Pizza Critique

Tap House

For my senior project, I went to three different pizza restaurants and went through the process of critiquing the restaurant and their pizza.  The first stop was the 1750 Taphouse in Bedford, NH. The overall “vibe” of the restaurant was homey; the brick walls with the positive decor, soft lighting, and the music was enjoyable at a responsible volume.  The service was great and fast since it was not very busy, and the drinks and food came very quickly as well. Which was nice. For the pizza itself, I was not the biggest fan. The dough-cheese-sauce ratio was not to my liking. There was way too much cheese and it was pretty chewy. I had also ordered the half buffalo chicken pizza and to my dismay, there was no marinara sauce and very little (to none) buffalo on the pizza. The chicken was dry and there was not a lot of flavor.  The crust was something I did enjoy tho, it was crunchy and chewy which I love. The price of the pizza was $16.75 which pretty expense for a pizza that wasn’t that good. Overall, my rating for the 1750 Taphouse was a 15.5/20 which is a C+. The atmosphere was appealing but food/pizza-wise I was not impressed and will most likely not be going back.

900 Degrees

My next stop on my journey was 900 Degrees in Manchester, NH.  This restaurant was a more high-end kinda pizza place. The brick walls contrasting with the high ceiling and dim lighting made it have a rustic feel. There isn’t a lot of seating but I was seated right away and the area was neat and clean.  The service was amazing… our waiter informed us about a deal which was buy one pizza get one free. I was very impressed by this and they had many options (toppings etc.) to choose from. The waiter also was expedient with drinks and checked in with us an appropriate amount of times. The pizza is now one of my favorite places to get a pie from. The dough-cheese-sauce ratio was close to perfect.  The dough was very thin but I do like thin crust pizza, so no complaints from me. There was a strong taste of oregano which overpowered the pizza slightly. The crust was a little burnt on the edges and was very crunchy which isn’t my favorite. The price for the 12” cheese pizza was $16.00 which is pretty expensive for a small size pizza but, since we did get 2 pizzas for the price of one it was not too bad. Overall, my rating for 900 Degrees was a 19/20 which is an A. I gave the score 3 bonus points for the deal they had and the overall organization of the restaurant.  I would recommend anyone this restaurant if they are looking for some quality pizza.

Portland Pie Co.

My last restaurant was Portland Pie also located in Manchester, NH. The inside of the restaurant boasted cool decor with signs along the walls and a mix of high-top seating and low-top seating. The music was a little on the low side as well as a little on the dead side of things but I assume when it is busy it would be a very fun place to hang out with friends. The service was nothing special, our waiter, in particular, was a little quiet and really only brought the pizza and drinks without saying anything.  Also, something that did make me a little unsettled was when the waiter took my drink without asking while I was still drinking it to refill it. It was a kind gesture but she should have asked if I wanted more. When the pizza came out it looked on the well-done side which was not asked for. There was a little more sauce for the ratio but nothing too noticeable. The pizza was a thicker style crust which they did offer 4 different kinds of crust which is impressive. The sauce had a lot of flavor and had a hint of sweetness which I really enjoyed. The price for a 16 inch cheese pizza was $14.99 which is very reasonable. Overall, my rating for Portland Pie was a 16.5/20 which is a B. I would recommend their pizza to a wide range of people because the environment would for all ages.