My wife and I went to Bubbas this past weekend, almost by chance as we had other dining options in mind. But as I was craving pizza my wife browsed pizza establishments on her phone and Bubbas came up as a suggestion. Bubbas? Seriously? For pizza? For the record, I have never been to Bubba's and just imagined it as a roadhouse kind of restaurant, which is not normally enticing to me.
Nevertheless, with guarded optimism, we went inside and were rather quickly ushered to our table next to the bar. As a rule, I'm not a big fan of this kind of location but with the lights, TV sports, and laid-back vibe I realized it was kind of fun. The music was a bit loud but only because with our server wearing a mask it combined with thundering AC/DC vibrations to make it a bit hard to hear her. Because of Covid, we were asked to sit on the same side of the table; at first I wasn't thrilled with this seating arrangement but it worked out just fine, and I appreciate their cautionary methods.
Speaking of our server, BRITTA, she was *excellent*. Please give this server lots of praise--she was quick, considerate, and very much on her game. She attended to us but did not smother us. I enthusiastically tipped her services as she earned every cent. Awesome!
But what about dinner? Well, before I get to that, my coffee was great, and we were given ample time to consider our options. We declined an appetizer, this time, and instead ordered a pizza and a shrimp basket. My wife felt her shrimp was a little on the greasy side but I found it flavorful, although a little more crisp on the bite would be an improvement.
But let me get to the MAIN thing--the pizza: Italian Margherita. Friends, I love pizza, and I shop around for the best. My brother is of Italian descent and was a chef and part owner of an authentic Italian restaurant in Old Louisville not that many years ago. I do not qualify as a connoisseur, but I AM judicious when it comes to pizza.
My pizza arrived, hot off the plate, beautiful and entrancing. Britta brought me a generous cup of hot pepper flakes and with that I was ready for action.
First bite: good, but still uncertain. Second bite: better, yes, better. But then... I got INTO the heart of this creation and was suddenly transported to a world of Sicilian Euphoria.
I paused for a moment, in between bites, and was nearly given to tears. So delightful was the flavor on the palate that I just set my slice down for a moment to ponder the reality. What makes this pizza so great, from my experience at least, are two things: the firm but not overcooked crust, crispy but not overly crunchy, AND, more importantly, herbs that tasted as though they were picked in Bubba's garden behind the establishment. The tomatoes, wherever they hail from, tasted SUMMER-FRESH, and the sauce was earthy and invigorating. My one complaint, and it's not even really a complaint, is that the Mozz. cheese was thick and briefly a bit difficult to masticate, but this was not a distraction or a barrier to the overall culinary pleasure.
I ate about half my lunch and then reheated the rest the next day. By then you might think the value would have declined a lot, correct? Well, while reheating is not perfect, the TASTE was still there, and once again I was in my "happy place" as I had been the day before.
I have had a lot of pizzas around S. Indiana, and quite a few really decent ones. Having said that, at least as of Jan 2021, I have discovered the BEST pizza in these parts. YES, I said it, Bubbas 33 has THE best pizza on this side of the river, and maybe one of the best on BOTH SIDES!
Again, Britta did great, both my wife and I had a good time, and we intend to come back. I am scoring Bubbas 33 as a 4/5 only because I want to try some of the other pizzas and hold my 5 back for one of the meatier ones--but this cheese and sauce offering was wonderful and I wholeheartedly recommend it, especially if you are less on the meat side of your pizza experience.
My birthday is next month and I'm already planning on spending it there, if at all possible.
My compliments to the excellent staff, kitchen, and servers. I'm impressed and plan to become a regular customer!
One final note: the manager, on at least one or two occasions, checked on us, and this was a very nice touch.
Now get YOURSELF OVER TO BUBBAS, HOOSIERS! read more