The Rock Wood Fired Pizza & Spirits- Oregon, Washington, Colorado & Canada

Rating: 1 (ratings are between 0 - 5)

As I have stated in previous installments, I am a pizza junkie, so when a new place comes to town and they advertise that they have Gluten-Free, I am there! 

The Rock Wood Fired Pizza & Spirits has location in three Western States and Canada, with more on the way.  The one that I visited was in Fairview Oregon in a relatively new shopping center.     

 I would say that this restaurant is more on the lines with the “Spirits” in the name than the Pizza.  It is dark (bring a flashlight to read the menu in any booth away from the windows) and it has a heavy metal kind of feel.  None of this is bad, just feels more like the “House of Blues” then a family friendly pizza kind of place, so it is grownup pizza.  The restaurant is good size but I only looked at a small portion of it.  Also the tables have rivets on them and they like to eat sweaters and such.

As far as how they handle allergies and special request, I was a little worried about what I could see into the open kitchen.  I didn’t see a lot of extra care being taken with my gluten-free pizza, unlike other previously reviewed places that will sterilize everything before they make one and use different utensils and such; I saw none of that here.  So if you have an allergy that is a cross contamination one, I would be very leery.  

The service left a ton to be desired, refills on drinks, yeah not.  Food in less than 30 mins, again not.  Over selling of the product, yep.    When the food finally gets there, the disappointment continued.  I had the Crazy Train, Pepperoni, hot Italian sausage, peppered bacon, caramelized onions, garlic, oregano and hot cherry peppers. To me this should be at least a moderately spicy pizza.  Nope tasted like caramelized onions and that is about it.  That might be because there was 4 pieces of pepperoni, a handful of sausage, and bacon, didn’t see any.  Also, cherry peppers are red, not green so again my concern about contamination if they don’t pay attention to ingredients. 

I am hoping my next review will be a better one, heading on a road trip my mom this weekend, should have a couple of cool out of town places for you next week.

Now the Details:

Value - price:

The above mentioned pizza cost 9″ – $11.49, 12″ – $18.29, 16″ – $23.29, plus add $3 for Gluten Free.  So my 9” cost me $14.49.  About the same as Flying Pie but I was so hungry when I got done eating this one that I could have eaten two more if they had at least been good. 

Tipping:

I didn’t leave a tip.  Oh is that bad of me?  I hate bad service!

Best hours to go:

I wouldn’t go back

Tips:

Run and hide.

Allergy Extras or places that are close by:

In Gresham there is Lillian’s Natural Marketplace  as will Twelve Mile Kitchen & Market both cater to us Allergy Foodies.

Restaurant info:

This is the one I visited:
Wood Village
The Rock, Wood Fired Pizza & Spirits
22401 NE Glisan Street, Wood Village, OR 97060
Open daily from 11:00am – midnight
Manager: Kim Graham
503-328-8498

Andina’s - Portland, Oregon

Rating: 5!!!  (ratings are between 0 - 5)  

If I could take my very special Valentine anywhere in Portland for dinner tonight it would be Andina’s in the Pearl on 13^th and Glisan just before you go over 405.     

 Andina’s specializes in Peruvian Food, and they have a great happy hour, all set in a warm and festive atmosphere.  This is a family run restaurant and every time I have been there for dinner the owner Doris has come by the table to say hello and share a story of her homeland.  My favorite story is about how the bartender came up with the name of my favorite drink SACASYHUAMAN, it is habanero pepper infused vodka & passion fruit.  When the bartender was in Peru he fell in love with the people and the availability of fresh ingredients, he wanted to make a drink that showed the passion, heat and sweetness of what he had felt there.  When it came to naming it the Inca Empire walled complex on the outskirts of Cusco, Peru had the perfect name as it is pronounced “Sexy Human” will not literally but close enough for him.  So when you go just order the sexy human and you will get a great drink and a wink from the staff.

 The restaurant is not super big 30 tables’ maybe, so make reservations or go early.  The bar is small and intimate so if you are going for happy hour get there early to get one of the three nice booths along the back wall as they have the most room and privacy.  As far as being kid friendly, there is no reason that kids can’t go to early dinner or for lunch for sure, and bringing in your own food shouldn’t be a problem as long as you explain.  They have a great Tapas menu that has CHICHARRONES DE POLLO crispy golden chicken studded with quinoa, served with salsa agridulce, and ANTICUCHO DE POLLO marinated chicken kebobs, served with a spicy salsa de rocoto both are great and most kids like chicken.  They also have a Gluten Free Menu and a Vegetarian Menu.  My favorite dish is the QUINOTO DE HONGOS DE LA MONTANA, golden beet and local mushroom quinoa "risotto" laced with truffle oil with grilled market fresh vegetables, it is to die for and healthy to boot. 

 I have a couple of wait staff that I absolutely love here and I try to make sure I get one of their tables, but you will have to find your own because I don’t want to share mine, lol.  This is another place that if you tell them up front that you have allergies they will go to the end of the world for you.  They even have a substitute for bread for those of us that are Gluten Free, and that really says something.  They also serve several salsas with their bread, one has peanut in it and one has Gluten so make sure you tell them ahead of time if either are a problem and they will bring you a special bowl of your own with the one that you can have.  Oh and make sure you save room for dessert, if nothing else try a truffle, and there sorbets and/or ice cream are wonderful and in some really great flavors of the season.   The Sangria is dynamite too.  So Food-wise, Services-wise and Allergy Awareness-wise they rank 5 out of 5. 

Now the Details:

Value - price:

I have never left here hungry, I usually split a couple of tapas, dinner, drinks & dessert and it comes to about $60 a person.  That is if I have scallops it is a little less if I have the quinoa, lunch is about $20ish and I can easily have leftovers with lunch or dinner.  The food is always fresh and consistent so for me I always get more then my money’s worth here.    

Tipping:

Like I have said before I usually leave: 30% that is my max, I work down in 5% increments from there.  I think the least I have every left at Andina's is 20%, but that was a rarity.

Best hours to go:

Andina’s is great anytime, I love happy hour, but late lunch is great too.   

Tips:

Make reservations especially if you have a party bigger then 4

Allergy Extras or places that are close by:

There is a Whole Foods close by.  

Restaurant info:

Andina

1314 NW Glisan

Portland OR 97209

503.228.9535 

Hours:

Lunch:

11:30am – 2:30pm 7 days a week

Bar/Tapas:

Sun-Thu 4:00pm -11:00pm

Fri-Sat 4:00 –Midnight

Dinner:

Sun-Thu 5:00pm -9:30pm

Fri-Sat 5:00 –10:30pm

Happy Hour:

4:00pm-6:00pm 7 days a week

Flying Pie Pizzeria - Lake Oswego, Portland, Gresham & Milwaukie, Oregon

Rating: 5!!!  (Ratings are between 0 - 5)

When I was growing up the one food that played an important part in my house was Pizza.  Saturday night always seemed to be pizza night.  My family moved to Portland when I was 13, and there used to be this great place on 82^nd Ave called the Organ Grinder.  They played old silent black and white movies accompanied by a live organist; I loved the old wash barrel drums the best.   Just about the time I started high school my mom learned how to make homemade pizza.  It was by far the best thing she cooked.  Ironically her first job when I was about 20 was at a Round Table Pizza, it was perfect.  Now that she is retiring this year, she plans on making them again.  Just wish I could have them!

As you can imagine when I became allergic to tomatoes in my mid 20’s pizza was something I had to work around, very few pizza places had white or garlic sauce pizza in the 80’s.  Oops did I just date myself?  Eventually over the years there were more and more places that had it, and life was good again.  Saturday night at my house became pizza night just like when I was little; even our dog Snickers knew when the phone call was made at 4pm that the pizza would be there shortly.  She would go and stand in the window until the delivery guy arrived.  Then three years ago that all changed for me, no gluten no cheeses, meant no pizza.  The boys still ordered it and of course that drove me crazy. 

Last year I heard about a place close to home that had signs out front advertising they had Gluten Free Pizzas.  Having tried some Gluten free items before, I was skeptical that it would be something to write home about.  I was SO VERY wrong.  Flying Pie Pizzeria has once again allowed me to have my Saturday night pizza, and Monday- Tuesday- Wednesday-yeah any day of the week as I pass it on my way to and from work now.  Ah Heaven!

Flying Pie has 4 locations, Lake Oswego, Milwaukie, Portland and Gresham.  I have only been to the one in Gresham so my review is based on that location, but I am sure they all share the same basic philosophy. 

Like any pizza place this is a great place to bring kids, there is evidence of that on the ceiling.  You can color a cardboard pizza disk and then they put it up on the ceiling it is fun to see such great local talent.

There is a sign by the door that states that you cannot bring in your own food or drink, there are across the street from the High School so that makes a ton of sense, but if you call in ahead, are a regular or just tell the staff that you or your child has allergies they are more than happy to allow it.

The menu for the pizza toppings is very clear about what does and doesn’t have Gluten in it as well as what is low-fat.  There is only one topping that contains gluten and unfortunately that is the liguica, one of my favorites.  They also have Soy-Sation Cheese so that takes care of my dairy allergy as well.  The Gluten Free crust does have Tapioca & Yeast in it, both of these are on my intolerance list, so I can’t have it every night like I would like.  There is a list of ingredients in the crust right next to the register, so make sure you check it out or facebook them or call.   The service is always spot on and if you tell them about your allergies and that you are concerned about cross contamination they will go as far as to pull all fresh ingredients from the cooler to make your food in a clean area.  This includes the salad bar, which is always very nice and fresh.

The pizzas are great if I haven’t mentioned it, the Italian sausage is some of the best I have had outside of Italy, and for sure the best I have had in the States.  Besides Pizza and the salad bar, they have the traditional pizzeria fair, Subs, Calzones, Cheese Bread and even Chicken Wings.  They also have Gluten Free Beers.  Food-wise, Services-wise and Allergy Awareness-wise they rank 5 out of 5. 

Happy Eating!!!

debi

Now the Details:

Value - price:

A Gluten Free Pizza is $2.50 more than a regular 12” pizza, (the only size Gluten Free comes in) I usually get an Italian Sausage & Jalapeno; it cost $17 as the soy cheese is $1.20 extra.  ($10.60 for the cheese pizza, $1.50 for the sausage, $1.20 each for the cheese and jalapenos, and then the $2.50 for the crust) There is so much meat on this pizza that I can get 4 meals out of one pie, and I normally can inhale a 12” in one sitting.  So the value is way up there.

Tipping:

Even at a pizza joint I still tip, especially at a place I frequent a lot.  I at least leave a $1 and round up to the next dollar.  It isn’t much but they appreciate it.

Best hours to go:

Any time!  Hours are 11 am to 10pm Sun-Thurs 11am to 11pm on Fri & Sat.

Tips:
If you have allergies or need to bring in food, just let them know and they will do everything they can to make your visits as great as possible.   I have never had a cross contamination issue here, and that says a ton for a pizza place.

Allergy Extras or places that are close by:

In Gresham there is Lillian’s Natural Marketplace  as will Twelve MileKitchen & Market both cater to us Allergy Foodies.

Restaurant info: 

Lake Oswego

Phone: (503)675-7377

3 Monroe Parkway Suite S

Lake Oswego, OR 97035 

Portland

Phone: (503)254-2016

7804 SE Stark Street

Portland, OR 97215  

Gresham

      Phone: (503)328-0018

      1600 NW Fairview Drive

      Gresham, OR 97030 

Milwaukie

Phone: (503)496-3170

16691 SE McLoughlin Blvd

Milwaukie, OR 97267