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Spinoza's Gourmet Pizza & Salads
2727 Fairfield Commons
Beavercreek,
OH
45431
Map
Phone: (937) 426-7799
| Cuisine: | Family |
| Wines | |
| American | |
| Italian | |
| Pizza | |
| Vegetarian |
Price: $$ = $25 and less
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Eatery serving gourmet pizza and salads at the Mall at Fairfield Commons.
Hours
11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to midnight Fridays and Saturdays, noon to 8 p.m. Sundays
Meals Served
Dinner
Lunch
Open Monday
Open Sunday
Takeout available
Dress Code
Casual
Entertainment
Live Music
Amenities
- Outdoor dining
- Smoke-free
- Live Music
- Patio
Related Articles
Mark Fisher
Staff Writer
06/12/2009
To the cynics among us, the use of the term "gourmet" in connection with food usually means "an excuse to charge more."
But before that charge is leveled against Spinoza's Gourmet Pizza & Salads, consider the care with which restaurant owner Glen Brailey selected the toppings for his, yes, gourmet pizzas.
Brailey former co-owner of Pacchia restaurant in Dayton led blind taste tests with his s....
More
To the cynics among us, the use of the term "gourmet" in connection with food usually means "an excuse to charge more."
But before that charge is leveled against Spinoza's Gourmet Pizza & Salads, consider the care with which restaurant owner Glen Brailey selected the toppings for his, yes, gourmet pizzas.
Brailey former co-owner of Pacchia restaurant in Dayton led blind taste tests with his staff on as many as two dozen sausage and pepperoni products before deciding what to buy.
Brailey orders two types of pepperoni as well as a peppered salami from the Ezzo Sausage Company in Columbus (the smaller of the two pepperonis is spicier and designed to "cup" when cooked). Italian sausage and chorizo come from a different sausage maker in California.
Cheeses are sourced from a Wisconsin company that has a Web page devoted to "social responsibility." Spiced nuts come from a woman in California who launched her business after a divorce, Brailey said.
The attention to detail shows up on the plate, in "Signature Pizzas" that hit more often than they miss. Pizzas are served in three sizes small (nine-inch), medium (12-inch) and large (14-inch) on either original or whole-wheat crusts.
A good starting point for beginners is the Spinozian Deluxe ($8.95/$13.95/$17.95), topped with three cheeses, pepperoni, Italian sausage, bell peppers, mushrooms and black olives.
A spicier alternative is the Arizana($8.95/$14.95/$18.95), which derives heat from chorizo sausage and a spicy tomato sauce and adds sun-dried tomatoes and roasted red peppers, smoothed out by dollops of ricotta cheese in addition to smoked gouda, mozzarella and provolone.
Some of the more creative signature pies take pizza in a new direction.
The best of the bunch may be the YinYang ($8.95/$13.95/$17.95), which is topped with glazed walnuts, chorizo sausage, gorgonzola cheese, olive oil, garlic and fresh spinach as well as mozzarella and provolone. The walnuts provide an appealing sweet crunch to balance out the mild heat of the chorizo.
But other combinations don't work as well, such as the Jamaica Marley ($8.95/$13.95/$17.95), which replaces tomato sauce with BBQ sauce, is topped with jerk chicken, bacon, black beans, smoked gouda and red onions, then is sprinkled with chopped cilantro after it comes out of the oven. The barbecue sauce and cilantro dominate the flavors.
Salads also blend diverse ingredients and are served in two sizes: regular, which serves one, and large, which is designed to serve two or three. Try the "Drunken Goat" ($4.95/$8.95) with its dried cranberries, toasted pine nuts and soft goat cheese, or the "Baruch's Favorite" (Baruch being the first name of Baruch Spinoza, the 17th Century Dutch philosopher for whom Brailey named the restaurant), also $4.95/$8.95, with its fresh strawberries and glazed walnuts.
The new restaurant still has some kinks to work out. On one visit, a small portion of the lettuce leaves in a salad had at some point frozen before the salad was served, and on another, our salads were served a scant 45 seconds or so before the pizza arrived. The amount of toppings on the smallest-sized signature pizzas and on the Neopolitan pizzas with cracker-thin crusts can leave diners wanting more.
The draft beer list is more impressive than the wines by-the-glass list. The Hoegaarden White Ale is crisp and delicious, with a hint of clove, while the robust and pleasantly bitter Troegs Seasonal is for more experienced craft-beer enthusiasts.
Some of the most intriguing wines Ravenswood Petite Sirah, Forest Glen Syrah Rosι are available by bottle only.
Live music is on the menu on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.
In Spinoza's, Brailey has launched an eatery well worth checking out "gourmet" ingredients and all.
Brief
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| Great place to eat and drink |  |
Posted by ysgal on 11/14/09
Great pizzas and other food, yummy salads. Wonderful beer and wine selection, good prices, menu changes to reflect customer's likes and dislikes. Some of the young waitresses are not very attentive but overall a great place to eat even if you aren't going to the mall for anything else.
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