Giovanni's - Lake Mary

Myself and an old friend went to this establishment on his recommendation. On the menu, they had a classic calzone, a vegetarian calzone, and something called the "Special" calzone. I, of course, went with the special calzone - the price of which was $12.99. When it arrived, I saw that it was a large calzone, not medium large as usual, but just flat large. The calzone was oven baked in a regular oven. The dough was burnt, and crispy. This turned out to be my least favorite part of the dish, because it flaked away as you tried to cut it and burnt (or overdone) dough is always chewy. However, the insides of the pocket were very good. Mr. Giovanni threw in everything and the kitchen sink. It had pepperoni, meatball, ham, mushrooms, green peppers, onion, sausage, ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese. Usually, when we see this many ingredients in a calzone, we don't get the ricotta. This time, we did. All of these standard pizza-topping ingredients came together to form a very delicious medley. The calzone was cooked quite nicely inside. This lends to my theory about the difficulty of cooking a good calzone. Had the outside not been burnt, the insides may not have reached sufficient temperature to cook well. Calzones are hard because they are a trade-off in many ways. Unfortunately, the dough and the price detracted quite heavily from the overall quality of it, leaving me only to be able to score it as high as a C+. I wouldn't go here and get it again, but if I found myself back at Giovanni's in an unplanned way, I might be interested to try the other calzone.

Italian Pizza Kitchen – Van Ness Area – Washington, D.C.

I was excited for this place. Two separate people I know recommended this location to me as a great place for calzones in Washington D.C. Living in Virginia, I don’t get the opportunity to get into the city very often, but I made the trip out for this one. The restaurant is a cozy corner café. Upon entry, me and my friends were seated and placed our orders. The food arrived after about 15 minutes, all three of us ordering a calzone to share. They ordered the Italian Calzone, and I ordered the Napoletana. All the calzones ran $12.95, no matter which version was chosen. I went with the Ham calzone so I could establish a baseline, since the menu boasted ricotta cheese. When it arrived, I noticed that it was the common size of medium-large, which put me at ease. Upon the first bite, I would describe the dough as fluffy, the calzone appeared to be baked in a regular oven. The outside was crisp and well timed. The dough itself wasn’t sweet, nor was it sour. It was regular dough. The presentation of the dish was also one of the best I’ve seen. The chef opted for the risky striations cut into the top of the calzone for visual effect. An aged parmesan was liberally sprinkled over the top. I knew it was a higher quality cheese because its strong concentrated flavor took over a lot of the dish in the parts that it touched. Inside was a nice low-moisture mozzarella with a medium quality ricotta cheese, curdy and seasoned with basil pocketed towards the front. The ham that was used appeared to be a standard pizza topping style ham, cut in quarter inch thick strips and without heavy curing. The cheese inside was not all the way congealed due to the chef paying attention to the dough as the indicator of readiness. This is often the struggle with calzones, cook the dough perfectly and the insides haven’t gotten hot enough to cook correctly, or cook the inside correctly and risk a burnt crust on your dough. Some chefs seem to cut the striations in the top of the pocket in order to allow the hot convection air to cook the insides as well as the outside, but the risk there is that, while eating the calzone, it loses its heat too quickly and becomes cold halfway through. The calzone did suffer from this common issue. However, the marinara sauce was fantastic; earthy, with a hint of spice, albeit only given in a very small carafe. Overall, I enjoyed the calzone. I had a bite of my friend’s Italian calzone and, I think that if I visit again, I might end up ordering that one. I score this Calzone as a B- due to the price for the issues present with it. Presentation was great, timing was great, a few issues with the flavor and quality of the ingredients, but overall not just average.

Mamma Lucia – Inside Fair City Mall – Fairfax, VA (Round 2)

I’m making a recantation of my previous score at this place. I was ready for the lower quality of the calzone but, for the price, it would have been worth it. However, this calzone was terrible. It was overly doughy, yet elastic and hard to cut with the plastic utensils that were given. The calzone was heated to such a degree that the cheese was liquefied and poured completely out onto the plate when the calzone was cut. The heat melted the plastic fork I was using to eat it. I would describe this calzone as a “gumbo” of mostly cheese and pieces of other unidentifiable ingredients, giving the dish just a hint of “meat flavor”. It was a thoroughly dissatisfying eat the second time around. I am rescoring this calzone as a D-, because it wasn’t as bad as I remember Paisano’s being, but probably the second worst calzone I’ve had to-date. The price remained the same at $7.49.

King’s NY Pizza – Fairfax, VA

This was probably the fourth time I’ve been to this place, but the first time I remember to capture pictures of it. Furthermore, it has probably been about 7 months since I had been here last. I ordered the Ham Calzone again, because I knew it was the classic. When getting back on the horse, one needs to re-establish the baseline. I remembered the Ham Calzone being one of the best I ever had before, and I wasn’t disappointed the second time. I have to admit though, it felt different. The dough was baked quite heavily, very slightly on the tough side but delicious. The outside was crispy and sweet. The dish was served with a very thin marinara which went quickly due it the amount and how much the bread soaked it in. The ricotta used in the pocket was probably some of the best I’ve had so far, with some kind of Italian herb mixed in and sweetened. The ham was cured and salty which mixed together delightfully with the sweetness of the cheese. I believe the difference was how the dough was made and the size of the Calzone. The price of the dish remains to be $9.00 flat, which is still a good deal, but less of one due to the reduced size of the Calzone. I’m adjusting my previous score to a B-, due to the changes. Despite this slightly lower score, it was still quite good and I’ll probably go back again in the future.

Santini’s NY Deli – Fairfax, VA

If any calzone I’ve eaten so far has taught me anything, it was this one. This one, had to have been the most average calzone I’ve eaten so far. Average tasting dough, average price ($9.95), average taste. There were many pros and cons to this one, for example: The dough was cooked well on the top, but it was very crispy on the bottom making it hard to completely cut through. The menu advertised the Calzone I ordered, which was the “Deli” Calzone, with ricotta cheese – but there was none to be found in it. The cheese was not thoroughly melted as I have described in other postings, but not bad. I suppose, in a headline, what this dish should be called is “Fantastic Pepperoni and Ham inside of some average tasting bread and cheese”. Being a deli, I shouldn’t have expected any less of the meats, they were great. High quality pepperoni oozing with that spicy oil they have. The ham was salty, but not too salty. The meal was served with the biggest bowl of marinara sauce I’ve had so far, except it tasted canned. Like they poured half of a can of marinara sauce in a bowl and gave it to me. The highs of this meal: the meat, the amount of marinara, the size of the calzone (medium-large) were matched by the lows of the meal: no ricotta as advertised, quality of the sauce, taste of every other part of it. They did serve the meal with a steak knife and a metal fork which is always helpful. I give this Calzone a very, very middle of the road C.