Thursday, February 11, 2010

The Parlor Pizzeria

Take an old beauty parlor; add a small herb and vegetable garden; an outdoor patio with a fire pit; a bar area that has trendy high-top tables and throw in an affordable menu with lots of variety and you’ve got The Parlor Pizzeria in Central Phoenix.

Open almost a year The Parlor has been on my restaurant radar since day one. Finally last Thursday night my husband and I got a chance to check it out. We hadn’t even entered the restaurant but I instantly got a good feeling when I noticed the small garden by the door. I took it as a sign of what was to come as far as the freshness of the food and I was right. The interior of the restaurant also provided some good vibes. It has a very urban feel which I really like.

There’s a little something for everyone on the menu at The Parlor. Items include everything from appetizers, to salads, sandwiches, wood fired pizzas and pasta. There’s a separate sheet for meat and cheese plates and another one for creating your own pizza. So even though the name boasts “pizzeria” It’s possible to have a great meal without any pizza; which is exactly what we did.

We ordered a bowl of warmed olives and a mixed plate of fried calamari and shrimp to enjoy while perusing the menu. The appetizer portions were perfect…not too large but plenty big for us. Since we were having such a hard time narrowing down our dinner choices we decided to do a bit more sharing. I went with the cavatelli with duck ragu and my husband got the duck club with a side salad. Probably not the best combo for sharing but it worked.

Although both were delicious the duck club was hands down the better of the two. Sliced duck breast was layered with apple wood smoked bacon; all of which was topped with a tomato jam and just the right amount of mayonnaise. The combination was truly amazing. We both agreed next time there would be no sharing; we would each get our own duck club. Where the duck pasta fell short was with the ragu. It was flavorful but lacking in the duck department. I will say though that the fresh baby veggies were abundant and delicious.

The minute I saw the dessert menu I knew we would be getting an order of the cinnamon sugar ricotta fritters. After crème brulee these are probably my husband’s favorite dessert. We were served 6 nice sized fritters with chocolate and strawberry dipping sauces. They were yummy and hubby was happy!

If you’re look for a trendy restaurant with good food and a hip feel…The Parlor Pizzeria in Central Phoenix just might be worth checking out.

3 comments:

  1. I would love to be in Phoenix right now enjoying some of that great food! The duck club sounds so good!

    You have inspired me to make ricotta fritters for dessert on Valentine's Day - yum!

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  2. The club sandwich sounds awesome! So do the fritters - I'd pick the same.

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  3. The ricotta fritters got to me. I have made something similar and the ricotta gives it a whole new position in this world of eating.

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