For a Thanksgiving afternoon snack requested by my wife (membrillo, chorizo, and manchego) I stopped in at Surdyk’s on my lunch hour to pick up the items and noticed famed pizza place, Pizza Nea, was located right across the street. Noted as being one of three top pizzerias in the Twin Cities by James Norton of Heavy Table fame and highly recommended by famed MSP pizza blogger Aaron Landry, I figured it would be a nice pre-holiday lunch spot for me and my coworkers to hit.
I planned an event and we took the bus across the river on a windy Thursday afternoon in December. We arrived at 11:25 just 5 minutes shy of their opening and were the first people seated. Even though we were one of only a handful of tables in the place by the time we left, every last bit of the service was slow. From the delivery of the menus to our bills it took over an hour–something which does not really work on a lunch break. While the service was slow it was extremely friendly, chatty and even crossed into discussions not generally occurring prior to a meal with a suggestion that we all check out PuppyWar coming from my coworker and deflecting the bit of awkwardness experienced following a side statement about enjoying ‘puppy porn’.
There were five of us ordering what ended up being five different pizzas: Boscaiola, Margherita, Caprino e Treccione, Gambero, and a variation of the Marinara with added basil, onion, and sun-dried tomatoes. Each of the pizzas on the menu ranged in price from about $7 to over $13 but included fresh and interesting ingredients. Unfortunately due to the amount of time it took for the pizzas to come out to our table, possibly due to the size of our party, the cheese was overdone and my pizzas were nearly cold.
We’ll start with my margherita which was clearly overdone and presented pretty poorly. Aside from being only slightly more than warm, it was flavorless. I was totally unimpressed and actually a little annoyed that even with the owner present, who was apparently giving the cook direction, they would deliver the pie to me like it was. Inexcusable. While I was totally and utterly disappointed in the Margherita (especially with the claims of greatness which even included Aaron’s comment just two hours later that the pizza was, “spot on.”) the Boscaiola (while still only just barely warm) was edible although not great. I could not at all taste the smoked mozzarella and the mushrooms had minimal flavor. The only other pie I tried was the Gambero which had some tasty and fat shrimp and some bold flavor from the pine nuts. I noted that while my coworker clearly was unimpressed with the pizza I found it to be far better than the two pies I was delivered but I don’t believe that’s saying much. At least one other person in my party noted that while the pizza was ok it certainly wasn’t deserving of the high marks it has received.
Overall I’m guessing this was some sort of Thursday afternoon early lunch fluke but I will openly admit that I can get a cheaper and similar tasting pie just down the street at Punch in only a couple of minutes as opposed to nearly thirty. In fact, to be perfectly honest, being that the owner was on site and watched the pizzas come out of the oven and get delivered to our tables I have to say that I am entirely and totally turned off by the entire ordeal and have no intentions of ever returning. What a shame being that so many people apparently enjoy Nea as much as they do.
Have you ever eaten at Pizza Nea? If so what did you think? What do you order when you go? How do you think it compares to other places nearby such as Black Sheep or Punch? Whatever you have to say about Pizza Nea in Northeast go ahead and comment on as I’d love to here what you have to say.
Address:
Pizza Nea
306 East Hennepin
Minneapolis, MN 55414
Phone:
612-331-9298
See all the pictures from Pizza Nea on Flickr here.
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December 10th, 2010 at 7:36 am
There’s a $15 for $30 coupon for Pizza Nea today.
http://www.crowdcut.com/minneapolis-stpaul/
December 10th, 2010 at 8:59 am
Well I have never been to Pizza Nea.
Since you reference Punch positively, and bring up Black Sheep, I have no reason to try this place after reading your review. I personally rate Black Sheep #1 with Punch at #2 for my tastes. With Black Sheep opening up another location in downtown St. Paul, I will always be near one or the other.
I would normally just hope that a good place was having a bad day when reading your review, but the part about the owner being there closes the book for me.
Your post reads as if you ate on Thanksgiving day? Did I read that right?
December 10th, 2010 at 9:00 am
Sorry for the confusion lefty. I went to Surdyk’s prior to Thanksgiving and saw Pizza Nea then. However, we visited Pizza Nea yesterday.
December 10th, 2010 at 9:01 am
I didn’t like Pizza Nea the one time I went, and have never been back.
December 10th, 2010 at 9:15 am
Thanks for the clarification. There are people that frequent this place that have strong feelings about those who work on Thanksgiving, and for a minute it looked like you were one of them.
December 10th, 2010 at 9:31 am
I have been to Pizza Nea once. I don’t recall which pizza I ordered but I remember that I thought it was good and maybe a tad better than Punch. I’ll have to give it another try sometime.
December 10th, 2010 at 10:35 am
Lefty, did you like Black Sheep because they have Surly on tap? The pizza is sort of so-so imo. Maybe its just not my kind of pizza.
December 10th, 2010 at 10:50 am
I’ve been to Pizza Nea on a few occassions and have enjoyed it each time. It ranks above Punch for me, but not to the level of Black Sheep. On the speed of service, I do agree that it’s not at the same level as Punch…but I haven’t experienced anything to your level (not at all saying it isn’t possible though). I’d say give it another shot.
December 10th, 2010 at 11:29 am
Chad,
As I recall, they had Surly on tap, but not Furious and that was unfortunate. I have tried about half of their pizzas the 3-4 times I have been there and I have not been disappointed. There was a day in which I would have thought I would never get a better pizza than Punch. Their $7 cheese pizza, to me is the epitome of what a cheese pizza should be.
My take is that the ingredients/sauce and crust had equal quality regarding taste and awesomeness, but I liked the part where I could pick it up and eat it without using a fork, thus moving it to #1. Because I like the extra olive oil on my Punch ones, I always order it uncut and that forces the forkage.
I am guessing it is just not your kind of pizza.
December 10th, 2010 at 11:56 am
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by garciasn, richard koopmann. richard koopmann said: trying pizza crust recipe from @garciasn. Hope it's not as big of a let down as http://ow.ly/3mTNk was to him. [...]
December 10th, 2010 at 12:16 pm
Yeah, I think you correct. I thought it was OK, which is what I think of Punch. I guess Neopolitan is just not my thing.
December 10th, 2010 at 1:51 pm
Chad,
Where do you call heaven for pizza?
Lefty
December 10th, 2010 at 2:43 pm
I am all over the place. I like a Pepperoni Pizza from Reds Savoy or Ronnalys in Woodbury.
The Bacon Cheeseburger pizza at Dudleys in Cannon Falls is very good.
If the mood strikes I will get a Meat Me or the Pepperoni Lovers (cant remember the name) from Old Chicago.
Also like Fat Lorenzos or Carbones, depending on my mood.
December 10th, 2010 at 3:03 pm
Definitely a different style set than BS or Punch, but I won’t argue that that style can be quite satisfying, particularly on a Sunday at lunchtime after a late Saturday night out!
There are times in which there is nothing better than an Italian Sausage/Sauerkraut pizza from Savoy’s!
December 10th, 2010 at 4:11 pm
Chad, I agree. I don’t have a love for Neapolitan pizza. I actually couldn’t find pizza I liked in Italy.
I prefer deep dish, gooey, saucy, cheesy goodness. I haven’t found pizza to love in MN.
December 10th, 2010 at 5:00 pm
I would agree with others that Punch and Black Sheep stand out in Minneapolis. Ingredients are the key. Punch adds exceptional execution at their price point. It really is similar to good italian pizza in Italy. Black sheep is a different style.
Bricks in Hudson is also good.
I am waiting to go to Lola in South Mpls that just opened… 55th and Xerxes.
I like the new york style at Cossetta’s by the slice.
December 11th, 2010 at 2:39 pm
I love PIzza Nea. I have never had this kind of bad experience with them…I highly suggest you go back during the dinner hour and give it another shot!
December 11th, 2010 at 3:32 pm
Love Pizza Nea. Haven’t had anything that wasn’t better than Punch. Has always been quick service. And comparing a sit down restaurants service to a concession style can be difficult, so must be more specific. Pizza Nea has much better ambience than Punch, too.
December 12th, 2010 at 9:16 am
I always get pizza that is not done in the middle at Punch. The outer 2/3 of the pizza is wonderful, but the middle is always underdone crust… Black Sheep has been so busy when we try to go, we can’t get in. Gotta try again soon, sounds better than Pizza Nea, that’s for sure. Besides, for fast eats in NE Minneapolis, hard to beat Anchor Fish & Chips! Have to eat there when in NE for sure.
December 13th, 2010 at 1:17 pm
here’s the weird thing I have noticed at Nea, I can taste a chemical on the crust, seems kind of like bleach…wondered if I could be tasting the bleached flour??? or more likely they aren’t rinsing well when disinfecting pans etc.
that was a turnoff.
December 13th, 2010 at 9:25 pm
I personally think Pizza Nea is the best pizza place in town. Give the choice between Punch and Pizza Nea I’ll take Pizza Nea everytime. If you decide to give it another chance check out their salceece pizza and the verde salad. The owner used to have a place in Minneapolis’ Uptown neighborhood which was much more convenient for us but the place only lasted about a year. The owner is a really nice guy but he seems a bit aloof. He has some of the worst servers around. They’re spaced out and super slow. I’ll also admit that sometimes their pizza is fantastic and sometimes it’s a bit off. It definitely depends on who is throwing the pizzas. I think the owner has some serious staffing issues and he’s too nice to toss out the bad apples that are costing him money and customers.
December 13th, 2010 at 9:48 pm
[...] photos, Cafe Bonxai has closed, Heidi’s is set to open 1-11-11, Bill Roehl posts a contrarian review of Pizza Nea, and Chris Hewitt on bacon popcorn at the ShowPlace ICON Theatre. » Ringo Closing and [...]
December 14th, 2010 at 8:09 am
One of these things is not like the others, One of these things just doesn’t belong, Can you tell which thing is not like the other…
December 14th, 2010 at 10:55 am
I don’t think CH’s comments are misleading. I think I am reading that the opinion is that the place has the potential to be the best Pizza place in town, but poor management is preventing that with inconsistent product and service.
I will continue to stick with Black Sheep.
December 23rd, 2010 at 10:55 am
[...] 1. Corner Table 2. Fogo de Chao 3. Sea Salt Eatery (seasonal) 3. World Street Kitchen (seasonal) 5. Hmong Village 5. Runyon’s 5. Destiny Cafe 8. Kabobs Indian Grill 8. Flamingo 10. Pizza Nea [...]