Brings new life to Pizza
The Gourmet Pizza Shoppe is very unique and unlike other places where you walk in and order a large pepperoni with olives. Instead, each pizza is themed with an interesting name and interesting toppings to match. For example, one might order the Mini Pearl, with toppings of mashed potato, country gravy, and fried chicken. Yes, the typical response heard when a new customer looks at the menu is "on a pizza?" There are, however, a very large selection of more traditional pizzas with the same interesting names.

But it is important to be open minded and remember that pizza starts with bread dough. What else do we do with dough? We put cream cheese on bagels, marmelade on toast, sprouts on bread, etc. The Gourmet Pizza Shoppe has used this creativity to come up with over 90 different pizzas. And local food critics give the restaurant rave reviews, featuring it in many print and television articles. The restaurant does offer a selection of calzones, spaghetti, lasagna, and sandwiches, although these are not of the caliber of the pizzas.

The service is fine for a pizza place, and your contact with the staff is typical; you order a pizza and they bring it out to you. All are friendly and helpful and appear to have a genuine desire to be of service. While the staff does not do home delivery, they do have a "bake-at-home" service...you order a pizza, they prepare it, and you take it home and bake it.

The Gourmet Pizza Shoppe has a very warm and inviting atmostphere. It is in a large, 100-year-old building, decorated in a kind of country, turn-of-the-last-century look with pictures of the local historic area. There is no big screen television playing Monday Night Football with the accompanying rowdy beer-drinking fans so it is a popular destination for families. The restaurant can seat significant groups of people and is also popular for meetings of social groups or a local fraternity. The restaurant is kept quite clean, and it is interesting that the patrons are such loyal fans that many clean up their tables themselves.

You will pay slightly more for pizzas at this restaurant than for the typical Domino's or Pizza Hut (about the same as Round Table Pizza). However it is still a good value. After frequenting the Gourmet Pizza Shoppe, most diners never return to traditional pizza places. That kind of loyalty makes it extremely popular for birthday parties, sports team meetings, etc. However this leads to some crowds on Friday and Saturday night.

In short, the Gourmet Pizza Shoppe has redefined pizza as local residents know it, and one visit will make most an instant fan. For an introduction to the Gourmet Pizza Shoppe without being exposed to some of their more exotic fare, consider one of the recommended dishes on this page.

This review was completed by the ChefMoz category editor for Redlands, California.    [23 Jan 2003 11:59:53]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: Tony Bennoni, Momma Mia's, Saucy Sicilian, Ralphy's

     ­ckevgo, ChefMoz   

Good Job
We love it! Good job. Yummy Yummy!    [23 Mar 2005 21:02:19]

Food: -   Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: cheese bread

     ­Anonymous