Monday, August 27, 2012

Frank and Angie's Pizzeria


This past Saturday Laura and I drove to downtown Austin to pick up some books from the Faulk Central Library that she needed for a few of her online classes.  We planned on attending the Night of the Bat Fest on the Congress Avenue bridge afterwards as well as visiting a small neon sign gallery called Roadhouse Relics on 1st St that afternoon, but what we didn't expect to accomplish that day was eating at an eatery named Frank and Angie's!

The reason this name rung such a bell with us when we found it in the GPS is that Laura is pregnant and we are waiting till the baby is born to find out it's sex.  The two names we have chosen are either Frank IV or Angela Rose, so the moment we saw the two names we have chosen for our soon to be born child in one location we knew we had to at least check it out.

As we drove there I wondered what kind of food it would be, as if in retrospect there was any other type of food they could serve than Italian.  The instant we arrived and saw that it was a pizza place I was extremely excited.  From the outside it looks like a hole in the wall but when we walked in it was surprisingly roomy and incredibly decorated.  Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin posters littered the walls along with The Godfather and other Italian American staples.  

The far right wall which we sat near was a painted mural of a robust city scene.  It is an absolutely beautifully decorated establishment.  Our waitress was pleasant as could be as well.  She was excited to hear our story about why we had chosen Frank and Angie's and told us that just last week a married couple had driven in from San Antonio because their names were, you guessed it, Frank and Angie.  She also shared with us the history of the name.  The original owner had named it after his Grandma, Angie and when he brought in a partner, whose name was Charlie (R.I.P., He passed away two years ago), Charlie loved Frank Sinatra and added the name Frank to the title.  

I said, "Gee he must have really loved Frank Sinatra to add his name to the other owners Grandmas in the moniker of the restaurant"  Charlie must not have liked either of his grandparents all that much to go ahead and choose his favorite performer as opposed to a beloved relative, however I am not saying this in a negative manner.  My dad loves Frank Sinatra as well so this story actually made me all that much happier to be eating there.

So, on to the food.  As I have come to find very quickly, Austin Pizza is nothing like New York Pizza.  They tend towards thin crust and personal ten inch pies more so than the eighteen inch, eight slices, we are used to in NY.  With that said I decided against the personal pie, even though when I saw one delivered to the table next to us it did look delicious.  I went with a calzone,  The Mira Sorvino Calzone to be exact.  Chicken, feta, spinach, banana peppers, tomato, red onions and mozzarella found its way in to this particular recipe.  Laura ordered the Cheese Raviolis with a side of garlic bread, which we shared.  

Right before the food came out Laura asked me "What is a calzone?".  To which I was slightly surprised to hear considering we are both Italian and from New York, however as I was trying to explain what it was our food was presented to us and I let her eyes do the work of figuring out what a calzone is as opposed to my words.  The presentation of this calzone was slightly more rectangular than the crescent shaped ones I have become accustomed to.  Nevertheless the taste of this rectangle was absolutely superb!

I scarfed down my calzone while Laura enjoyed her Raviolis which were very attractively plated.  I also tried one of course and it was top of the line.  From the delicious Austin Amber beer I drank to the absolutely charming service we received, Frank and Angie's was a perfect choice for dinner this past Saturday night.  The Night of the Bat Fest afterwards was a great way to cap the evening as well.  We acquired a wonderful hand crafted giraffe as well as a print from a local artist of a painting she has created of Vincent Van Gogh.  When we arrived at home later that night we were completely satisfied on all levels, physically, mentally and spiritually.  

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