Last week, I embarked on my first-ever trip to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. In planning the trip, I learned that there are very few direct flights from Boston to Jackson Hole. Rather than decide on a layover city based on what would be least expensive, my gal pals and I decided to anchor our choice to a city that would have superb dining options.
When we learned that one possibility could be to fly through Minneapolis, Minnesota, we wasted no time connecting the dots that a stop over there would give us the opportunity to dine at Pizzeria Lola. We had all seen the episode of Netflix's Chef Table that profiled the restaurant and its brilliant culinary mind, Chef Ann Kim.
We touched down in Minneapolis and checked into our hotel. We chose the Intercontinental (attached to the airport) and had time for a cocktail in the lobby before grabbing an Uber ahead of our reservation.
A note on reservations: you can make them online, and dates open 90 days in advance. It was incredibly easy for us to get the date and time we wanted.
Our Uber ride was a short 18 minutes. We were all surprised to discover that the restaurant is on a quiet street in a residential neighborhood.
We hopped out of the car right in front of Pizzeria Lola's outdoor patio. It was raining just a bit that evening, so no one was taking advantage of it, but you could easily see what a lovely spot that would be to enjoy a meal al fresco.
We were greeted by a young and friendly hostess. She walked us to the first table just inside the front door, right in the center of all the action.
The first thing we noticed was, of course, the giant pizza oven. But we were also delighted to be sitting under the twinkle of the house disco ball.
Alongside our menus, we were each given a side plate and utensils. Each person's side plate was unique. These definitely seemed thrifted or perhaps someone's grandmother had an incredible collection that was passed on to the restaurant. It made it feel like you were dining in a home.
We wasted no time ordering a bottle of wine to share. We went with the Cabernet Sauvignon, which we knew would be a delicious compliment to our pizza.
Because we had been stalking the restaurant's Instagram account in the weeks leading up to our reservation, we already had a pretty good idea of what we wanted to order. We were hoping the seasonal pea and burrata special would still be available, but we just missed it. Instead, we tried the current appetizer special, a zucchini salad.
The zucchini was cut into noodles (zoodles, as the kids say) and served warm. They were topped with shaved parmesan cheese, lemon and a healthy dose of black pepper. Every bite tasted incredibly fresh.
The carnivores in our group started with the meatballs. They came in an adorable, small, cast iron skillet.
There were five meatballs, which felt like a generous portion. They were swimming in a flavorful tomato sauce. The plate was garnished with a few pieces of crostini for dipping.
Next up was the main event, and the reason that we came: the pizza.
Two of the girls decided to share the Lady Zaza, which is Italian red sauce, gochujang, kimchi, sakura pork, scallions and sesame. Chef Kim is known for incorporating kimchi into her signature pies. We were all excited to see how it would taste.
"It tastes like an Asian rice or noodle bowl. The kimchi flavor is super prominent," one friend said. Another added, "I really like that each bite is both spicy and sweet at the same time."
Across from me, a friend ordered the Forager pizza, which came topped with crimini, shiitake and portabello mushrooms. The 'shrooms were accompanied by taleggio and fontina cheeses, parsley and taragon.
After the first slice, she commented, "The mushrooms really are the star of the show here. That said, the herbs felt like a neccessary garnish, especially the taragon."
She ordered the pizza on a gluten-free crust and gave that an 8/10. High marks!
I went with the Boise pizza, which was potato, grueyere, cream, caramelized onions, olive oil and rosemary.
To me, the best potato pizza will always be the version that was served at Cambridge 1 in Harvard Square (RIP). I was hoping this could compete, but it just wasn't the same. If I were to come back, I would want to try another signature pie.
Between the four of us, we also ordered several sides of the housemade ranch dressing. If you don't dip your pizza crust in ranch, are you really living?
Pizzeria Lola's version was just the right balance of zesty and creamy. One of our friends asked our waitress if it was possible for us to a get a bottle to take home. (Sadly, it was not).
At this point, we were starting to get full, but we knew we wanted dessert. Our waitress brought us the menus and we quickly decided to try two things: the soft serve with olive oil (stay with me!) and the s'mores cookies.
The first to arrive was the vanilla soft serve, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with fleur de sel.
I had seen this on Netflix, so I knew it was something special, but I was not prepared for how incredible this tasted. How is it possible that these three ingredients sing together in perfect harmony? I can't explain it, but I will never be the same.
A friend lifted her spoon and declared, "This might be in the top five best things I have ever eaten in my life."
I was so enamored with the soft serve that I almost forgot about the cookies. Almost!
The plate had three large cookies next to an ice cold glass of milk. I lifted the first cookie and bent it in half. Perfectly crisp on the outside and gooey on the inside. Just what you hope to see. I took one bite and my eyes rolled into the back of my head. This is a damn good cookie.
One of the gals took my other half, had her initial bite, and shouted, "This is like a s'more on speed!"
With very full bellies, we had one final order of business: the photo booth. When you arrive at Pizzeria Lola, you immediately notice that the far left wall is completely covered in photo strips. When you order dessert, you can pay $5 dollars for one ticket to the photo booth.
We marched back there, excited to make our best goofy faces for the camera. We squeezed (all four of us) into the booth and got ready to pose. I was laughing so hard that by the second shot, I fell out of out the frame!
Here is our final result:
We cut the strip in half, leaving one copy on the pizzeria wall and taking one with us as a memento of this fabulous meal.
If you find yourself traveling to or through Minneapolis, you absolutely must make time for Pizzeria Lola. Try the 'za but also be sure to leave room for dessert.
Pizzeria Lola is located at 5557 Xerxes Avenue, South Minneapolis, MN 55410.
