Spris Pizza Lincoln Road
Went back to Spris on Lincoln Road in South Beach for another tasting. Although I did not have the same pretty waitress I had last time, I tried to not let that skew my tastebuds. Spris Pizzeria and Restaurant is located on 731 Lincoln Rd Miami Beach, FL 33139 (305) 673-2020.
I know it probably would have been wiser for me to try a new place, we haven’t reviewed before here on Worst Pizza, but as we passed by this place, I recalled how great it was last time. Spris was busy but there were still seats. Our server wasn’t nearly as attentive as he should have been, in regards to drinks, but the food came out in a decent amount of time.
The pizza was as delicious as I recalled it. Very thin, with some amazing sauce and cheese. The crust wasn’t as perfect as it was last time, as you can see in the bubble photo above, but it still managed not to disappoint. One of these days I would love to speak with the owner of Spris (who also seems to own like every restaurant on Lincoln Road) and find out what he uses in his crust, to get the texture it has.
Next time I am down in South Beach, I will try to stay away from Spris and try a new place to review for everyone. I hear Pizza Piola is well worth the try.
Spris Pizza gets 6 out of 8 slices.
Mario The Baker Pizza Miami
The other night we were sponsoring an event in Miami, not too far from the Design District. Part of our sponsorship consisted of buying the pizza. Normally, the guys who run the event get the pizza delivered from Domino’s and make their attendees suffer. Since the Pizza Expert was buying the pizza I had to make sure to try a local place, instead of these national cardboard tasting pizza places.
After searching, it seemed like Mario The Baker just opened one of their newest locations a couple of blocks away. Since, by default they were the closest for delivery, I chose them. The manager I spoke to on the phone, while placing the order was pretty nice. He gave me a discount for ordering all the pies I did.
The pizzas arrived almost exactly when the manager said they would, and I was pretty impressed since it was a decent sized order. I was even more impressed to find that the manager threw in a few dozen garlic rolls for everyone. This seemed to go over pretty big amongst the attendees who didn’t plan on kissing anyone. Actually the pizza went over so well that there was barely anything left for me to photograph by the time the locusts got their hands on it. One might think people came to the event to get the free pizza and not watch the speeches.
Anyways, the pizza was definitely better then the usual Domino’s crap they get most of the time, but it wasn’t exceptional either. The cheese was pretty good, but the crust was soggy and didn’t hold up well. But with that being said, if you are going to order in for an event in the Miami Design District, you cannot go wrong by ordering from Mario The Baker. The people who eat the pizza you ordered for will certainly appreciate the extra effort you made to give them quality. The quality that is not found in a Domino’s or Papa John’s Pizza. And you will be shocked to find the price is not that different either.
Mario The Baker in Miami gets 4 out of 8 slices.
Spris Pizzeria South Beach Miami Best Pizza
After spending a weekend at a tech conference, it was a nice surprise to find Spris Pizzeria on Lincoln Road. 731 Lincoln Rd Miami Beach (305) 673-2020. Spris is owned by the same group that seems to own half of Lincoln Road. They also have another location in Coral Gables I have eaten at and enjoyed.
Upon entering this chic looking establishment, your eyes are immediately drawn to this beautifully tiled pizza oven (if you make it past the beautiful Venezuelan waitress). Big G and I were seated and our gorgeous waitress asked for our orders. I didn’t even look at the menu, and proceeded to order my usual plain pie not realizing they didn’t have slices. Big G ordered some type of Hawaiian concoction (not sure when he will realize plain is better).
When the pizza was served, I was in heaven. The way it looked and sat on the plate reminded me of the time I spent living in Scandinavia and traveling throughout Europe. I used to sit down and get these individual thin pies served to me, and absolutely loved it. For a moment, when my eyes laid upon this pizza, I was brought back to one of the best moments in my life. Not a bad way to start off, considering I hadn’t even tried the pizza yet.
Although I had asked for the pizza without basil, they obviously put it on as you can see by the photo. So after spending about 4 minutes picking each one of pieces off, I took my first bite. I thought this pizza was amazing, and tasted just like those European places I loved so much. Initially I feared that Spris would just be some type of tourist trap, that would serve a bunch of crap, with cheap ingredients, and try to pass it off as pizza. Spris Pizza is nothing like this. You can taste the fresh ingredients they put into their pie. You can see the pride the pizza maker puts into each pie he serves. Spris, you have won me over and I will certainly return next time I am in town. I am kind of surprised you haven’t won more local awards.
Spris Pizza gets 6 out of 8 slices.
Bambina’s Pizza South Beach Miami
After having a terrible experience at my hotel, I wandered out in South Beach, hoping to be close enough to get Gino’s Pizza again. My previous experiences there have been good. On the way I passed by Bambina’s Pizza on Washington Avenue.
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Deco Pizza South Beach Miami
Well, this pizza place in South Beach goes into the file of the places I wished I had never stopped to try. Deco Pizza in South Beach on Washington must be a chain since I passed by two of them not too far apart from each other. Both were pretty empty, so I guess they cater to a late night crowd, which is probably too wasted to actually taste what they are eating. My son and I split a slice here and both thought the same thing about this pizza. Way too much garlic!
Deco Pizza in Miami Beach is a small little shop with a few pizza choices behind their glass counter top. I ordered one slice and when the guy said it was $3.25 in an accent, I was pretty sure I misheard him. $3.25 for a slice in this place! Unfortunately, I heard right. For that price, I expected this pizza to taste much better then it actually did. Once you get past the excessive smell of the garlic, you can try to taste the rest of the pizza. Not sure what they are covering up by using this much garlic in their blend, but something else must be terribly wrong to use this amount.
The cheese was decent, and the crust was crisp. The thing I liked most about this slice was the amount of sauce they had on it. It was relatively a perfect amount compared to the cheese. If only they used a sweeter sauce and less garlic, I think they could improve this pizza dramatically! In my opinion this pizza is better then Groovy’s but far worse tasting then Gino’s down the block. Skip this place and head to Gino’s instead.
I will give Deco Pizza in South Beach 3 out of 8 slices.
Miami Dolphins Stadium Pizza – Papa Johns
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Since I reviewed the pizza at the Florida Panthers game the other day, I found it only suitable to finally publish this review I did on Papa Johns pizza at the Dolphin’s Game. Some might know the arena that the Dolphin’s play in to be Pro Player Stadium, so when I refer to Dolphin’s Stadium that is what I mean.
We went to go watch the Dolphin’s play the Seahawks a few weeks ago courtesy of Eric. Like usual my son started to complain he was thirsty and hungry when we go there so we naturally went to the concession stand. There is nothing I like better then spending like $50.00 on a large soda. When we got to the counter I noticed they had Papa Johns Pizza there. I ordered a plain pie and prepared myself for the worst.
Those of you who read my reviews regularly know that in my opinion Papa Johns is better then Domino’s Pizza but still pretty horrendous. So if you take bad quality and bad ingredients and add them into an arena setting where they are sitting on a rack waiting for you, you can only imagine how wonderful it must taste.
Even though I was starving, this pizza was barely edible. It was cold, it was rubbery, and the box was too big when I was done to place it comfortably anywhere. Usually when a company claims they use better ingredients, the cheese doesn’t end up hard and rubber like, and make it almost snap back onto the pizza as you are pulling a slice apart. The pizza at the Panther’s game was definitely better then this, in my opinion.
I will give the Papa Johns Pizza at Dolphin’s Stadium 1 out of 8 slices.
Pizza Roma Aventura Florida
Pizza Roma is a nice little restaurant in Aventura, Florida located at 19090 NE 29th Ave Aventura, FL 33180 (305) 937-4884 that has a full menu and makes great pizza. This shop has become one of my favorite Pizza restaurants for several reasons. First of all, the owner has been in the restaurant industry for many years, and he is by no means an absentee owner. You can find him there on any given day, and he will always be willing to have a conversation. Of the many conversations I have had with him, the one that sticks out the most is on quality ingredients. We all know with rising prices in all industries, this can drive up the cost of food. Because of this, a lot of restaurants chose to use inferior quality products to keep prices the same, but the quality of the product also suffers. This is not the case with Pizza Roma. They continue to produce good quality food, with very reasonable prices.
Another reason I like this place, is because it is large enough to not be too small, and small enough not to be large. What I mean is that, you should not expect to wait a long time for your food, and they are not rushing food in and out of the kitchen. Another thing, is that the kitchen is not really hidden behind closed doors. You can see the people preparing your food and even strike up a conversation if you are interested or have any special requests.
In terms of take out and catering, I have never had an issue with delivery or pick up delays, and the quality has always been the same. If you do not know that Pizza is a requirement for birthday parties, now you do. I have 3 kids and we always order from Pizza Roma. They have very good appetizers. We love the mozzarella sticks and the chicken tenders.
Last but not least, the real reason this place has become my favorite neighborhood spot is because of the Pizza. The quality is very consistent. The pizza does not fall apart when you pick it up, and there is no cheese drooping all over the place. The crust holds up very well and its not over sauced. We usually order the large pies, which are 16″ and $12.95 for cheese. They also offer 14 and 20 inch pie for $10.95 and $18.95
I will give Pizza Roma in Aventura Florida 6 out of 8 slices.
Please leave comments below with your thoughts about this place
Pizza Rustica South Beach Miami
Since I never seem to learn, I was walking by the window of Pizza Rustica in South Beach the other day. After seeing the display in the window, I decided to go in and buy a slice. After spending like $4.00 for this think little piece of pizza, I had to wonder if the previous reviewers of this place, like the New Times, and Zagat should qualify as pizza reviewers. Either these other sites that have given this place a “best of Miami” award, and “Best Late Night Dining” are on the payroll, or they need to get new tasters. There is nothing about this pizza that is extraordinary, not even remotely close. Down the block you can find a tremendously better slice at Gino’s.
Do other reviewers who are not experts like myself, think because they display the pizza differently, that itLooks Like Ellio’stastes differently? Have you actually tried the sauce? Can you really say this is best in Miami? Time for the publications to get rid of their current staff of pizza phoneys and talk to us. Rating a pizza place is not about how chic it is, or doing a favor for a friend. Rating a truly good slice of pizza is about the combination of Crust, Cheese, and Sauce. Since Pizza Rustica has Cheese, Sauce and Crust, I agree it is pizza, but unfortunatley they are nothing close to being the best. I will give Pizza Rustica 3 out of 8 slices.
Nostalgic Visit To Gino’s Pizza in South Beach Miami
After leaving Groovy’s Pizza disappointed the other day, while down in South Beach, Miami, I walked down the street and found Gino’s pizza again. My last visit to Gino’s took place when I first started the site, so I was anxious to review it again. The placed smelled great, and had air conditioning on which was excellent on this hot day.
Ordered just one regular slice, which just came out of the oven so it was nice and hot. Gino’s is substantially better then Groovy’s Pizza, and if you are seeking out a place that is open late at night with fresh pizza, you should try Gino’s over the competition. Should you go to the beach and want a slice during the day, all the pizza comes out fresh and isn’t sitting around waiting in a fancy design for you.
The sauce was tasty, and sweet, the cheese was delicious, and the crust was tasty. The crust however, did not hold up very well, and was a bit soggy maybe due to the heat of the pie just coming out. All in all I found this to be a great slice, and one I will go back and try in the future.
I will give Gino’s Pizza in South Beach, Miami, 5 out of 8 slices. Skip the other establishments and come straight to Gino’s.
Groovy’s Pizza South Beach Miami – How Totally Un-Groovy
After sitting through a rather unstimulating tech conference in Miami Beach, I walked away in search of pizza. First place I ended up walking by was called Groovy’s Pizza. Athough quite dirty and abnormally hot inside, I decided to venture inside and try a slice.
The slices displayed are uniquely stacked into kaleidoscope shaped designs. Although this is cool at first glance, and fits into their groovy style name, it is actually quite gross if you think about it. There were approximately 30 slices in this kaleidoscope, all of which had to be cold enough when stacked so the cheese didn’t stick to the crust of the slice that was placed on top of it. What this tells me is that the pizza was made really early in the morning and left out all day. That is right, all day in the sweltering heat and humidty that Miami brings.
Being the adventurous type I ate the slice anyways. It amazed me that I had to eat the slice outside in the 93 degree heat, instead of inside, so I could cool down a bit from waiting for my slice. The slice, was a pretty decent size, but was not cooked well enough. Groovy Pizza puts a lot of cheese on their slices, and I am not complaining, but there was almost zero sauce on the pie, so it tasted like I was eating an uncooked piece of dough with cheese that wasn’t baked.
More likely then not, I will will move onto the next place if I am ever in Miami Beach again. Groovy’s Pizza just did not make the cut as far as I am concerned. It is ok to be in a busy section and cater towards the late night crowd that might come out at 2:00am and not realize they are having a slice of pizza that has been waiting for them to buy it since 9:00am the previous day. The lunch time crowd demands and deserves better, maybe you should stay closed until the evening. I will give Groovy’s Pizza in South Beach Miami 3 out of 8 slices.
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