Ah Beetz gave this Brooklyn guy something I honestly never expected to see in Port St. Lucie:…read more
An oblong pizza.
I'm from Brooklyn, not Connecticut, so when that pie came out, part of me wanted to ask who took the other half.
That said, I came in knowing this was Connecticut-style pizza, so I wasn't expecting a Brooklyn slice joint. Different style, different rules, and that's part of the reason I wanted to try it.
The dining area is very nice and has a warm, inviting feel. Our waitress was also very pleasant and friendly. My only criticism of the service is that it was a little slower and less attentive than I would have expected, especially since the restaurant was pretty empty at the time. Nothing rude, nothing terrible, and certainly nothing that ruined the meal. There were simply a few stretches where we wondered when she might make it back around.
So, pleasant service -- just not particularly quick service.
We ordered the "Mootz" pie, which turned out to be a good choice for me because I still subscribe to the old Brooklyn belief that mozzarella and pizza should remain in a committed relationship.
I know Connecticut-style pizza often does things differently, and we've had it before, but a pizza without mozzarella still takes some adjustment for me. That may be perfectly normal in Connecticut.
In Brooklyn, somebody would probably call a meeting.
The Mootz itself was tasty. The ingredients tasted fresh, the flavor was good, and overall it was an enjoyable pie. I was expecting the crust to have a little more crispness and char to it, so that part fell slightly short of what I had pictured going in. Still, there was nothing wrong with the pizza -- it was a solid, well-made pie.
My main issue with the restaurant itself was the ventilation.
I love walking into a pizzeria and smelling pizza cooking. That smell is practically an appetizer.
But here, the cooking aromas seemed to hang in the dining room rather than being pulled out efficiently. This wasn't a temperature issue at all. The restaurant was comfortable. It was simply that the ventilation didn't seem to clear the cooking smells very well.
I want to smell the pizza when I walk in.
I don't necessarily want to leave smelling like I worked the oven shift.
Overall, I think three stars is fair. The pizza was good, the restaurant is attractive, the waitress was pleasant, and the experience was enjoyable enough. The slower-than-expected service, ventilation issue, and crust not being quite as crisp as I anticipated are what keep it from four stars for me right now.
And I do think Ah Beetz is a positive addition to Port St. Lucie.
One thing I really like about the restaurant scene here is that we're starting to get more variety. Ah Beetz brings something different to the area, and I'd much rather see that than another place serving the exact same pizza everybody else is making.
Would I go back? Absolutely.
I'd like to try a few other pies and give Connecticut another chance to explain itself.
But I'm still watching that oblong shape suspiciously.
I'm from Brooklyn. We have standards.
And circles.