Table of Contents
Lists Part Cinque
This is the Part Cinque (5) of my pizza lists series. I have 3 different lists just for our winter home in Sarasota, FL! We visited Origin Pizza and Craft Beer as a result of those lists. Which are:
- The Best of Sarasota 2023: Readers’ Choice | Sarasota Magazine – 3rd place in 2023 on the above list
- 23 Best Pizza Places in Sarasota, FL [2022] (s-r-q.com) – #22 on the above list
- The Best of Sarasota Magazine 2022 – Editors Choice – absent on another list
Since these lists have different publish dates (AND NO CRITERIA FOR SELECTION) the results will vary.
Nebaletan Word of the Day – Baccala
In my last blog post (here), I defined the word pescedel as one of 7 Fishes from last year’s Christmas post the “7 Fishes? Make that 0!“. Another of the 7 Fishes was baccala. Whereas pescedel (smelt, see here) which are small (tiny?) and smelly fish baccala is a larger, but smelly fish.
Baccala is cod fish (see here), and although not particularly smelly, my child’s nose thought they smelled like Lake Erie in the 1960s when it was so polluted that we were told not to eat the fish! Even though it doesn’t seem that Lake Erie had codfish, there was baccala on Grandma Rocco’s table much to my displeasure!
ASIDE – I think all fish are smelly!
There’s a character in the Sopranos, Bobby Baccala (see here). Bobby Baccala was big and tall, but kind and warm, not at all like a typical Soprano making him the perfect caretaker for Junior Soprano when he was ill.
I have a good friend, Carmen, who reminds me of Bobby Baccala. Carmen is tall, easy going, has a warming smile to fill a room, and even has a passing resemblance of Bobby Baccala. I mentioned Carmen in that last blog post as part of a typical conversation that he and I would have in the halls in high school.
I’ve known Carmen for nearly 60 years! It’s funny how after nearly 50 years since high school, and with people you rarely see anymore, that one can fall right back into a heart-filling, warm conversation so easily with a person who knew you “when”!
Anyways, below is what baccala would look like on Grandma Rocco’s table (taken from see Baccala Alla Napoletana – Feast of the Seven Fishes – Sip and Feast. Sip and Feast is one of the YouTube channels that we watch for recipe ideas). Even with all the tomato sauce and black olives (which I love), I couldn’t stomach baccala!
Pizza Review – Origin Craft Beer and Pizza Cafe
| Date | December 13, 2023 |
| Pizzeria | Origin Craft Beer and Pizza Cafe |
| City/Neighborhood | Sarasota, FL / Southside Village |
| Website | ORIGIN | Origin Pizza Cafe |
| About Us on Web | No |
| Style | New York-ish |
| Ambiance | Corner of a strip mall, service was fast and friendly, a huge beer list. Ordered a Margherita with 1/2 pepperoni, a beer, a wine, and a salad. The beer was “tapped” (end of keg so I got a partial glass for free), but my wife’s wine was the wrong one requested. Pizza was served on a silver tray on top of a table riser. Very crowded table, lots of stuff and little space. Seating for 4, but only space for 2. Pizza served on paper plates! Oh, my! Very noisy, no charm. Much more of a bar than a pizzeria. So, although friendly, the overall service (waitress, presentation, noise, and table/tableware) was so, so (dare I say bad?) |
| Rating Criteria | |
| Shape | Round |
| Dough/Crust | Thin to medium and soft. No crunch or crispness and no char. The bottom is brownish like it was cooked in a low-heat gas or electric oven. No real taste or flavor; seemed to be just a medium for holding the sauce. However, there was a somewhat yeasty flavor that was good in areas with less or no sauce |
| Cornicione | Soft bake without crispiness or air/bubble. There was yeasty flavor at the cornicione; again, there was no sauce in that area |
| Toppings | I ordered 1/2 pepperoni but was delivered full pepperoni. As much as I love pepperoni, I’m learning to order 1/2 such that I can better judge the pizza’s quality without the pepperoni taste. Most of the pepperoni had no cup or char. It was as if it was either added after the bake or the pizza was under-baked. In any event, the pepperoni had little taste and provided little to the pizza. |
| Sauce | The sauce was good. Very tangy and thick with chunks of fresh tomatoes. Although good, the sauce’s thickness and tang were too much of the main feature of the pizza and overpowering. Unfortunately, the fresh tomato was not ripe, and the chunks were hard and tasteless. |
| Cheese | Splotches of moozedell distributed well over the entire pizza. The menu said the moozedell was homemade which is likely since it had the greasy and stringer earmarks of homemade. Even if it was homemade, there was little taste, not salty or buttery as I’d expect. No other cheese, such as parmagian or pecorino, was apparent. |
| Cheese to Sauce Ratio | Cheese = medium Sauce = medium to a lot Balance = the amount, thickness, and tang of the sauce overpowered the cheese causing the balance to be off. |
| Value | Poor, $17 for a 12″ Margherita (before the pepperoni) |
| Overall Rating | Meh (which is not good, but there’s no bad pizza). Bland dough/crust, tasty though too overpowering sauce, paper plates, noisy, and no charm, poor service, and the topper – HIGH PRICE for just an ok pizza |
| Would I Go Back? | Too many more to visit on my LISTS! |
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