Parkside Pizza & Sub, Bloomfield

Having recently reviewed Hometown Pizza in Bloomfield, I got to looking around for other pizzerias in that area, which led me to Parkside Pizza & Sub, which is about three quarters of a mile down the road from Hometown. Parkside is a little mom 'n' pop shop that's been in business since 1999.
I ordered a large pie, half pepperoni, half sweet peppers. It had a very soft crust with a browned underside. Even the outer edge was soft, and that's often the one part of a pizza that will get crisp, even if the rest of the crust is soft.
Although the crust was medium thick, it didn't appear to have risen very much. The interior had a touch of sweetness, but a doughy flavor and not much breadiness.
On the plus side, the red sauce had a bright tomatoey flavor, and the cheese was applied in good balance with the other components. The sauce and cheese were both prominent, but not overdone, and with the pepperoni and peppers they gave the pizza a good flavor overall.
Unfortunately, though, they couldn't completely make up for the crust, which was just too soft for me. Some people may like it that way, but I'm not one of them. I know some pizzerias will attempt to accommodate you if you're like me and prefer a crisp crust, and next time I think I'd ask at Parkside.
Parkside does have an impressive lineup of specialty pizzas, including a cheeseburger pizza (red sauce, ketchup, ground beef, onion, tomato, pickles and American cheese), Buffalo chicken, Philly steak, and even a spaghetti pizza. At the time of my visit, they also had a Reuben pizza on the menu for only 10 bucks. Other items include wings, which are available breaded or sauced, hot and cold subs, and "broaster" chicken.
I wanted to like this pizza, as I love little mom 'n' pop pizzerias, but this crust just didn't do it for me. For what it's worth, my seven-year-old pronounced this pizza "delicious," but I'm beginning to suspect that her palate is less than discriminating where pizza's concerned.
Then again, maybe it's just me, that is to say, maybe it comes down to a matter of personal taste. I've been to a few pizza tasting events where I was amazed to see how some people genuinely seem to like, or at least don't mind, a soft crust. If you're one of them, you might really like Parkside; as I said, it tasted fine. But for me, soft crusts are hard for me to get past, no matter how good the toppings are. So while this wasn't among the worst pizzas I've had around here, I have to put it below average, and I'll give it a C-.
Parkside Pizza, 15 South Ave., Bloomfield 657-4440
Located one block off Rt. 5 & 20, just behind Elton Park
Sun. noon – 9:30 p.m., Mon. - Thu. 11 a.m. - 10 p.m., Fri. & Sat. 11 a.m. - 11 p.m.

Hometown Pizza, Bloomfield

I wouldn't usually go this far to get a pizza, but I'd heard from a friend that Hometown Pizza in Bloomfield made some outstanding New York style pizza, so the other night I made the trek down to check it out.
I got a large cheese pie. It was very thin, so thin that the crust didn't have much of an interior. The slices were foldable, but not floppy (a good thing), and the screen-baked bottom was firm but not crisp (not such a good thing), except along the outer edge, where there was some crackling underneath. The flour-dusted edge had some crunch, and there was a fair amount of bubbling on top near the edge, particularly along one side, as this pizza appeared to have baked somewhat unevenly.
The pie was topped with a slightly sweet sauce, with some herbs (I'm pretty sure I picked up oregano) noticeable. The sauce had a good flavor, but it seemed a bit skimpy, even for this thin a crust. Atop that lay a thin layer of cheese, which was unremarkable, and again was browned a little more on one half of the pizza than the other.
Hometown's pizza menu offers 20 toppings, and a selection of "specialty" and "premium" pizzas. The former includes an "Italian flag" pizza with 1/3 red, 1/3 white, and 1/3 green (pesto) sauces, and the more expensive premium pizzas include a "dumpster plate" pizza and a sirloin steak pizza. They also serve calzones, strombolis, wings, hot and cold subs, and various other fried and grilled items.
Hometown isn't just a pizzeria, but also a video store, although with things like Netflix and movies on demand, I think they'd better not put too many eggs in the video basket. There's some seating, and a soft drink cooler in the back.
This was decent pizza, but not outstanding. The bottom could've been a little more crisp, and it could've used a little more sauce. But I will give it credit for being more firm than floppy, for some crispy crunch along the edge, and for a pretty good overall flavor. So, perhaps with some of my NY-style prejudices coming through, I'd say this was a little better than average in spite of its shortcomings, and this pizza rates a B- from me.
Hometown Pizza & Video, 10 Main St., Bloomfield 657-6190
Tue. - Thu. 11 a.m. - 9 p.m., Fri. 11 a.m. - 10 p.m., Sat. 11 a.m. - 10 p.m., Sun. noon- 9 p.m. Closed Mondays.
Delivery available 5 p.m. - 9 p.m. within a 5-mile radius, $8 minimum order. Delivery charge of $1 in village, $2 outside village.