Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Sir Pizza

1916 North Main Street, High Point, N.C.
(336) 841-6434
sirpizzanc.com
Two Thumbs Up

Jon's Take
Walking into Sir Pizza is like going into a time warp to the late 1970s or early 1980s. The place is very clean and nice, but the fixtures and furnishings are clearly from another era. The chandeliers, booths, carpets, suspended ceiling, all of it retro. The jukebox is one of those where you flip through the pages of CDs, a modern amenity compared to most of what's there. During our stay, someone kept playing early Beatles music ("I want to hold your hand," "She Loves You," Love Me Do," and so on) that would kick up the volume pretty high, then make it seem pretty quiet whenever there wasn't something playing. I was actually disappointed they didn't have the old school juke boxes on each table.

Sir Pizza really reminds me of how the Papa Gino's in Gardner, Mass., looked when I was a kid. It turns out this is a national chain (I had never seen one until I moved to High Point, and there are a few locations around the area). So maybe Sir Pizza and Papa Gino's have more in common than I realized.

I ordered a medium pizza with mushrooms and hamburger and the unlimited salad. They give you a nice big plate, so one trip to the salad bar is enough anyway. They have all the basics at the salad bar -- veggies, cheese, diced hard boiled eggs, bacon bits, ham and more -- and a total of five dressing options, though no low-fat options. You don't have to stress about your drink options. All they have is the basic sodas, iced tea, and for beer they had Miller Lite and Ice House on draft (no bottled drinks).

The pizza was interesting and unique as advertised. It was very thin crust and the diced toppings were plentiful. The sauce was distinct, almost a sweet taste. It was high quality for sure. They cut it into a bunch of small squares, which I don't prefer because I never can figure out how to hold it. I prefer regular triangle slices. But that's pretty minor, the pizza was very good overall and there was plenty to take home for dinner tomorrow.

I didn't keep track of the individual prices of what I ordered, but my medium two-topping pizza, unlimited salad bar and half a pitcher of Miller Light came up to $18.15 including tax, which I thought was very reasonable for the quality and quantity. I'll definitely be back in the future.

Jason's Take
Sir Pizza has been a High Point favorite for many years. Although I thought it was a local joint, I found out that it is actually a franchise and that many locations exist around the country. I have been eating at Sir Pizza all my life and the only change that I have seen is their recent change of letting people use credit and debit cards to pay for their meal. For as long as I can remember, it was cash or check only. Their lack of change includes the decor. The stained glass light fixtures that hang over each table are most likely the same fixtures that lit my parents' dinners when they were in high school. I know that they have been there for my 26 years. There is a jukebox in the dining room and wood paneled walls cover the interior. Sir Pizza has no fancy decorations or gimmicks. None are needed because the pizza is consistently good.

But before I get to the pizza I will talk about the salad bar, the most consistently consistent feature of Sir Pizza. The salad bar is simple, yet always good. There is a big metal bowl of shredded iceburg lettuce, ham, cheese, brocolli, onion, carrots, diced egg, imitation bacon bits, pickle spears, potato salad, and 5 dressings. There is nothing fancy here, but you get a huge platter and it's all you can eat for $3.49. So I piled my plate high and doused it with the French dressing, more Catalina than French but the dipper says French, and then got a handful of the captains wafers that always sit in the basket on top of the salad bar.

Next comes the beverages. There is not a large selection, just water, tea, coke, sprite, diet coke, Mr. Pibb, Icehouse, and Miller Lite. Fountain drinks and draft beer. It can't get simpler than that. Jon and I got a pitcher of Miller Lite, 9.95 and we each got about 3 12oz. glasses. The beer was really cold and the mugs were frosted...a big plus.

You all know what is coming next. The pizza is Dank. There are no fancy stuffed crusts or dipping sauces. Sir Pizza has thin crust with toppings to the edge. The toppings are all diced so you get a little of each in every bite. The sauce must have a pinch of sugar because it has a slight sweetness that makes the pizza very unique. I ordered a medium 3 topping, about 12 bucks, with ham, hamburger, and onion on my half, and ham, hamburger, and pepperoni on the half I was taking home to my girlfriend...she doesn't like onion. After the huge salad I had I could only eat 5 squares so I took home 3/4 of a pizza. Now comes the exciting news. Sir Pizza is the best cold pizza I have ever tasted. I woke up today and had a few squares for breakfast. Yum.

Sir Pizza has been around for years and they haven't had to change anything to make them stay around. In 30 more years the same stained glass light fixtures will be there. The pizza is that tasty. Of course, a little remodel can never hurt. That is the only advise I could give this place.

Friday, May 7, 2010

Thai Chiang Mai

2209 North Main Street
High Point, NC 27262-7703
(336) 869-0908
This place has no website!
Two Thumbs Up

Jason's Take
Thai Chiang Mai has been around in High Point for the past 13 years and if they continue to provide such great food they will be around for many more years. Many Asian restaurants are mediocre at best. The food at Thai Chiang Mai is fresh and flavorful. I had an order of crispy spring rolls as an appetizer ($3.00). These are vegetable rolls deep fried and served with a sweet dipping sauce. There is a nice crunch with the deep fried rice paper and the veggies in the middle have a nice flavor. Despite being deep fried they are not too greasy. For my entree I had the traditional Thai dish, Chicken Pad Thai ($9.99). At Thai Chiang Mai you can order food mild, medium, hot, or Thai hot. I ordered it hot. I received a generous portion of the noodle dish and when they say hot, they mean hot. The peppers they use to heat up their food give the lips and mouth region a nice controlled burn which is accented by the few drops of sweat on my brow. However a sip of Singha, the Thai Beer ($4.00), the heat is temporarily washed away. They bring you a spice rack and I added a little dried, ground, Thai chili pepper to my food which added to the flavor. The great thing about spicy Asian food in general is that while the heat exists...you know it because you can't feel your lips, the flavors do not go away because of the heat. The flavors of peanut and chicken and whatever else they use to season their dish still pop in your mouth despite the heat. To sum it up, the Pad Thai is Dank.

A perfect end to any great meal is dessert. Thai Chiang Mai features a very uniques dessert. Homemade coconut icecream (2.99). This is the perfect ending to the meal as it quiets the burning sensation of my lips. The icecream has a nice texture. I can definitely tell it is homemade and flavored with real coconut because the coconut flakes are very evident in the texture of the icecream. There are no frills in this dessert. It is a large scoop of icecream in a glass dish with a spoon. Simple yet tasty and very cooling of the mouth and esophagus.

Thai Chiang Mai is a very unique restaurant when compared to other Asian restaurants I have been to. It is family owned and they treat everyone like family. Much of their business is repeat business and they seem to know and cherish their regulars. Another aspect that makes the place unique is the decor. I am no interior designer and I know nothing of authentic Asian decor, but either this place is filled with authentic decorations or they have decorated it in a fashion that will make Americans think it is authentic. All I know is that the statues, pictures, and "twirly things" hanging from the ceilings make it seem authentic.

Another aspect adding to the color of the restaurant is the stage. There are a few guitars hanging on the wall and a microphone and a few speakers. The restaurant often has live music, a man or woman singing and playing a guitar, on Friday nights. While I didn't get to experience this I overheard the owner speaking with a regular about musical acts that frequented the place over the past 13 years.

Thai Chiang Mai was a great experience. They have a friendly staff, and the food speaks for itself. One day I am gonna be brave and order my food Thai Hot. If I live to tell about it, I will let you know.

Jon's Take
Sorry for the long delay between posts...this is mostly my fault. But in the busy life of High Point, North Carolina, we did get out to Thai Chiang Mai last week for a review. It won't be the last time I go to Thai Chiang Mai – this place has really tasty food, a comfortable atmosphere and reasonable prices for the quality and quantity.

Starting off, there's a huge selection on the menu. I'm not a veteran Thai food eater, so I had a hard time making decisions on the order. Jason ordered Crispy Spring Rolls and I ordered Chian Mai Wings to buy some time while deciding on an entree. The spring rolls were good and very light for fried food. The best part was the sauce that came with them (sweet 'n sour sauce?), because it had an interesting but not overpowering flavor. Most times when you put a sauce like that on food, the sauce takes over. The wings were pretty good too...not really necessary because the entrees showed up before we could get through all the appetizers.

For my entree I decided on Mai Thai with Beef, which is a noodle dish with vegetables and (obviously) beef. It was good and I had a good meal out of it, but I think I probably would have enjoyed other menu items more. The noodles were thin and light, not really what I was expecting but they were OK. I liked the mushrooms. The restaurant provided an array of spices and sauces which definitely added to the experience. I experimented with the crushed chili peppers and Tuong ot Sriracha sauce, and both were very good. I'll definitely order my food hot next time.

The wings, sauces I used on my entree, as well as trying Jason's hot entree definitely had my mouth on fire a few times, but the Singha Thai beer was a perfect remedy. It's light and tasty at the same time, a great compliment to the flavors offered.

I'm definitely looking forward to heading back to Thai Chiang Mai and trying some different things on the menu.