Thomas "Joliet Sausage" O'Brien chose the Leopard Lounge on Cortland and Paulina as the location for a delivery PCOC last week. The Leopard Lounge does not serve pizza, or for that matter, any food, so, with some counsel from some of PCOC's grizzled vets, TOB chose Lucky Vito's on 2171 N. Milwaukee Avenue to deliver pies for the meeting.
After gauging the appetites of the group, an order was placed to Lucky Vito's. For our group of approximately 15 (our host Rojo and the LL staff, and Claudio, the tamale guy, all gobbled a couple pieces) we ordered 5 pizzas, 4 18-inch XLs with varied toppings, and one Super-size, 28x12 sausage and pepperoni. The 4 XLs shook out like this:
- Italian beef and garlic
- Sausage
- Tomato, garlic, and basil
- Hamburger and bacon
- Not sure on this last one
Per usual PCOC methods, and considering the size of the pizzas ordered, we requested that all the pies be well-done as to avoid the all-too-frequent tragedy of an undercooked pie showing up in front of pizza-hungry mouths. After completing the phone order with the well-done request, the girl on the phone took a moment to think, then stated: "You have got a great order here - give us about an hour and ten to get these pizzas cooked right and over to you. I don't want to rush this." Upon hearing this, the expectations of PCOC were immediately heightened, as this statement is clearly made by one who takes pride in properly putting together a pizza, from tossing the doughball around all the way to sliding a steaming pie in a cardboard delivery box.
Expectations rose even higher upon the arrival of the Lucky Vito's delivery guy. As Tom "Creep" Dine went out to help bring the pies into the Leopard (presumably to get the first look, and to snag some primo pieces) he noticed that the delivery guy had seatbelted the pizzas into the backseat of his pie-ride. No joke. This place obviously took its pizza seriously, and, as we were about to find out, deserves some serious consideration as one of the north side's finer delivery joints so far enjoyed by PCOC.
I tried all of the pizzas ordered and, after serious contemplation, have determined that the plain sausage was the best of the bunch. This is really saying something, as Matt "Chief" Dine and I discussed, if there is one type of pizza that can be used to judge a Chicago pizza joint, it is the establishment's sausage pizza. If a pizza place cannot put this seemingly simple, and glorious-tasting pizza together, then how can you expect them to put together a righteously carnivorous hamburger and bacon pie, or a delicately balanced tomato and basil pie? This pizza freak says you can't. Sausage is the true test of a Chicago pizza joint and Lucky Vito's passed with flying colors.
All of the other pies ordered were pretty damn good too. After some trepidation, it seems the majority of PCOC thought that the Italian beef and garlic pie was real good (and how could any of ous doubted this combination of two of Chicago's most holy fatboy traditions?), and that the tomato, garlic and basil and hamburger and bacon pies consisted of quality ingredients and were well-cooked. The only criticism of Lucky Vito's pizzas that I heard was that some of crust pieces seemed to be lacking a bit in the sauce department, especially toward the very edge. Others also had some questions about the crust (which was thin, but had tad bit of fluff to it), wondering whether it might be better with a thinner crust. Taking in the whole picture though, I think that PCOC thought that Lucky Vito's pizza was good, and worth ordering again.
This report would be remiss without a thank you to Rojo and his crew at the Leopard Lounge - our visit will surely be the first of many, as Rojo knows how to take care of a hungry and thirsty bunch. For the millions of readers out there, get to the Leopard Lounge, especially on Wednesdays, when world-renowned DJ BK ( a/k/a Bridget Kelly, PCOC founder and former President) spins her crazy tunes.
As for the next meeting, I think we ended the meeting at LL without choosing the next picker. This situation will be remedied ASAP and an announcement will be sent out regarding the site of the next meeting.
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