Black and White at Indigo: A Delicious Palette for Your Palate

Twenty-Seventh Stop: Indigo Casual Gourmet Café

Date: March 12, 2013

Location: 2053 Dixie Highway Ft. Mitchell, KY 41011

Ranking:  22

By now, we’ve had a sampling of over half the pizzas on Cincinnati Magazine’s Top 50 Pizzas, in no particular order.   You’d think by now, we’d be hard to impress, what with our developed and refined pizza palates.  Not so, friends!  We happened upon Indigo for the second time (our first try was a bust-they were closed for an unknown reason), and were quite impressed with what we encountered there. 

Great pizza doesn’t have to be experimental.  It doesn’t have to provide street-cred for foodies with contemporary, hip ingredients.  In fact, if you combine fresh ingredients with a good recipe, courteous and knowledgeable staff, and a comfortable atmosphere, you’re bound to stake a claim in local pizzavores’ hearts.  Did we coin a new word here?  Just go with it. 

Anyway, Indigo definitely has the courteous and knowledgeable staff.  We were greeted and seated promptly, and our lovely server answered our questions and offered recommendations.  We arrived at about 6pm on a Tuesday evening, and that place was hopping with guests.  It seems to be a popular spot and, come to find out, for good reason. 

In terms of atmosphere, this place excels.  The building is an old historic Shaker house, and includes the original hardwood flooring from that era.  The large, wood-trimmed bar is set in the dining room, where small tables are cozy, but not crowded.  We hear there is a spacious, shaded patio out back that is quite lovely, if you’re into that outdoor dining sort of thing.  However, outdoor dining wasn’t an option yet at this point in the season, and Robyn was glad about that, because she’d rather eat a Speedway hot dog than eat outside on a patio.   

Now, let’s get down to business - the food.  First up - breadsticks.  It was a hungry night, and we couldn't wait until the main dish to start stuffing our faces.  Several of the starters looked quite tasty but, in the end, we went with an old standard:  breadsticks with marinara.  The little appetizer plate was piled with long and thin, rectangular sticks of soft bread.  They were salted and topped with pretty green specks of herbs.  On top of all that, the accompanying warm marinara sauce was topped with gooey mozzarella cheese.  These breadsticks were a pleasant surprise:  better than expected and a great way to start off our meal at Indigo. 

As far as pizza is concerned, our server offered us some advice and insight on her personal favorites.  She helped to steer us toward the Italian White and Cuban Black Bean pizzas.  Unintentionally, both of these choices were vegetarian selections.  When ordering pizza, you have the option of either a white or wheat crust, and we chose white for the Italian White and wheat for the Cuban Black Bean.  The pizzas offered at Indigo are the single serve, one-plate style, so we decided to order two and share, as we often do when it’s an option.  Indigo offers 5 types of specialty pizzas, along with one “Choose Your Own” option, where you select from their extensive list of stuffings and toppings.  These toppings range from the traditional items such as pepperoni, to the not-so-common accents like garden peas, almonds, and hard salami.      

We each preferred our own selections.  Robyn went with the Italian White.  This one includes Ricotta, Feta, mushrooms, spinach, and Mozzarella, and will set you back $9.99.  This pizza was BY FAR Robyn’s favorite.  It was soft and creamy, without being overly so.  It was akin to neither an alfredo nor a marinara, but fell somewhere in between, in a perfectly lush median of fresh, quality ingredients.  Also, there was an interesting but balanced contrast between the Italian and Greek cheeses.

Courtney opted for the Cuban Black Bean pizza.  This had stood out to us on the menu, but we were hesitant of the "black bean sauce" in the description.  Our server set us straight - she said it was delicious and proclaimed it her favorite.  Ok, then!  The Cuban Black Bean features that house-made black bean sauce (don't be scared), banana peppers, salsa, cheddar and mozzarella cheeses, and a side of sour cream.  Courtney really loved this one, preferring it's zesty and non-traditional toppings, and the dipping aspect provided by the sour cream.  She enjoyed Robyn's Italian White, too, but was glad she had chosen the Cuban Black Bean, and happy that she got to keep both leftover slices of it when doling the leftovers into two carryout containers.  The only problem:  the leftovers kind of sucked.  Somehow the zeal of this pizza vanished when refrigerated.  True, a microwave was involved in its reheating (we know, never a good idea, but options are limited in a workplace kitchen), but the problem was with the flavor, not that it was gooey/mushy/tough-crusted.  It was a sad lunch.  What's the lesson here?  Go to Indigo with an empty tummy and eat all of your pizza in one sitting!                        

We left Indigo very pleased, albeit a little confused.  How can a place like Fratelli’s rank in the top 10 when places like this go above and beyond in almost all of the facets we’ve talked about?  Regardless, we are very likely to make some return trips to Indigo, whether it’s for a casual “girls night” with our friends or a “date night” with our significant others.  There are some other pizzas on that menu that need us to eat them.

Clifton Pizza Wars Part II

Sixteenth Stop: Pomodori’s Pizzeria and Trattoria

Date: May 21, 2012

Location: 121 West McMillan Street Cincinnati, OH

Ranking: 17

"Cincinnati's BEST Pizza":  Opened in 1984 by Sally and Tim McLane

When we walked in Pomodori’s front door, the place seemed spacious and fairly empty.  We saw a number of empty tables to the right, as we walked in and up a few steps.  But then, we were seated.  Our table was in a no-frills older dining room facing street traffic.  We were packed in, closely and awkwardly, between a family and a couple, both of which could hear every word we said, and vice versa.  There was also a lot of staring going on; it was hard not to, since everyone was packed into such a tight space.  Despite all attempts to stay engaged at your own table, it was distracting to have everyone in such close proximity.  This might not bother some people, but we found it rather uncomfortable. 

Another thing possibly worth noting about the atmosphere was the presence of flies buzzing around our table.  Judging from our view in the parking lot, they keep a door at the back of the kitchen open (maybe just during hot weather?), which likely lets in a few flies from outside (eh, it happens).  While the flies did not terribly bother us, or our food, we thought this might be something you’d like to know.   

Robyn's pizza, the "Gourmet"

The wood-fired pizzas are offered only in a smaller, individual size, so we both decided on two different options. Robyn’s pizza, overall, was a success.  She ordered the “Gourmet” wood fired pizza, which, according to the menu, included homemade pesto sauce (a blend of basil and herbs, olive oil, pine nuts, and parmesan cheese – yum!) topped with sautéed fresh mushrooms, green peppers, black and green olives, onions, capers, and artichoke hearts, sprinkled with mozzarella and provolone cheeses.   Robyn opted to leave off the capers and green olives as a matter of preference, and they did so without any objections.  The crust beneath the toppings was a thin, pliable sheet of dough that was merely a vehicle for all of the toppings on their digestive journey.  The outer edges of the crust were more pronounced since they weren’t forced to hold the weight of all those toppings, and the wood fired taste was quite good.  As far as the toppings go, they all tasted fine.  The pesto sauce had a quality flavor and, pleasantly, did not overwhelm the rest of the pizza.    

A close-up of Robyn's pizza with the yummy pesto sauce

By recommendation of a friend (blog follower Mike!), Courtney ordered the  Roasted Pepper wood-fired pizza.  This pizza is a rather simple one, involving a few variations of just a couple key ingredients.  There are both roasted red and green peppers and five different cheeses, all on a “fresh pressed garlic and olive oil crust”.  The first bite was one to remember.  The pizza tasted warm and buttery, truly of the “melt in your mouth” variety.  The core of the crust was thin and, as Robyn stated above, really just serves as a shovel for the cheese and other toppings.  The wood-fired outer crust, however, was as delicious as you’d hope it to be.  Courtney really enjoyed this one.  Though we’ve enjoyed trying new pizza styles and fancy toppings throughout this blogging expedition, sometimes sticking with simple is a good choice. 

Courtney's Roasted Pepper pizza (note: does not come with Chapstick)

If we went back, Robyn would definitely try a different pizza.  Even though she liked hers, there were so many varieties and combinations of toppings that sounded like they would be neat to try.  On this visit, other considerations included the Gorgonzola Walnut (title explains it all), and the Leeks, Pancetta, and Goat Cheese (leeks on pizza?!).  Watching the dough prep and handiwork of the pizzas being made in front of the wood-fired oven is a bonus at this place as well.  So, when you need to avoid the awkward eye contact with your neighboring table, you can avert your eyes to the pizza-making techniques on display. 

We can verify the first claim, but the rest...not so much.

Pomodori’s certainly makes some bold claims in their advertising (evidenced by the pictures above), but we are reluctant to agree with them.  We would like to amend their tagline of “best” pizza in Cincinnati to “one of the best.”  It didn’t blow either of us away, but Pomodori’s creations definitely fit the standards of well-made pizza.  The ingredients, the preparation and cooking methods, and the finished product all hold true to the creed of award winning pizzas.  However, this is war, and decisions must be made.  For Robyn, the winner was clear.  Courtney tossed and turned a little before making her decision.  In the end, this round in the Clifton Pizza Wars goes to Adriatico’s.