Craving for some REAL Pizzas?
December 11, 2009 | 2,932 views| 71 Comments » |
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Like a breath of fresh air, Michelangelo’s Pizzeria will soon be gracing the stagnant, almost mundane food and beverage scene in Ipoh, promising quality American-style pizzas at affordable prices. Finally injecting some pizzazz to the unbelievably limited number of choices when it comes to eateries serving pizzas in Ipoh. We have Pizza Hut … and erm, that’s it. No Shakey’s, no Domino’s, no Papa John’s nor even Canadian Pizza. But of course, not including the pricier options at Brewster’s, SSTC (They did serve a wacky spaghetti pizza, to which I have yet to write about) or even Italia Mia (Last I checked they did not serve them. Do they now?)
Yeah, that should be Michelangelo’s, spelled differently. But who cares right? In his most joyous, devil-may-care attitude, I doubt Michael himself mind had I spelled his restaurant the other way ’round!
Yet to officially open for business, Michelangelo’s Pizzeria is expected to be up and running in a week or two’s time. Hopefully by Christmas, or prior to that. To appease that craving for some good ol’ REAL quality pizzas, in Michael’s own words, you must try Michelangelo’s painstakingly stretched, tossed, or rolled pizza dough from good quality flour (no idea what the name was, sorry), topped with the freshest and best of ingredients. No frozen sausages, generic pepperoni/salami, nor minuscule layers of mozzarella.
Having a whale of a time himself stretching them flat on the working counter, tossing them with much gusto and liberally throwing on ingredients as he desired …. Now that’s unorthodox.
The specially built firebrick oven (Michael, whatcha call this again?) for the pizzas, withstanding the astoundingly high degrees of heat, from the fire woods … no gas, no electric ovens please.
The pizzas go into the burning igloo-like structure, trapping heat from within. The walls stay hot for hours after the pizzas are done, but need to be primed few hours earlier, to reach the desired degrees of heat.
Within minutes, the dough would be raised to perfection and burnt to the right degree. Yeah, so you know you do not have to wait for aeons for your pizzas to be served.
Drizzle some olive oil, the charred bottoms of the pizza, and slicing them in a jiffy. Who cares bout perfectly squared, or portioned slices of pizzas?!
Thanks to Michael and Siew Li for the kind invitation to hang around the still barren restaurant, and watch the chef himself in action. With possibly no plans in mind, he magically did everything from scratch and made several pizzas with various combination of toppings, from the scrumptious pork/beef pepperoni and cheese to roasted garlic and portobello mushrooms, and jalapeno peppers to plain cheese and basil. The myriad of combination is endless, and limited to only the diner’s preference.
Pork/Beef Pepperoni, Sausage and Cheese
Roasted Garlic and Portobello Mushrooms
Mexican Pizza – with Jalapeno peppers
Plain Cheese and Basil
But of course, not all combination would be inserted into their final menu, which by the way, would be revamped periodically. Heck, there’s not even a need for a rigid menu, for you can request for the weekly specials, or mix-n-match the toppings as you seem fit. Just convey your cravings to Michael, sit back and watch him perform his magic with the almighty oven.
Spaghetti Carbonara with Garlic and Pork Bacons
They serve pasta and salads as well, in addition to their signature pizzas. And for a start, you may even get to taste their brownies and cheesecakes. But nothing’s finalized yet. So keep your fingers crossed. And watch this space. 
“I was made to do this! Boo hoo hoo …..”
Michelangelo’s Pizzeria (non-halal)
No. 40, Jalan Medan Ipoh 1B,
Medan Ipoh Bistari,
31400 Ipoh,
Perak, Malaysia
Contact : 05-549-9099 (R. Michael Owen)
Website : http://www.pizzaipoh.com
Business Hours : 6pm – 10.30pm daily, closed on Mondays.
Plans to open for lunch soon.
** Started operations on December 25th 2009 !!! **
Michelangelo’s Pizzeria @ Ipoh – REAL authentic American Pizzas | Motormouth From Ipoh – A Malaysian Food Blog…
Using the best quality ingredients, Michelangelo’s Pizzeria promises a most unforgettable pizza experience baked in a firebrick oven, using only firewoods. From parmesan-crusted Italian base, to paper thin American style, the combination of toppings i…
great stuff! so that’s how they make pizzas in those ovens! i hope this place does really well, it looks like a labour of love
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wow…definitely looks like proper pizza…reminds me of the pizzerias in europe
excited already…
.-= MP_cillin´s last blog ..Photography tips from Alex Majoli =-.
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 12th, 2009 at 12:13 pm
If excited, when wanna drag me over and treat your senior eh? Hahaha…
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MP_cillin Reply:
December 12th, 2009 at 9:57 pm
my koka-COLA got deducted leh…this month have to pay back 200 somemore…KNS
er…go dutch can ar?
haha….let’s hang out and have some fun
.-= MP_cillin´s last blog ..Photography tips from Alex Majoli =-.
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 12th, 2009 at 10:53 pm
Hahahahah…. sure sure. Teasing only, now went to work in the jungle liao,
COLA deducted RM100?
Aiyo, that’s some Lens money right?
looks good eh!? but Michael Owen?? Isn’t it a footballer name??
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 12th, 2009 at 12:01 pm
Yeah. coincidentally. Least that makes his name easily remembered, right?
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Can’t wait for these! Finally REAL pizzas have arrived on our shores!
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Goody! What I’ve always seen on TV and wondered about has finally arrived.
I shall be keeping my fingers crossed…that the waiting time won’t be long.
.-= ahlock´s last blog ..Does High Cholesterol REALLY Cause Heart Disease? =-.
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 12th, 2009 at 11:47 am
Yeah, shouldn’t be that long. In a week’s or two time, Michelangelo’s should be up and running.
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the cheese and basil looks so appetizing! I love cheese!
.-= theeggyolks´s last blog ..701 Panduan =-.
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Oh! Authentic pizza and not the commercial kind! : )
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Oh wow! Who knew that authentic Carbonara and firewood pizza has made its way to Ipoh! I’m envious.
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 12th, 2009 at 11:41 am
Envious? Wei … KL also got a few right? Come journey to good old Ipoh then.
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out of shape pizza, hehe ^.^
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wow.. the pizza and pasta looks heavenly….u mentioned opening soon… how soon? can’t wait…liao lar..
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 12th, 2009 at 11:40 am
Should be opened before Xmas. Keeping my fingers crossed as well.
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oooo them pizzas look great! love pizzas baked over fire wood!
and for some reason i’m rather anti-establishment these days prefering to support places like this as opposed to chain restaurants. out of shape pizza gives it character
.-= lingzie´s last blog ..Lang Sae Lee – Home Cooked Thai Food by the Jetty =-.
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 12th, 2009 at 11:40 am
Yeah, MUCH wacky and unorthodox characters. He did not even care about the flipped over (Accidentally) dough, mischievously proclaiming that as a calzone gone wrong.
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I was actually trying to figure out what exactly it was I’ve been craving for a Sat treat… I know now! Wacky pizzas! The messier the better! Now gotta go scour my blogroll for KL equivalents!
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must try next time im in ipoh. btw, handsome dude:P
.-= cumidanciki´s last blog ..Viral Marketing =-.
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We do have shakey pizza located within station 18 tesco last time I went there . not sure whether is it still there now
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 12th, 2009 at 9:13 pm
That Shakey’s has got to be the WORST pizza experience. Ever.
I ate there once, for the sake of introducing my Ipoh colleagues to Shakey’s (to which I have grown a fondness of, since I was a child), only to be disappointed like hell.
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Nat Reply:
December 14th, 2009 at 12:22 pm
I fully agree on the comment of Shakey’s. It was a friend’s recommendation that brought me there. Worse thing was I brought my family and my “pale skin” hubby there, only to be disappointed and embarrassed by the tasteless cardboard feel like pizzas and poor services. My husband said their pizza is a real joke. My nephew of 5 year old even know how to complain about how disgusting it tasted like.
This Michelangelo pizza looks very appetizing and promising. Do you have a landmark on the address you mentioned? I would love to visit them on their first day!! FINALLY someone is getting it done RIGHT!
.-= Nat´s last blog ..<a href=\ =-.
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 22nd, 2009 at 7:04 pm
Hi Nat, they’re supposed to be opening AFTER X’mas.
It’s very near to Tesco Hypermarket and Jusco Kinta City.
In Ipoh Garden East, if you know where’s PC Depot, that computer shop on Jalan Tasek,
then this shop is BEHIND that row of shops.
Thank you to everyone and your kind words of encouragement. We should be open before Xmas, we are doing everything we can to meet that deadline. We wanted to bring what we love most here to Ipoh after being here for so many years, real authentic pizza made in a time honored traditional way. Yes J2Kfm is correct, a pizza that falls onto itself on the counter is then folded over and called a Calzone, a pizza that falls on the floor is called: floor polish or polishing the floor. Accidents are what makes it all real, so if you happen to be in there and all of a sudden a flying dough comes your way, well just bend down and call it a air borne UFO passing by – can’t catch them all you know.
We just hope everyone will enjoy the food, it is a limited menu that offers many varieties depending on what you would like to have on your pie (pizza), also we should have weekly specials that can be anything from a main course to a salad or a soup. We want to introduce new things every week, mainly so I have a chance to try new recipes and not get bored with the same food being made every week. Oh yeah just one more thing, J2Kfm called me a Chef up there, which I am anything but, I have no formal training and have never attended a cooking school, all that I know is self taught or learned because my beautiful, intelligent wife asked me to try and make something. I am a cook at best, more a hobbyist but I have fun and truly enjoy cooking for others—that is as long as you have nice things to say.
Just a couple more words: our Italian sausage is made the Chicago way, we make it in our store, we grind our own pork add the seasonings and herbs and roll it out there in the back every few days. The pepperoni is made especially for us and is the “only” true authentic pepperoni in Malaysia. It also is made the Chicago way and uses 70% pork to 30% beef which is the only way real pepperoni is. Our bacon is BACON, not wanna be bacon that is some kind of beef or chicken with an inferiority complex with itself. We grate our own Parmesan cheese which is imported and we also shred our own Mozzarella cheese. Everything is made fresh in house and nothing is bought frozen or bought pre-made and if we cannot make it exactly like it is made in either Chicago or New York well then you will not see it in our store nor will you see satay pizza or Tom Yam flavor pizza. We only make and sell what we the owners would want to go out and eat., So we hope you all will enjoy it and come back often. Thank you again for all your support – we truly hope we can earn it.
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 12th, 2009 at 9:51 pm
Michael! That’s officially the longest comment in my blog. Ever!
salute salute …..
Okay, hope to see Michelangelo’s up and running ASAP.
Given the continuous long weekends in Dec, and school holidays.
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RMO aka Michael: Michelangelo's Reply:
December 12th, 2009 at 11:14 pm
It’s called self promotion
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Nat Reply:
December 14th, 2009 at 12:38 pm
Michael,
I got so excited when you said pepperoni is made the “REAL” way. We been staying here for 2 years now and had a hard time finding the right ingredients for our own homemade pizzas. There’s a blog I made that may explained why > http://natelyne.blogspot.com/2009/07/pepperoni-ham-mushroom-great-pizza.html
By the way, I take it the sauce is homemade too?
Anyway, we can’t wait to visit! Your wife is truly a genius, encouraging you to do stuff like these so many of us here can taste something real for once. About time!
Cheers,
Nat
.-= Nat´s last blog ..<a href=\ =-.
Jeff Reply:
December 21st, 2009 at 1:06 am
Hi,
Is it open ?
After seen the pictures and read your comments , I m already listening the mandolins and my mouth pleasure ,
Jeff
Sorry, my english is so lousy ,.,,,I m french ,,,,,
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 21st, 2009 at 9:04 am
Hi Jeff, it should be opened for Xmas, if not then New Year.
I’ll post a notice here on my blog.
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Indulge Cafe = http://bestcafeindulge.com/ . Give a try a new opening cafe at Kuchai Lama KL. They serving top selling Mille Crepe and plenty delicious food
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Makes me homesick for Chicago Pizza (which I miss terribly living here in Tennessee now) . Pizza looks great and so do you!!
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 14th, 2009 at 7:56 pm
So do ME?! hahahaha .. That’s NOT me. I resemble an ogre than anything else, really.
Michael would be darn proud of your compliment.
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RMO aka Michael: Michelangelo's Reply:
December 15th, 2009 at 1:46 am
hehe I think that was meant for me lah, —Thanks Mom, of course I’ll make it for you any time I am back there, but we’ll have to do it on the grill as we do not have the fire brick oven in the back yard there.
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Why not? It looks so perfectly good from here. :p
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The crust is so puffy! I am so going to try this joint out when it’s open!
.-= iamthewitch´s last blog ..Having a blast at Blue Lagoon in Port Dickson =-.
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 14th, 2009 at 7:56 pm
Coincidentally I went to your Kampar this morning. But sadly, no chance to sample anything this time around. Twice within a week, kinda overdosed liao ….
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Well, today we managed to finally get our wood problem sorted out which has been a nightmare all this time. Also we came up with a new desert (thanks to my ever enduring wife – whom came up with the idea) we will be offering: Almond Brittle, home made as all of our items ares. Oh yeah in response to the post above a few from Nat, Yes, we do make our own sauce, took us a few years to master it, may not be the best, it is surly not the worse, but it is what we like and as we say if we would not go out and eat it we will not offer it. Next is out domain name, we will be setting our website up somewhat soon. Once we do, please check it out regularly as we will have our weekly specials up there and later there will be games on there for prizes. We’ll update on here when we are opening and launching the website.
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 16th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Thanks RMO, that’s cool. Awaiting your new domain to be launched.
And do keep us informed of your opening date.
Some may just be craving for real pizzas.
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WOW WOW WOW? cant wait for this arrr! and btw bro, italia mia do serve pizza, it’s not in the menu, its sorta like a chef special sorta thing. and its not bad. cheese, tomatoes, onions and the good ol’ olives.
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 16th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
Oh you’ve tasted their pizzas before? I realize that it’s been quite some time since I’ve paid Italia Mia a visit.
Have they changed their menu?
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Visited him a few days back & I love this guy, if his food matches his character/enthusiasm & attitude, he will
have to compete with my wife’s!!!!
I recommend to anyone who’s seen this blog or heard through other people come taste REAL AMERICAN at
Michaelangelo’s!!
Cheers
Curt
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 16th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
Hi Curt! You visited the place for a look? Yeah, Michael’s a really cool guy, constantly on the prowl, with a most witty and upbeat demeanour.
He’ll be glad you’re promoting this as REAL AMERICAN food. Good hype.
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We are looking at around Christmas to open, maybe the 24th maybe the 26th. We should be open by one of those two dates.
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Website will up soon:
http://www.pizzaipoh.com
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I visited with my wife, we had a good chat now just can’t wait to taste his PIZZA!!
@ Michael sms incoming about your opening date.
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I am looking forward to the grand opening of your pizzaria ..Any promotion set for x mas? May i know your price range? guess i’ll like your pizza very much !!
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Hey Michael, think you should give promotion or special treat for us whom always keep your news updated here. you may creat a special slogan or symbol for us to show you during your grand opening. By then you’ll know we are your supporter from motormouth. LOL …kekeke !
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J2Kfm Reply:
December 17th, 2009 at 11:47 pm
Hahahaha … how cool. Wait, can I get special promotion as well then? (jumping on the bandwagon)
On a serious note, seems that Michelangelo’s Pizzeria SHOULD be opened for Xmas.
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Awesomeness! It’s about time we Ipoh-ians have some REAAL pizzas!! Thin crusts and cheeeeesee!!! Lots and lots of cheese! Can’t wait to try it out with my friends and family!
*drooling…*
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LATEST UPDATE : Michelangelo’s Pizzeria should be opened AFTER Christmas, at the end of the month.
Please take note.
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Actually ppleae call our store number at: 05-549-9099
Yes we will in fact be OPEN on the 26th, we are trying to oepn earlier, please check in for updates. We are having a slight problem with our wood supply again, if in, we open before 26th, if not open then on 26th.
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How sad to hear that you can only open after chrismas. Aiks… Dont you know that this will cause you lost out the golden opportunity to grab money. All those big days are the golden opportunities for F&B owner to earn more money epecially cafe and longe . :*P If you can open on 24 Dec is the best and people can go there to count down for christmas. And i am sure only us from Motormouth will make your place full house….keke.
Hey guys, shouldnt we the pizza lover here should come out with some fun programme or having an gathering at micheal pizzaria?? Ha..by then michael shouldn’t have excuses NOT to give us great promotion already la, as we are so supportive le. hehe…Rite J2Kfm??
Hoho…marry x mas.
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Here we go: we OPEN on DECEMBER 25th CHRISTMAS DAY, hey even we need a little holiday. Anyway we are officially open on the 25th with a limited fixed menu for the holidays and holiday prices. Due expect great pizza, great pasta and maybe an accident or two: remember we are not perfect, but we have fun doing it.
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Today is grand opening for Michelangelo’s Pizzeria, I’ve try. One word can describe is “VERY GOOD”. After i try this pizza i will never go to pizza hut any more. I would like to thanks Mic for given me a unforgettable Christmas day.
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Thanks for the great pizza made, michael … Tasted the italian sauge pizza (I think it’s the name, cant recall), it’s great … very different from others, I would say it’s very “smooth” and “silky”, unlike others that you may feel greasy after some while … In my humble opinion, I think the tomato spaghetti (again I cant recall the name) is abit too spicy for even someone like me who loves spicy alot …
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Thank you everyone and thank you both: KY Wong and Steve, we are very glad you liked us and our food, we do hope to see you more and we will always try our very best to do our very best for everyone. We had a lot of fun serving our guests and joking with them and celebrating Christmas with them, so both my wife and I alone with our partners all thank you very much.
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KY Wong Reply:
December 27th, 2009 at 11:47 pm
I will come back soon…………..
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Glad to see Michelangelo’s up and running so well on its first few days.
Michael, I’ll drop by one of these days, ok?
I start to crave for those porky goodness.
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Unreal is what we have to say. We went there on christmas day and WOW WOW and another WOW for Ipoh’s first real pizza place. The food is right on point, even above point. The staff are very friendly and hard working. The owner’s I think the American and his wife behind the cash station are very professional and always have a smile on for you. Watching him toss the pizza in the air was an extra treat. My kids loved watching the fire in the oven and his wife is also very pleasing to look at. Well done on our first pizza spot, we will be hanging out there a few times every month. Last, all I can say is thank you very much for bringing this to Ipoh.
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Has to be one of the very best pizzas I ever tasted… I was in town from KL for holiday with family and we drove by and saw this funny looking man on the sign and we were curious what this is. A real pizzeria in Ipoh or Malaysia, no this cannot be. When I took the first bite I was sent back to Mama Palma in Philadelphia. Michelangelo’s will do great, what ever made them open up in Ipoh I do not know but we must all do our best to keep them. Oh by the way, we had the Italian Sausage which was perfect also a friend of ours said they were there and tried the Blue Cheese and said it was so great they wanted more.
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geez, so far so good comments.
miss out the post christmas opening, but will b back in ipoh for the new year, love to visit.
what time does the shop open? when is the best time to come (as my stomach rarely can wait long, lol)
motormouth, no new review on the pizza?
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This place has very good pizza, then, crisp and very tasty. Only problem I can think of is the menu is a bit limited but then this is the first week of them being open so maybe they will add more things later. But they do offer great pizza, nothing like Pizza Hut or any other place in town. This is it, this is the real thing, this is what pizza is suppose to be. I do feel sorry for the man standing there by the fire making all the pizzas, looks like a lot of hard work and very hot work, but he does it very well, watching him throw it up inn the air is a show and the rest of the people in the place, very professional and something very new to this town. Everyone has a smile, is nice and this is just a very fun place to be, you feel like you are part of the entire place there. You can go right up and watch them make all the food right in front of your eyes and they will talk or joke with you or maybe even take your picture.
This is a very exciting thing to have here in our town and I hope they will keep it up like they did their first few days, looks like they are having large crowds each night we drove by. Way to go for a new place, all the best to you. Also the two who own the place looks like a very handsome couple, one at the pizzas and the other at the cash station while the rest of the staff are also very good looking and clean. Go there, you will love it. We had the Miki Miki with pineapples and chicken, very very sweet and spicy.
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Cannot believe, that is what I am thinking. We went there the other night and it was so crowded we had to come back about 30 minutes later and it was still so crowded. We were there on Wednesday December 30th, 2009. Everything was great, the food, the looks, the workers. also you get a show there with this white man making the pizzas, he tosses the pizzas in the air with speed and never drops them and then he shoots them into this huge thing with a REAL fire from wood and the pizzas come out in about 2-3 minutes. WOW, I have never seen anything like that and they taste so great. Why pizza hut cannot do this??? He also finds time to either go to each table to talk or he will just yell out across the room to everyone in the place. The workers also are very nice to look at, no one lazy or dull, they all work fast, very happy like they really want to be there and they seem to have a lot of fun working there. Also this very pretty lady, she might be the other owner or his wife, also goes to each table and she is very nice and takes care of the whole staff and place and does a wonderful job. I noticed a table waited awhile for their food and she gave them a free cheese cake, where do you get such service in Ipoh.
The give you a lot of everything, the meat on the pizza is more then you need but I am glad they do it, no skimping here. The music is loud and rock and roll, and the entire place is just a lot of fun to be in, nothing else like this in the country I have seen. Oh and do try their cheesecake, I do not know what the use for the crust but it is far better then secret recipe.
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Alright, I went there today to try this out and was pretty impressed by the way the pizza is cooked. I went there at 6pm when there was nobody there, well I was the only customer there. To my surprise, I was given a complimentary pizza due to my previous one which was not baked at the proper temperature. The “replacement” pizza was even better with its crispy crust. A nice place I would say.
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We would like to offer our apologies to those who may have had a little more char on their pizza then they are used to. All wood fire pizzas will have some charring on the edges and underneath, however a few might find this very unusual and a bit of a surprise. No we are not going to serve you a blacken pie, charring is what happens in a 750 degree wood fire oven that cooks a pizza in under 2 minutes. However, sometimes there may be a little more charring than expected even by us the operators, if this does happen, please be sure to let us know and we will be more than happy to replace it for you right there on the spot at no additional costs to you.
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is the place open at lunch?
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J2Kfm Reply:
January 6th, 2010 at 10:15 pm
sorry, for now only dinner. 6-10.30pm daily. except Mondays.
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A classmate recommended me to look at this post, great post, interesting read… keep up the good work!
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