Frequently, the Shreveport-Bossier Journal’s always-hungry reporter has lunch at a local restaurant and tells you about the experience.
By ANON E. MUSS, Journal Services
I love pizza.
No. I really love pizza.
If I could only eat one type of food the rest of my life, it would be pizza. I probably wouldn’t live long, but I would die happy.
So, when I saw a new place, Saint Laurent Pizza (6301 Line Avenue, Shreveport) had opened, I was excited. Chain pizzas are okay, but surely a local pizza joint would be better. And since Saint Laurent has “pizza” in its name, it had to be good, right?
In the words of ESPN college football personality Lee Corso, “Not so fast my friends.”
I invited one of “my friends” to join me for a visit to Saint Laurent Pizza on a recent Friday. We arrived just after 1 pm and noticed the words “Pizza” “Salad” “Pasta” “Wine” on the front of the building. Now, that’s a good Italian combination. Neither my friend nor I drink, but were excited about the possibility of trying a couple of different pizzas, salads, and pastas.
Saint Laurent Pizza looks like a restaurant you would see in New Orleans. It has a wrought-iron, gated entrance with a couple of tables before you go into the building. There, you will find nice booths and tables on one side, a bar with seats, tables, and televisions in the middle, and a nice outdoor patio with ceiling fans on the other side. On this day, the temperature was unseasonably warm, so we chose to eat outside.
If you have kids, there’s an arcade in the back of the restaurant.
When walking in, we told a nice lady at the hostess stand that it was our first time to visit, and asked how the ordering process worked. She handed us a paper menu and directed us to “the line.” I looked at the menu and only saw three types of pizzas which were sold by the slice (plus a “Slice of the Day”), and three salads. I didn’t see any whole pizzas. I didn’t see any pastas. Hmmm…I was confused.
We were the only ones in “line” and saw the same menu when we got to the counter. But we also saw several large pizzas which had been made. We inquired with folks behind the counter, and come to find out, we could order a whole pizza. But I got the feeling they would much rather serve slices, as one of the workers had to look up the cost of a 14-inch pizza. Of those slices, we had six choices: Cheese, Pepperoni, Spicy Pepperoni, Sausage, Spicy Sausage, and The Beastie Boy (Slice of the Day).
There were three salad options: Caesar, Panzanella, and Dante. Thankfully, the menu described what was in the Panzanella and Dante salads.
So, where were the pasta choices? We were told Saint Laurent Pizza doesn’t usually serve pasta at lunch. Huh? Then why would the sign out front say “Pasta”? That was a letdown—and not the last letdown.
We placed our orders and went outside, where we had the patio all to ourselves. It wasn’t long before our meal was brought to our table. The slices of pizza were each served on thin (one-ply) paper plates. The salads each came in paper “bowls”. I found it interesting that we saw a worker stacking regular plates, so I know the restaurant had them. I guess they were trying to cut down on the number of dishes they had to wash.
I ordered a Panzanella salad ($7), which was a mix of tomato, cucumber, red onion, green olives, black olives, and croutons, with vinaigrette dressing and parmesan cheese. It was really good, although I thought the serving was a little small. The Panzanella salad reminded me of a Greek salad, though later research showed the Panzanella salad originated in Italy.
For my pizza, I went with a slice of Pepperoni ($4.35) and a slice of The Beastie Boy ($4.35), which was the Slice of the Day. Now, I want to be very careful as I write this. My intention with these reviews is not to disparage a restaurant, but to give you an accurate account of my experience.
My pizza slices looked like what you would get at a gas station or convenience store. They were thin, a little overcooked, and frankly, just not that pleasing to the eye. While the first slice was lukewarm, the second slice didn’t have any warmth, and tasted a bit stale. When we ordered, a person behind the counter took the slices from an already made whole pizza and put them in the oven. I asked about the process, and was told the pizzas are made “in the morning”, and when ordered, the slices are heated up.
So, if the pizzas were made at, let’s say, 11 am, and we ordered just after 1 pm, they had been sitting out for a couple of hours.
I ordered water to drink. While I was filling my cup at the dispenser, a worked asked me if I would like a bottle of water. He handed me a very nice crafe filled with water. That was something I would expect to see at a fine dining restaurant, not at a place where pizza is served by the slice.
My friend had a Caesar salad ($6), a slice of Spicy Pepperoni ($4.35) and Spicy Sausage ($4.35), and a Diet Coke ($3.50). His salad looked large and delicious. However, my friend said looks can be – and in this case, were – deceiving. He said the salad had way too much dressing, which spoiled the salad’s taste and made the crouton mushy and uneatable.
My friend’s thoughts on the pizza were pretty much the same as mine.
“It was a jaw workout to chew the crust,” he said. “The pizza was like if you go to a festival, you’re hot and hungry, and you get a slice of pizza. Presentation-wise, that’s what it looked like. The toppings were fairly dried up. It looked like pizza which was made this morning, then heated up (which it was) . . . . At just under $4.50 a slice, I thought the price was a little high for the quality of pizza.”
The cost of our meal before taxes and tip was $33.90. At Saint Laurent, you pay when ordering. That meant leaving a tip before knowing what type of table service we would receive. The only table service we were given was our food being brought to us. No one checked to ask how we were doing or if we needed anything.
As a pizza lover, and as someone who enjoys eating out from time to time, my visit to Saint Laurent Pizza was disappointing. I give it Two Forks. I would return, but only if someone else is paying. Maybe going for dinner would be a better experience. It just seemed like serving lunch was a bother. I will say this: Saint Laurent Pizza has a lot of potential, based on a really nice building. But the restaurant has a long way to go to reach that potential.
The night before my visit, I had dined at another local pizza restaurant, and my pizza was outstanding. So, I know it’s possible for a local place to serve really good pizza.
Unfortunately, Saint Laurent Pizza is not that place.
1 Fork: Would rather eat a box of dirt
2 Forks: Will return, but only if someone else is buying
3 Forks: Will return and look forward to it
4 Forks: Will return and go out of my way to do so
Is there a restaurant you would like the Journal to visit for lunch?
Email SBJRestaurantReview@gmail.com.
