Dining Divas September
Dining Divas September
Every month, Bakersfield Life sends the Dining Divas out to get the story of a local dining establishment. Lydia Rowles, Katie Kirschenmann, Penny Rafferty and Tracy Walker Kiser have brought you everything from wonderful local dishes to their own home-cooked meals. This month, we combine two of Bakersfield’s favorites pastimes: pizza and football. Donning jerseys from Garces, Centennial, Stockdale and Bakersfield high schools, the ladies enjoyed pizzas from three local restaurants. In a new format, we present a summary of their evening.
Introduction
There’s something about fall in Bakersfield. This time of year, locals find themselves hankering for a fairground fried corn dog and start listening for the sound of high school marching bands on still-balmy Friday nights.
Yep, it’s September and the start of another football season. With this in mind, Bakersfield Life thought it was a perfect time to sample some of Bakersfield’s best pizzas. We put on our favorite high-school football jerseys and headed over to Tracy’s for a football inspired pizza-fest.
In the interest of time, budget and calorie control, we limited our taste testing to three of our favorite pizza joints – Plumberry’s, Cataldo’s and Rosa’s.
As our pizzas arrived, the first thing that struck us was how incredibly different they all were. You’d think being crafted from the same fundamental ingredients would mean the pizzas would look and taste pretty similar. To the contrary, we found that the overall taste and experience of each pizza was distinctly different.
Plumberry’s
Plumberry’s delivered the pizzas that won the highest marks for overall presentation and dramatic flair. Plumberry’s pizzas aren’t so much topped as they are stacked, piled and heaped. The toppings are laid on so thick, it’s hard to tell if there is even a crust hiding under there. And somehow, Plumberry’s manages to craft a surprisingly bright and colorful pizza. It might sound weird, but their pizzas are actually strikingly pretty. At more than $22 per large combo, this might not be the pizza to pick up for the high school team post-practice feed, but if you’re looking for a pizza to impress or something just a little on the side of indulgent, give Plumberry’s a ring and give it a try.
The Colossal Plumberry and Barbecue Chicken were the pizzas we tried. The Colossal is their version of a combination packed thickly with pepperoni, mushrooms, olives, Italian sausage, bell peppers and onions. It was spicy, juicy and very filling served on a crispy crust. The slice tasted better than it looked. Each bite contains a little bit of everything.
What we enjoyed about the Colossal was the freshness of the green bell pepper and onion so that when we took a bite, we got a great crunch along with the crust. With this one slice of pizza, Plumberry’s has found a new group of fans.
The first reaction to the Plumberry’s Barbecue Chicken pizza was wow! The pizza was outstanding with many different tastes and textures. The crust was not soggy despite the enormous amount of ingredients. Sweet barbecue sauce was the base that supported the over-sized chunks of moist, tasty chicken. Sharing the spotlight were crunchy green peppers, snappy white and red onions and sweet pineapple. Penny loved the barbecue chicken pizza and said, “This was by far the best I have had. Usually, on a barbecue chicken pizza you can count the pieces of chicken because there are so few of them. There was no counting here; the pizza was covered in sweet barbecue chicken chunks. This pizza for me won the most flavorful contest.”
Caltado’s
While we were taking pictures, it was decided that we should each hold a piece of pizza for the group photo. Penny chose the garlic chicken pizza called The Queens from Cataldo’s. After holding it for shot after shot and smelling the aromatic garlic, she could not stop herself from taking a bite. The white sauce was light and garlic based and not heavy as expected. The grilled chicken breast was moist and tender, the mushrooms were chewy and the red onion not only added color, but a pop of flavor. The crust was brushed with butter, garlic and sprinkled with salt.
Katie mentions that out of all the pizzas, Cataldo’s looked the most handmade. The crust was rustic and crunchy and the ingredients were piled on. The Queens packed quite a garlicky punch. The chicken tasted wonderfully marinated.
Cataldo’s was definitely not shy with the garlic – it was strewn throughout the pizza – but it didn’t taste bitter like other garlicky pizzas. This garlic tasted sweet, almost caramelized. Between the generous pieces of chicken and garlic, the pizza was dotted with red onion and mushrooms.
The price for this 16-inch specialty pizza was $22.99; they also have other specialty pizzas called The Bronx, The Brooklyn, The New York City and The Manhattan.
Cataldo’s is one of Lydia’s favorite pizzerias. She says that while the toppings are impressive, Cataldo’s is all about the crust. Not only do they hand-toss their crust in the old-style New York City kind of way – and bake it in a brick oven for dense, chewy crispiness – they take it over the top when they finish by brushing it with a garlicky butter concoction that, according to Lydia, “slays me every time.”
Rosa’s
If Plumberry’s had the prettiest pizza, Rosa’s had the best tasting tomato sauce. The sauce is full of herbs and garlic without overpowering the other ingredients. We ordered the Rosa’s Special that contained mushroom, salami, sausage, pepperoni, green pepper, onion and black olive.
The sauce was spicy and the crust was thick with the ingredients almost baked into it. Rosa’s Special was substantial and the sausage they used had great flavor. This pizza would be the perfect choice for a Super Bowl party; it is very filling, full of flavor and a superb value. It’s the kind of pizza that pleases a crowd.
Growing up on the Eastside, Rosa’s was one of Tracy’s favorite places for pizza. Rosa’s pizza is more about the crust than the toppings. Its crust is chewy and thick which makes it stand apart from their competition. Rosa’s uses the perfect amount of sauce and the toppings are fresh. The combination from Rosa’s was less messy but filling because of the chewy crust. The sauce was light to let the toppings and crust stand out. The pizzas are not greasy at Rosa’s because the toppings and the dough are all fresh.
It says a lot that Rosa’s has no chicken specialty pizza. This is a serious we-offer-anchovies-and-so-what-about-it old-school kind of place. The pizza is a classic through and through. The toppings are abundant enough to be hearty but leave enough room to give the sauce and crust equal billing.
If you like your crust crispy, Rosa’s is your place. And at $17.95 for a large combo, you might even be able to afford to feed the defensive linemen.
Impressions
So as the Friday night lights power on and the Monday Night pool grids fill out, consider it an opportunity to mix up your pizza routine. Give a holler to some of our local Bakersfield pizza joints and try something a little different than your usual pizza.