work with on empty stomachs.  We decided to visit the California Pizza Kitchen in Oxmoor Mall.

My review of CPK will be relatively short, I believe.  As I'm writing this, I'm still not feeling well, and Duck Dynasty comes on later.  I need my rest so I can compare my life to the Robertson lifestyle down in West Monroe.  I typically don't come out well in those comparisons.

I Think I Just Found My New Motto

See what positive thinking and confidence can help you achieve?

(Credit goes to Imgur.com)

Papa Murphy's

If you think for a minute that I'm going to talk about my broken foot again, then you have underestimated me.  I wouldn't dare try to milk having a broken foot and not being able to drive, walk, or go an entire day without falling and Katie jumping up faster than someone saying "free diamonds!"

The fact is, I'm a humble, humble man, and I always put others before myself. (A broken foot is a tragedy, why aren't any of you sending me gifts or funny cat pictures to brighten my mood?)  I would never try to feed you anything other than the raw, real truth.  The truth is....casts are uncomfortable, and it's beginning to make me cranky.

Because of my current predicament, and my lovely wife driving me literally everywhere I need to go, we opted to have pizza in our most comfortable environment:  our apartment.  Instead of taking the lazy way and ordering one of the Big Three (Pizza Hut, Papa John's, and Domino's), we stopped by Papa Murphy's on the way home yesterday.

I almost didn't have a picture to give you....I'll explain below.

Old Chicago

Anyone who's ever written anything knows that one of the hardest things in creative writing (not that I'd call my writing "creative" by any means) is looking at the blank page (or paper) and deciding how to begin.  I often try to pull something from my previous week that may be funny or easy to relate to; I try to make you feel warm and welcome when I start my writing.  (Can I get you something?  I've got water and milk.  I'm sorry, I didn't know I'd be having company today.)

My introduction to this week's post on Old Chicago was going to talk about some of the times I've actually gone to Chicago and the time we had REAL Chicago-style deep dish pizza.  However, I have a more important story to tell.  I injured my foot yesterday, and like an idiot, tried to walk around on it all day (including limping into Old Chicago).  Today, a visit to the doctor revealed a broken bone in my foot.  (I'm currently on crutches for an indeterminate amount of time.)  All of your pity is both expected and gladly accepted.  I'll give you my address if you want to send me "get well soon" baskets or macaroni art to hang on my fridge.

Enough about me (for now), let's talk about pizza!  I'll talk (write), and you read.  That's how this works.

Pizza Place at Hikes Point

Just last week, a close friend was telling me that none of my reviews were very negative.  I realized that he had a point, but I wasn't sure if that was because I'm always the optimist, or because I've genuinely enjoyed all of the restaurants Katie and I have visited so far this year.

The more I thought about it, I couldn't help but wonder if I was being too nice or letting things go that might annoy other patrons of these pizza joints.  I ultimately decided to rely on the fact that I am an optimist; I've only written about things I've experienced, and that's all I can do without bringing speculation into the equation.

Luckily (or not, depending on how you look at it), I don't need to worry about that anymore.  This week's visit was to a place that I will probably not visit again:  The Pizza Place at Hikes Point.

The Original Impellizzeri's

As I sat down to start writing this, I found it hard to believe that it has only been a week since the Super Bowl, which is when I wrote the previous post.  It feels like there has been far more than one week since football ended, but at least basketball season is still here for a while.  I'm not looking forward to this summer, when only baseball is in season.  Don't get me wrong, I like baseball (I married into a Red Sox family, so I'm a fan by marriage), but I can't do like my brother in law Tim does and watch EVERY SINGLE GAME of the 400-game season.  It's 400 games, right?  Sounds right.  Not gonna Google it.

I love football, and I love basketball.  This week's review should appeal to the sports fans who share an affection for sports.  This week, we visited The Original Impellizzeri's on Main Street, which is diagonally across the street from the KFC Yum! Center, home of the Louisville Cardinals.

Since you asked (I assume you did), I am a Louisville graduate...and by extension, a Louisville fan.  Because I'm a UofL fan, I just have to mention that the 5-overtime game against Notre Dame on Saturday was INSANE.  I had intended to write my post during the game (and hopefully catch a few more readers online during that same time), but it was just too hard to look away.  It was like the GoDaddy.com commercial from the Super Bowl last week.  You know which one I'm talking about.

The Original Impellizzeri's is a very popular place around town, especially on game days. 

Read more for one of my fancy pictures!

Borromeo's Pizza

This week's post will be a tad shorter than usual.  Why, you ask?  Well, I'll forget that you're talking to your screen (I can't hear you, as far as you know) and I'll remind you that today is both the Louisville/Marquette game AND the Super Bowl.  If you weren't aware of today's sports significance, I'm quite happy that my blog has reached you under the rock that you are using for shelter.

On to the review!

Wick's Pizza Parlor

Happy Monday!  We all know how Mondays can be the worst part of the week, for those of us getting back into the 9-5 or having to be back in class early in the morning.  I'll do my best to make Monday evenings enjoyable, even if only for a brief few minutes of reading.  Hopefully, at the end of the year, all seventeen of you that read this blog will go into pizza blog withdrawals after a week or two without my odd sense of humor.

This week, we visited the Wick's Pizza Parlor on Bardstown Road in the Highlands.  Pictures for your enjoyment after the jump!

Mellow Mushroom

Sorry for the delayed post this week everybody, we're in the process of becoming first-time homeowners (could not be more excited), and we had some tasks to accomplish that got in the way a little this time.

Aaaaaaanywho, let's get right down to it.  This week's review is of Mellow Mushroom.  Firstly, I keep wanting to call it "the Mellow Mushroom," but it seems that my need to use "the" is unnecessary.  I apologize if I use "the" too many times in this post, I can't seem to stop.  "The."  (This is one of those times that if you look at a word long enough or say it too many times, it starts to lose meaning and you begin to question if you've spelled it right.  Go ahead, say "the" about ten times or just stare at it for a few seconds.  Tell me that doesn't happen to you too.  See?  I'm not crazy.)

Back on track again.  More after the jump.  Check out my cool picture.

Brand New Idea: Pizza for Breakfast! (and Next Week's Preview)

Are you kidding me?  This is genius.  I can't tell you how many times I've had cold pizza for breakfast (I still don't understand why some people dislike cold pizza, it's the breakfast of champions).  But this, THIS is revolutionary.

For anyone who doesn't wish to click the link, continue reading anyways (there are pictures)

Coals Artisan Pizza

Getting a hang of this yet?  It's looking like unless circumstances dictate otherwise, we'll be visiting pizza joints on Sundays.  The time of day isn't set, so I'll try to include that in the breakdown of the environment at each restaurant.  Either way, you can expect the posts to normally show up on Sundays or Mondays.

Up this week is Coals Artisan Pizza in Saint Matthews.  Have a picture.

Chubby Ray's Louisville Pizza Company

Review number two!  We hit over 200 page views a couple of days ago, which is more than I'd expect a week into this blog.  Thanks for reading.  This week's restaurant review will be of Chubby Ray's Louisville Pizza Company in J-town.

SIXTY-ONE PIZZAS

A friend recently asked me how we were going to determine which restaurants to try, and asked if we were going to just do a Google search on pizza places around town.  I hadn't reached that point yet, since I could name off 10 or 15 pizza places easily (I've got a problem, I know).  However, I decided that I'd do exactly that, and the results were everything I could have hoped for.  More after the jump.  (Click "Read more" below.)

Aaaaah! (Plus a Preview of Next Week)

Go Cards!  Awesome, awesome, awesome game.  If I wasn't trying to eat healthier as part of my resolution for 2013, you best believe I would have gotten pizza tonight.  More after the jump. (Click the "read more" button below.)

Buca di Beppo

Like I’ve said before, I’ll be posting about our experiences at all places that serve pizza.  I think this allows for more posts (and more pizza, to be honest).  Realistically, I would have liked to start at some big name pizza joint around town that everyone would recognize, but that’s not how it worked out this time.  Wife and I were given a restaurant gift card for Christmas, and after about 3 days of knowing we could go out to eat there, we couldn’t take it any longer.  This place, as you probably understood from the title, was the Buca di Beppo Italian Restaurant on Hurstbourne Parkway.