Parlor

Whoa! It's been a minute since my last pizza review. Don't worry, I've definitely eaten more than my fair share of pizza between my last update here (11 months ago... 😬) 

Parlor is a new spot in Beaverdale. They moved in a few months ago where Saints used to be. We've been especially eager to try it because they serve Detroit Style pizza. We've been hooked on Detroit Style since we lived up the road from a Jet's franchise in Indianapolis. Ryan makes it home from time to time. Parlor is also a sister restaurant to Alba and Eatery A -- two of Des Moines' finest, in my opinion. 

We had dinner plans with our friends tonight for Parlor takeout. We ordered three pizzas and our toddlers didn't do a great job helping us get through them. We have tons of leftovers. Mindy and I always lean toward more vegetable heavy pizzas and the guys wanted to get something meaty and spicy. We got:

• Ain't It Fun (Local Mushroom, Goat Cheese, Caramelized Onion, white sauce)
• Proud Mary (Cherry Tomatoes, Fresh Mozzarella, Basil Pesto, red sauce)
• Evil Ways (Chicken Tinga, Chipotle Buffalo, Ranch Ricotta, red sauce)

Every pizza is one size. I'm not sure the exact measurements but they include eight decent sized rectangular shaped slices. They each run $16.50/pie. 

I didn't get a chance to see the interior, so I asked Ryan to describe it to me: "It looked like Saints with a smaller bar." Super helpful. He said it was moderately busy when he picked our takeout up around 5:15p (on a Saturday, after a huge snowstorm, during a pandy surge). 

What we loved:

• The Ain't It Fun was by far the favorite, toppings-wise, for me, Cam and Mindy. It also had greens on it which weren't listed on the menu. 
• The outer crust of all the pies was a solid Detroit Style. It was crispy with crispy cheese all around the sides, and per crust nerd Ryan, the airiness and volume were correct. It was thick but not dense. 
• Plenty of intriguing options on the menu offer a good wide variety for people with all sorts of tastes. 

What we didn't love:

• The bottom crust lacked some crispy and crunchy vibes. It needed to be a little more greasy, a lack of fat on the bottom of the pan left some toastiness to be desired.
• The Proud Mary, their version of a Margherita, felt like too many competing flavors. I didn't need the pesto, and it also had a balsamic drizzle that was overpowering. It distracted from the fresh mozzarella which is my favorite. 
• I didn't try the Evil Ways (looked like a fancy Buffalo Chicken pizza). Cam wasn't wild about the toppings, saying the chicken was a bit dry, the ranch was overpowered by dill, and it wasn't spicy at all which they were hoping for. Ryan thought it was pretty good but admits that, when reviewing zza, he cares way more about crust quality than topping quality/combo. 

In summary I thought Parlor was decent, I think it would be fun to go sit down and eat there, have it fresh with a few cocktails.

Chelsea, Mindy, Cam Rating: 3.5/5 ⭐

Ryan Rating: 4/5 ⭐

Also, my bad, I only took a few (less than mediocre) pie pics:

"Evil Ways" (Buffalo Chicken)

"Ain't it Fun" (Mushrooms and Goat Cheese)

"Proud Mary" (Margherita)