{"id":1451,"date":"2009-10-21T14:07:42","date_gmt":"2009-10-21T21:07:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/burgersdogspizza.com\/?p=1451"},"modified":"2009-10-21T14:07:42","modified_gmt":"2009-10-21T21:07:42","slug":"portland-or-round-table-the-last-honest-pizza","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.peterstromquist.com\/?p=1451","title":{"rendered":"Portland, OR – Round Table, the Last Honest Pizza?"},"content":{"rendered":"

(Note to my wife:\u00a0 this is an IMAGINARY review, I didn’t really go there).\u00a0\u00a0 I’m not really sure what “the last honest pizza” means, but it is the current advertising tag line for Round Table Pizza<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0 Before today, I hadn’t been in a Round Table for 30 years, the last one being in the San Fernando Valley.\u00a0\u00a0 They haven’t changed much, I guess that’s good for an old codger who doesn’t like change.\u00a0 (Except for a dollar).<\/p>\n

Looking at their television commercials, it is implied (or I inferred) that RT uses “better” ingredients (and more of them) than competing pizzerias.<\/p>\n

On their own website, they tout the difference(s) as being “We roll our dough from scratch, add our fresh blend of three cheeses, and lavishly top our pizzas with only premium meats and garden fresh vegetables.”<\/p>\n

At many (most? all?) stores, Round Table offers a noon buffet, at a price point of about $6.99, for all the pizza, salad, and some kind of bread balls one can eat.\u00a0 I’m not sure whoever thought that people that go to pizza buffets want salad, but it does seem to be de rigueur among the chains that offer buffets.\u00a0 For me, they might come in handy if I was inclined to pile diced ham, bacon bits, olives or more cheese on my slice.\u00a0 Or perhaps chunky blue cheese dipping sauce?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The lettuce, beets, baby corns, carrots, and all that other crap can exit stage left, for all I care.<\/p>\n

I really have nothing to\u00a0 complain about at this price point for this product.\u00a0 I can easily stow away a quantity in excess of a large pizza, which, under ordinary circumstances, would cost 2 or 3 times as much as the buffet.\u00a0\u00a0 I would have liked them to label the pizzas, the first tranche out when I was there all pretty much looked the same, and were noticeably piled high with vegetables, the least expensive topping.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I like the crust, even tho it is thicker than I would usually care for, the rim and bottom were nice and crisp (conveyer ovens).<\/p>\n

The red sauce was indistinguishable from any other, as was the cheese.\u00a0 The cheese didn’t seem to be “ample” as the commercialz imply (or I infer – LOL), but perhaps RT and I have different definitions of “ample?”<\/p>\n

The pepperoni was good, not greasy, no cupping or charring, nice flavor, and it had some heat to it, which is unusual for a product offered to the great unwashed.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The sausage appeared to be standard pre-cooked food service nuggets, too small, and not enough flavor.<\/p>\n

Canadian bacon was paper thin and flavorless.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Vegetables were ample and crisp, if your taste runs to non meatatarian type pizzas. (Yes, I made that word up).<\/p>\n

The place was clean, and the help cheerful.\u00a0 Suspiciously cordial, in fact.\u00a0 (What are they hiding?)<\/p>\n

Pic is of my first serving, four different slices, in front of napkin holder advertising “Family Night Buffet.”<\/p>\n

According to\u00a0 Wikipedia<\/a>,\u00a0 Round Table was started in 1959 in the Bay Area, and has since expanded to over 500 outlets in the Western US, as well as a smattering of parlors overseas.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 This footnote appears in the Wiki entry, and I will leave you to intepret its meaning:\u00a0 “Until June 2008, Round Table Pizza operated stores in Idaho.”<\/p>\n