Casa Bianca Pizza Pie
In Eagle Rock, there is a line. People sitting in plastic chairs, gathered in groups on street corners, talking, laughing. Waiting. Mostly waiting. At 5:30 pm on a Saturday, the wait is an hour plus. The mood is jovial. This is a return crowd. They know what to expect. People cheer when their party gets called. When you walk down that sidewalk, people watch you like you're walking the red carpet. And indeed you are. The red carpet of pizza. The decor is probably twenty years old; pictures of Italy, linoleum floors, lots of vinyl. There's no millenium hip minimalism to be found here. People don't come for the ambience. Cheap liters of red wine, coupled with decent appetizers, the least of which is the garlic bread -- passable, but uninspired. There are also fried mushrooms with ranch and marinara sauces, like melted cream of mushroom, crunchy and salty. The salads are peppy ice burg, rich with spices and vinagrette, lots of vegetables, black olives and pepperocini. It's all reasonably good, but none of it can hold a candle to pizza.
The star of the show arrives after a substantial wait (though not as substantial as the wait to be seated). It's thin crust, soupy with wonderful marinara, cheese, savory sausage, fresh tomatoes. The only disappointment is the mushrooms, which are canned instead of fresh, but it doesn't mitigate the wonder of the pizza much.
Often it's tough to resign oneself to a two hour eating experience -- especially with the majority of that being waiting. Sometimes though, the wait is part of what makes the experience definitive. It flavors the food, the conversation, the experience. Or Casa Bianca does do take out. Either way, to paraphrase the restaurant's t-shirts -- this town is going to pizzas!
Casa Bianca Pizza Pie 1650 Colorado Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA
posted by kuaptic. @ 1:53 PM
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