Trick or Treat?

The Parlor quickly became a dining hotspot shortly after opening early last year. a short drive from phoenix favorite pizzeria bianco, the parlor might be stealing some of bianco’s customers serving up wood-fired pizzas, homemade pastas and rustic italian entrees minus the 5+ hour wait. nothing on the menu os over $20. julie, kari and i finally got there, after a couple failed attempts due to long waits, on halloween. Servers, and numerous diners were in all sorts of elaborate costumes which made for rather interesting people watching. The building, located just outside downtown phoenix at 20th & camelback, used to be the home to Salon de Venus. the transition from beauty parlor to pizza parlor must have made choosing the clever name rather easy. as a nod to the building’s salon past, vintage artwork, beauty chairs and hair dryers still exist and were somehow seamlessly incorporated into the parlor’s ultra modern and retro-hip, yet warm and cozy interior. the design and feel of the parlor was very reminiscent of the vig. The super sexiness also oozes outside onto the large semi enclosed patio dining area. while the parlor is located just off the street (camelback ave), large concrete walls and good design help make sure noise and unpleasant views aren’t a problem at all. we sat outside on the patio, and if i didn’t know i never would have guessed there was a major road just steps away. although we were dining outside on a fall night, between the large fireplace and all the heaters overhead, we were actually too hot and had to change tables to get a little further away from the heat. after a table change, and a pint of what i like to call heaven in a glass, we were cooled off and ready to enjoy our dining experience. any place that serves 4 peaks pumpkin porter on tap immediately earns points with me. unfortunately, i only got 1 pint of the very popular, and very limited seasonal brew of my favorite local brewery and that would be it for me before everyone in town quickly ran out of it. seriously, next fall, run to 4 peaks or where ever pumpkin porter is being served and load up on it. i recall the 3 of us being absolutely starving that night, so an appetizer was definitely in order. we chose the roasted cauliflower with aged cheddar and breadcrumbs. i’d say we chose well. warm, comforting and oozing with melted cheese. The roasted cauliflower became very tender when baked and crumbled in your mouth amongst the cheese and crunchy breadcrumbs. between the appetizer and 3 pizzas for the 3 of us, we may have over ordered a bit despite our extreme hunger. i think we had enough slices left over in the end to make a whole pie, but pizza leftovers are always good. I mentioned pizzeria bianco earlier, and i’m going to again saying that these pies, in my opinion, were just as good if not better than the pizza we ate at bianco during our recent visit. the ingredients were all fresh and delicious, local when possible. the crust, though a bit thicker than bianco’s, was still thin, bubbly, warm and cripsy. the wood-fired oven gave the pizzas a hint of a smoky flavor. i enjoyed all 3 pizzas, with the smokey probably being my least favorite. i loved the saltiness of the smoked prosciutto and olive tapenade, and the creaminess of the ricotta cheese…but i’ve decided pizzas covered in lettuce or other leafy greens just isn’t for me. anything that gets in the way of me and warm, bubbly melted cheese, especially when it’s a raw vegetable is just a bad bad idea.

would i go back? yes. seeing as i think it was way overhyped and fell short of our expectations, i hate to use pizzeria bianco as the benchmark for local pizza…but i would choose this place over bianco any day. between the food, the setting and the company, the parlor certainly was a halloween treat.

4 Peaks Pumpkin Porter

Cauliflower Gratinata - Roasted cauliflower with aged white cheddar & breadcrumbs

Funghi - wild mushrooms, goat cheese, truffle oil & chives

Smokey - speck (smoked prosciutto), olive tapenade, ricotta & fresh arugula