Happy February, and welcome to the special Valentine's Day edition of the Pizza Season Blog! Love is in the air. So is pizza! Well, not really. Actually, not at all. But wouldn't that be cool? Cloudy with a chance of pizza! Anyway. We celebrated all that is red, white, and romantic with a date to Beggars Pizza. Did we fall in love? Or were our hearts broken? And was there chocolate heart-shaped pizza involved? Read on to find out:
Beggars Pizza is located right across from the campus of Olivet Nazarene University, on the corner of the busiest intersection in Kankakee County. For real, Holmes, if you don't get lost finding the parking lot (it's around back) or hit by a car while crossing the street (it's in front) on your way there, then...good job. The layout of the restaurant itself is a bit confusing. To begin with, the building has something like eight doors, but only two of them are actual entrances (insert Scooby Doo chase scene here). Further, there are two floors, each with multiple dining spaces. On the one hand, this is kind of cool; on the other hand, it made us feel like Rebecca Black: which seat should I take? If you want our advice, sit upstairs. We didn't. We didn't know we could. We found out later. Then we went and checked it out. It was better. Much better. And upstairs. One last thing: the theme of the dining areas seems to be having an identity crisis. It thinks that it's an Italian Village AND a train station in Chicago. We think it wants to be both, as symbolized by the eatery's mascot, a proud but terrifying Italian-American hobo (we actually think we might have a hobo curse, because this has been by far the hardest blogging we've ever encountered - never fear, though, for WE SHALL PREVAIL!).
There are a lot of entertainment options at Beggars Pizza (ya know, in case you didn't come to eat), including an arcade by the stairs and a television in each of the dining areas. There are cozier options upstairs, but on the main floor, we felt very exposed, like everyone in the restaurant was up in our business. We ate next to another party that arrived drunk, ordered more beer, and made us feel uncomfortable with their loud conversation. There was really no place in the restaurant to not overhear everything they said. In addition, we scouted out only one potential booth where patrons could escape the distraction of the televisions.
The decorations are nice (we have been through Beggars around Christmastime and really enjoyed their yuletide spirit). The chairs, tables, silverware, etc. are standard fare. The floor and dining areas are all clean. Andrew said that the men's bathroom was small, smelled good, and golf-themed (there's even a little touch of Disney in there). Amber said that the woman's bathroom was bigger, clean, coldish, and that she could hear everything happening in the kitchen (so can they hear you flush, too?).
Beggars has a pretty sweet menu. They do not offer a large variety of toppings or specialty pizzas, but in addition to pizza they have appetizers, soup/salads, pasta dishes, sandwiches, a kids menu, and desserts. We especially liked the dino nuggets (RAWR) and the deep dish cookie with a scoop of ice cream on top (the table next to us ordered one, and we could smell the delicious). Pricing is on the pricier side of standard, but we did find some good weekly specials you might want to take advantage of. Catering prices are on the menu as well.
We seated ourselves (per the sign ordering we do so, please) but were attended to quickly by our server. In fact, our own mascot, the Blogship Enterprise, attracted the attention of three servers beside our own all at once. It was quite the crowd. After they paid appropriate tribute to Bloggy's awesomeness, Andrew explained to them our mission (YAY). The servers were helpful and very capable, but there did not seem to be enough for them to do. Some were just chatting in the main dining hall while we waited for refills and the check to be taken.
The food is the best part. Wait for it ... ... ... okay, here it goes. We ordered a small gourmet (?) stuffed pizza for $13.50 ($12 for the base cost and $1.50 for pep pep pepperoni) and two drinks for $2.29 each. We also used a $1 off coupon from Pizza Season Blog enthusiasts Kyle Shaughnessy and Nicole Montalbano (thanks, guys!). Our server informed us that our meal would take about 50 minutes to bake (so you know it's fresh), which was perfect, because it gave us time to exchange Valentine's gifts to one another (lots of other people in the restaurant were doing this, too). The food actually came in 45 minutes (still fresh), so we were happy. Beggars claims to lay it on thick. We held them to it. And they really came through for us. This was the only pizza joint we've been to thus far where we haven't been able to finish our ten inch pizza in one sitting. The stuffed pizzas go like this: layer of cornmeal crust, layer of SUPER CHEESY cheese, layer of topping (really, a full layer), layer of cornmeal crust, layer of sauce. How great is that? It was the right amount of spicy, tasted fresh, used good ingredients, and was baked to perfection. We loved it!
So how did Beggars Pizza rank on our incredibly-accurate and well-thought-out rating system? I guess you could say we fell in love:
Atmosphere (location, theme, vibe): 3/5
Cleanliness (bathrooms, table settings, furnishings): 4/5
Menu (variety, dining options, cost): 5/5
Food (taste, quality, value): 5/5
Service (friendliness, efficiency, helpfulness): 4/5
Total: 21/25 - Recommended!
Beggars Pizza was a lovely Valentine's Day date. The food, especially, is some of the best we've had. We can't say enough good things about the cheese (have I mentioned we like cheese on pizza?) and the crust. We were quite pleasantly stuffed by the end of the evening. That having been said, the establishment needs to re-imagine their floor plan so that it is less confusing and distracting. Perhaps designate areas without tvs or reorganize tables into a more comfortable pattern? Just a thought. All in all, go to Beggars. Eat the food. And live happily ever after. Until next month: YOEPOAM!
If you would like to find out more information about Beggars Pizza or write a review of your own, check out the following details:
Beggars Pizza
165 South Main Street
Bourbonnais, IL 60914
815-937-9999
Website: Beggars Pizza
