An exploration of pizza in and around Rochester, NY, one pizzeria at a time
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Mama Mia's, Churchville
NOTE: This is apparently now Slice Pizza Co.
“You can’t be a real country unless you have a beer and an airline. It helps if you have some kind of a football team or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least you need a beer.” - Frank Zappa
In much the same way, a small town’s not really a town unless it has its own pizzeria. A bar and a gas station help too, but you really need a hometown pizzeria.
Churchville’s pizzeria, as of now, is Mama Mia’s. Until fairly recently, this was Krony’s Pizza - in fact, there’s still a clearly out-of-date website for Krony’s at this location - but no longer. (There are currently, I believe, Krony’s locations in Spencerport and Hamlin, at least one of which I will get to eventually.)
Mama Mia’s in Churchville, I should also point out, is not associated with the Geneseo pizzeria of the same name, nor are their pizzas very similar. So if you’re a fan - as I am - of the latter, don’t go to the Churchville Mama Mia’s expecting to find the first-rate New York style pizza turned out by its namesake in Geneseo.
That’s not to say that Mama Mia’s in Churchville is bad, though, because it's not. I ordered a whole pie, half plain, half pepperoni. It had a thin-to-medium crust, the underside of which was well dusted with flour. It was firm, and slightly crisp on the exterior, but had a pretty soft texture overall. There was some bready flavor, but it also bordered on doughy, and for my money, would’ve benefited from another minute or two in the oven. (Sometimes I wonder if places take the pizza out of the oven a little sooner rather than later if you’re there, waiting for it to come out, as I was. Maybe I should tell them when I order to give it as much time as it needs.)
The sauce had a pronounced herbal flavor, and was quite prominent, compared to most other places I’ve tried. The cheese was slightly browned, but tended more toward the melted, stringy end of the spectrum.
Mama Mia’s has a pretty standard menu, with the usual list of toppings and specialty pizzas, wings, appetizers, salads, fried chicken, fish and shrimp, “plates,” burgers, hot dogs, wraps, and subs and sandwiches, including steak and chicken “bombers.”
Mama Mia's doesn’t deliver, but there is ample seating indoors, plus two outdoor picnic tables. And one advantage of going there in person is that it allows you to avail yourself of Mama Mia's selection of ice cream, which can be had in both the soft and hard variety.
For me, this pizza was OK. Not great, but not bad, either, and certainly good enough to qualify as the local hometown pizza, especially when followed by an ice cream cone on a warm summer (or autumn) evening. I’m giving it a right-down-the-middle C.
Mama Mia's, 54 S. Main St., Churchville. 293-1950
Mon. - Sat. 10 a.m. - 10 p.m., Sun. 11 a.m. - 10 p.m. Closes at 9 p.m. during winter.
agree 100% with the Zappa extrapolation. Too bad we haven't really adopted that code here in the South. well, maybe we have taken it in the all-you-can-eat pancake direction.
ReplyDeleteNice blog. Makes me hungry.
I believe this is now the 2nd location of Brandani's... same phone number.
ReplyDeleteI noticed they had a second location. Now I understand. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI guess I was wrong in my comment from a year ago. This place is now Slice Pizza Co.
ReplyDeletehttp://slicepizzaco.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Slice-Pizza-Co/265014330255807
So i guess you have a new place to review!
You are on top of things! Thanks!
ReplyDelete