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!

I love weird menus.  This menu (pictured above) has a lot more visuals than at some of the other restaurants we've been to this year.  Of course, the pictures in the menu are like the pictures of food in commercials; designed to look as delicious and enticing as possible.  The question is, does the pizza that's actually served look like the ones in the menu?  I'm going to wager that it probably doesn't, but then again we don't order heavily-topped pizzas like the ones shown in the menu.  We'll never know (I assume).

We've grown fond of ordering an appetizer and trying those out along with the pizza.  We had the "stuffed breadwick".  I enjoyed it, and it wasn't too filling at all.  I'd recommend it.

We ordered a 14" pepperoni.  It was a pretty decent size.  We ate half in the restaurant and took the second half home, with maybe a little room left in our stomachs.  I am trying to watch my figure, after all.  (You can have my man card for that, I don't know why I wrote it.  But I wrote it and it's staying there.  You're welcome.)

When I nominate myself for 2013 Husband of the Year (that's a thing, right?), I'll probably neglect to mention my food ordering abilities.  The entire purpose of this blog is that my wife is picky.  She doesn't like too much sauce on the pizza, even if I love pizza sauce.  I always forget to mention it (and she never makes it out to be a big deal when I do), but I always feel bad when I forget.  She's pretty great sometimes.

Here's ours:

I always have the intention of taking a picture of the pizza before we dig in, but as you can see, I'm not very good at the whole "self-control" thing.  Ever the optimist, I assured Katie that this type of picture is way better.

With that crisis averted, Kate and I dug in and took giant bites.  The only downside to having pizzas on a weekly schedule is that if a craving comes mid-week, you have to wait until the weekend to enjoy it.  Because of this, we paid the ultimate price (in pizza eating, that is).  Only two words can describe what we experienced:  mouth lava.

(Don't pretend you didn't understand "mouth lava", and don't pretend that you won't be using it at the next possible chance to work it in to regular conversation.  Just make sure you quote me and we're cool.)

After the entire glass of soda that failed to heal my oral wounds, I chose to eat my pizza with a knife and fork, like a civilized person.  (I also got to take vengeance on the pizza by knifing it to pieces, but Katie doesn't know that's why I cut mine up this time)  As for the sauce amount, I lucked out.  This pizza is pretty thick, and the majority of it is crust.  There was a light layer of sauce, which is just what Katie likes.

It isn't as flavor-rich as other places we've been to this year, but it's definitely a solid pizza.  Thick and hearty with just the right amount (read:  a lot) of cheese on top of the pepperoni.  I was surprised at how sturdy this pizza was.  Sturdy is the only way I can describe it.  You pick it up by the slice, and it doesn't bend or droop.  It just remains rigid and unwavering, and a little intimidating.  (It's how I imagine America...if it were a pepperoni pizza.)  Easily one of the thicker pizzas we've had this year.

The crust was a little burnt on the bottom edges, which I know some people enjoy more than others.  I am not one of those people. Katie probably enjoyed it, but at this point I wasn't talking much.  I added a bunch of parmesan and crushed red pepper on mine, and I ended up getting a piece of red pepper stuck in some magical hiding place that apparently released bits of red pepper onto my tongue every few minutes or so.  Soda didn't help, again.

All of the above occurred yesterday.  (My mouth is much better, thanks for asking.)  Today, we each had two pieces for lunch.  As far as leftovers go, this was the weakest area for Wick's for both of us.  Katie gave her reheated slices a 6/10, and I enjoyed the cold slices, but I wouldn't choose this as my favorite cold pizza.  I'd still eat it for breakfast, though!

Overall ratings:

Service:  We went at lunchtime, so it wasn't busy at all.  I'll give it a good grade by default.  (Grade:  A)
Atmosphere:  I enjoy eating here, only because it's the Highlands.  We sat by the window and got to enjoy the characters that walk up and down Bardstown Road.  This place also serves drinks and has arcade games in the back.  I enjoy coming here for pizza just as much as I do for the drinks and the punching machine in the back.  (Grade:  A)
Taste:  Pretty solid taste, nothing too risky or too bland.  It's hard not to compare it with everywhere else we've been so far, and I think I'm going to roll with that.  (Grade:  B)
Accessibility:  Parking is a little limited if it's crowded, but if you've ever been in this part of town you expect to park on the street and do some walking if necessary.  I didn't see much on the side of handicap seating, however.  (Grade:  B-)


See you next Monday!