Dino's Pizza

This was a crazy hustling and bustling place in Burbank.  No table was empty, and there was a crowd of people at the counter picking up or ordering.  The outside of the place seems a little cartoon-y and generic so I thought the pizza might not be so good, but when I saw the inside and all the people that came for pizza, I thought differently.  

I ordered a large cheese, a 14’’ for $11, pretty cheap.  They have lots of topping and specialty pizzas including a dessert pizza, called the Sweetza.  The other option they had was a choice between thin, medium or thick crust.  I didn’t realize that before I ordered so they gave me medium, which is the default I guess.  The outer edge puffed way up and was really doughy and big.  There was a heavy amount of sauce and a heavy amount of cheese, not too much, just a generous amount. 

 It was what I call a New England style pizza, similar to a place called Crispy Crust.  The crust is a little thicker and doughier but still crispy on the bottom and outside. The sauce and cheese are put on a little thicker.  It is something closer to dominos or papa johns, but a lot better.  I’ve found that places that usually don’t specify a specific style, like New York style pizza, usually have this kind of pizza, it is always a crowd pleaser.  You can’t really go wrong with this more filling pizza. I enjoyed the pizza at Dino’s and so did many other people that were there.

Dino's Pizza - 3520 W. Burbank Blvd. Burbank 91505

Price: $

Overall:

UPDATE: I went back to Dino’s the other day because I was curious about the thin crust pizza. The price was the same, the size was the same.  I got a cheese and it was definitely thinner.  I could tell as soon as the guy handed me the box, because it wasn’t as heavy.  The first slice was pretty good, good flavors, very similar to the medium crust.  The enjoyment went quickly down hill however.  The crust was very thin, too thin in fact, and the pizza was slightly over cooked. My pizza cooled off pretty quick, and after a few slices, the pizza was room temp and not too good.  The temperature they cook it at and the time is so important.  Many of these places try to get the crust crispy by putting it in longer, but then the cheese gets burnt and its no good. High heat for a short period of time is the way to go, I believe.  This was the case with the thin crust, despite the ultra thin crust it wasn’t that crispy just chewy and over cooked, the cheese was 75 percent burnt and the amount of sauce and cheese were a little slim.  Stick with the medium and you will be happy. The thin New York style pizza, very, very average, at best. 

Thin Crust: 

Lamonicas Pizza

I'll cut right to the chase on this pizza, since I don't have much of a story to tell.  Although it is a fun place with the paintings of subways and New York signs and posters from subways in NY, the whole place even kind of looks like a underground station.  This LA pizza joint reps NY in a big way.  Not just the subways but the NY slice of pizza too.  

  

So the pizza, it is very delicious.  I would recommend it, however there is another place nearby that I have yet to try D'Amores or something, that I hear is good.  So maybe not the best I'll give you an update.

 

Anyway, I enjoyed it, I'd enjoy it more if they didn't claim to be a NY slice of pizza straight out of the subways.  Everything is just a little thicker and heavier.  The sauce is a heavier sweet sauce.  The crust is a little thicker than it could be, plus it uses a lot of butter in the dough or something.  It has a very rich buttery flavor.  With the heavy sauce and cheese and the oil that drips out the back, the crust is too much to handle.  It was crispy I'll give it that.  The texture actually was pretty good, although seemed a little pre made, or at least thats the way it looked.  Certainly not the best pizza I've had, but I'd be happy to have them cater my birthday party.  Which I don't think they do, I was just dreaming...

Lamonica's Pizza -  1066 Gayley Ave. Westwood, CA

Price: $

Overall:

Folliero's

To remind myself how dedicated I was to trying new pizza, I drove from Hollywood to Highland Park just for pizza.  I went to a little place called Folliero's that I had heard a lot about.  Highland Park isn't that far really, as long as the pizza is good, and it was.  This was a small, old-timey kind of place, actually it is literally old time, it has been there since 1968.  You can see them making the pizza in the window.  It was kind of dark inside, but inviting.  I got a large 16 inch pizza, which I think was 11 dollars, crazy cheap.  Just cheese of course.  I'll tell you,  when I opened the box it looked really good. 

I have to throw out a warning though, don't try and eat it while driving, it is a very sloppy pie.  There is a lot of oil that makes the cheese slide all over the place.  I prefer a little oil however, whether it is from the sauce or the cheese, it adds to the flavor.  Speaking of flavor, it all came from the sauce, one of the best sauces I've had out here.  It was sweet and light and fresh tasting.  Perhaps it was a little too light and runny and thats what caused a sloppy pizza.  The crust was very crispy on the outside as you can see from the charred marks in the picture.  It went from a very thin and crispy bottom to the very big doughy outer edge.  While the outer edge was still crispy on the outside, it was light and doughy on the inside.  There wasn't any middle ground.  Extreme crisp covering basically bread.  While I liked the center area of the crust, I found that the edge got to be overwhelming.  It was a large area and it was very bready.  Though a light bread in density I couldn't finish the crust.  The taste was great though.  If I was eating at a restaurant and they brought out a basket of fresh bread, I would hope it would be like the crust of this pizza, but for a pizza it was too much, I just wanted to get back to the sauce.  

All in all though, bready or not, the crust was fairly well done, the sauce was excellent and the cheese, well, it was there.  I'd say a solid pizza pie that I wouldn't drive 20 miles for but would wish it was down the street.  

But thats my opinion, like the lovely Folliero's girl says, "some people love it some people don't."  Each pizza is unique and this one was definitely its own beast, and I am glad to have tried it.  

Folliero's - 5566 N. Figueroa St. Highland Park 90042

Price: $

Overall: