BBQ Extrodinaire!

Yes, for those of you who have followed diligently, we finally had our City Grocery Barbecue Pizza.

Todd, one of the Pizza Night Team Members is part-owner of the City Grocery on 12th Avenue here in Pensacola, Florida where they smoke Pork Butts daily. They sell meat from the butts and also use it in their Deli sandwiches. If you live in Pensacola and you have not been by there it is time you went. They have absolutely incredible Deli sandwiches that give Subway and Firehouse Subs a serious run for their money. Friday evenings Todd hosts a free wine tasting at The City Grocery where you can meet and greet several from the area, have a bite to eat or just sip some wine and have a good time. The wine selection for the evening is very well rounded and all so good - which makes it a tad difficult to pick which one you want to buy. They don't have a website yet, nor is there a Facebook page, but I have scanned in the menu to give you an idea of what you are missing out on by sticking to the places that you already know. Larry and I try to go for there for lunch once a week and try a different sandwich each time. Our favorite thus far has been the Mardi Gras PoBoy. But, don't take my word for it, just go by there and try it for yourself. And, if you are not from the area and don't foresee a trip in the future, then just take my word for it. We'll have a few sandwiches for you

So, now that you are familiar with The City Grocery I will continue with Pizza Night. We had ten people attend last night. Quite a crowd! Seeing as the Pork Butts are so delicious, we've really tried to bring this pizza about for a while. And, all the delays made it worth the wait. Larry and I went to The City Grocery for lunch yesterday to find Sara and Pat (Todd's mom, Sara's sister) there already. Sara, the illustrious pizza artist is also an interior decorator with Pat and they are helping Todd with the The City Grocery's look. She is surprising; you never know what else she is going to be good at. She tells me it is experience that makes her this great. Well, I can only hope that one day I can roll some pizza dough like she does. I'm still waiting for her to throw it up in the air, but, we'll need some extra dough to practice with and as you have no doubt read, we've not been in the dough lately.

Sara assured me when we left The City Grocery that she was taking the ingredients home with her so that Todd wouldn't be able to forget them again. Did I mention it was worth the wait? Okay, try to imagine this: Raspberry Chipotle Barbecue sauce in which you can actually taste the sweetness of the raspberry, tender and juicy pork butt meat shredded, pineapple chunks and onion spice topped with fresh mozzarella cheese. You probably need to wipe that drool from your chin.

But, as you can see from the picture above, we had three pizzas last night and I know you are just dying to know what the other two were. Well, I won't keep you in suspense any longer.

Of course, it wouldn't be right if we didn't have a Vegetarian pizza. This one was different from the normal ones. Garlic salt was sprinkled on the base with olive oil drizzled over it. Yes, you guessed it, the Parmesan cheese came next and then the fresh basil leaves, tomato, Terra Verde ?Marinated  Artichoke Hearts (from Sam's Club), and Terra Verde Marinated Green Asparagus which is delicious with a bit of a tang to it. To complete the flavor sensation we added both Feta and Mozzarella cheeses.

And, the final masterpiece, a Meat Lovers Pizza! I made this one myself under the tutelage of the Maestra herself. I bet you think we started with a marinara sauce, but you would be incorrect. Remember, we always try to break out of the box. If it would seem usual and expected then just know it will change.

The base was Paul Newman's Alfredo sauce with garlic salt, already cooked ground beef, Pepperoni, Italian salami, Capicola, bacon bits, Feta Cheese and for a change, some Boar's head Mozzarella cheese that Todd brought from The City Grocery. It almost looked smoked with its darker hues and golden edges.

Oh, it looks like you're drooling again. Do you need a towel or something?

The evening would not be complete without some "constructive criticism". We always welcome criticism but also reserve the right to ignore them if we see fit. Sometimes we might just forget you said anything; it's not personal. And, last night we had quite a few thoughts. I personally picked the barbecue as my favorite, but Larry, Sr. and Jr. both liked the Meat Lovers the most.

The critique on the barbecue pizza was that it was a little dry. This might be because the pizza was pulled off of the grill in order not to burn the bottom. Seeing as the crust is quite thin and the toppings quite heavy you need to pay close attention to cook it evenly on the top and the bottom. Sara and I thought that popping the pizza under the broiler for a few minutes would take care of browning the top, which it did beautifully as the picture at the top shows. I suppose the broiler might have dried a few spots on the pizza seeing as some said they did, in fact, have a moist piece of the pizza.


The only critique the Meat Lover's received was that it would have been nice with mushrooms and some would have liked to have it with Marinara. My colleague, Jennifer, just suggested Marinara mixed with Alfredo which I will have to suggest to Sara. It sounds good!

The Veggie Pizza was delicious as I said. Todd suggested red onion and a guest suggested Balsamic Vinegar which I think will be a good addition for the future. Perhaps we might saute the onions in the Balsamic Vinegar  to caramelize them a little.

We never even mentioned next week's pizzas but I know you will check back next week and see what we had. Have a great week!