Lilly's Pizza

If you are taking the time to read a Raleigh food blog, I am going to assume that you already know the local lore about Lilly's Pizza. Publishing a post about Lilly's Pizza to Raleigh's culinary community is like introducing Leonard Nimory at a Star Trek convention. Lilly's Pizza doesn't need my accolades, my compliments on its crust, fresh ingredients, and surprising toppings. It doesn't need any of that, but I am going to do it anyway because Lilly's Pizza is that good.  

Local art

There is a certain frantic energy when you walk into Lilly's Pizza. Some people consider it chaos. Local art hangs from the walls beside replica airplanes, mannequins, old box signs, and posters.

Bathroom art

Lilly's gets loud as conversations mix with the music and servers screaming out your name. The line to the counter becomes long and bloated, taking up a quarter of the restaurant. Servers zip up and down the crowded walkways, yelling names over the noise while trying to find where people are seated. Some of the cashiers take orders with a looks of disinterest, even a bit of distain.

The Aristocrat

And as all this swirls around suddenly a hot plate of excellence appears in front of you. Lilly's Aristocrat pizza has been a favorite of mine and Sara's. Loaded with roasted potatoes, roasted tomatoes, roasted onions, garlic, mushrooms and olive oil, it's a meal in a slice.

With all things pizza, the pizza's success is determined by the crust. Everyone is zealous about how they believe a pizza crust should be. Thin and crispy, thick and chewy, doughy and soft. Battles about pizza styles and crusts spark as many arguments as east coast/west coast rappers. So if you don't enjoy a soft, doughy, and chewy crust, you'll have a problem with Lilly's. Personally, I love their crust.

Due to some gluten sensitivity, Sara has started a gluten-free diet. To her delight and relief, Lilly's offers a gluten-free crust option. While she has tried only a couple of gluten-free crusts, Lilly's is the best GF crust she has had. The difference between the two crusts are minuscule. The gluten-free crust still retains its soft, doughy texture.

Pesto calzone

The gluten-free pizza only comes in 10", so I went a different route. I've never tried Lilly's calzones before and I figured since they are made with the same dough, it would be as equally delicious.

I wasn't disappointed. It was a monster calzone, as big as a typical small pizza, if not bigger. The dough was on point and the ingredients were fresh and delicious. The tomato sauce is sweet and bright with flavor.

For all its awards and praise, Lilly's Pizza comes down to the fact that it really is just that good.

FoodNeighbor.com

As a food blogger in the Triangle, you start to think you know all the food related businesses in the area. I'm constantly reading local blogs, following Twitter accounts, and finding "Opening Soon" signs around town to keep up with the latest food news. Actually, all I really do is follow Triangle Food Guy and he does the ground work for me. Alas, when I got an e-mail from Food Neighbor, I didn't have the slightest idea that the service existed, what it does, or why I would care.

After bouncing e-mails back and forth, the picture of what Food Neighbor is became clear. Clay Williamson is the Food Neighbor. Clay combs the Internet for great yet feasible recipes. Once Clay finds a recipe, he picks up the ingredients from providers like the State Farmer's Market and Whole Foods. He posts the various recipes on the Food Neighbor site (FoodNeighbor.com) for customers to purchase the recipes for delivery on Monday and Thursday. The recipe and ingredients are then delivered for the cook to prepare at home.

Grilled Pork Tenderlion 

Right away I was impressed with the quality of the ingredients. The proteins were top notch and the produce were vibrant and fresh.

Honey Mustard Rub

Food Neighbor provided me with recipes cards and ingredients for a grilled pork tenderloin, squash medley, mashed potatoes, and chicken lettuce wraps. Some of the products were prepared, such has the herbs, but other ingredients came whole for me to prepare, such as the onion and garlic. Everything is measured and placed in its own container, which made cooking and clean up convenient.

Mashed Potatoes

Though Food Neighbor does make cooking meals more convenient, you'll need some cooking knowledge and knife skills to be able to cook the meals, especially if you don't have all the equipment called upon for the recipes. Since we didn't have a grill readily available, we had to make some modifications.

I charred the pork tenderloin and it came out a bit dry, which was disappointing.

"Grilled" Pork Tenderloin

The squash medley and mashed potatoes came out pretty well.

Squash Medley

The chicken wraps could've used more liquid and only included fish sauce in the packaging, but not soy sauce which was listed in the ingredients.

Chicken Lettuce Wrap

Dinner

Food Neighbor is a very interesting service trying to find itself in the midst of this food loving town. It's definitely a big convenience for those who enjoy cooking but are unable or unwilling to deal with the crowds at the local markets-- because goodness knows what could happen next time you find yourself at a farmer's market.


FoodNeighbor
FoodNeighbor.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/FoodNeighborcom/109930143230