Road Tips

Primo's Pizza - Rockford, IL

A couple of years ago, I was talking with one of my friends from the Rockford area in northern Illinois about the seemingly large number of good pizza joints that are in and around Rockford.  He was telling me of a little hole in the wall place that he and his wife favored over all of them - Primo's Pizza.  After a meeting in Rockford one evening and before I drove on to Chicago for the night, I sought out Primo's for a pizza. 

Dominic Loria was born in Sicily and as a young boy he immigrated with his family to the U.S. in 1953.  He ended up in Rockford and eventually met his wife, Anna, who also was born in Sicily and immigrated to the U.S. in 1969.  In 1990, the husband and wife team opened Primo's Pizza in an unassuming spot in a small strip mall near the intersection of N. Guilford Road, N. Prospect and Rural streets north and east of downtown Rockford.  (see map)

It was around 6:15 when I walked into Primo's that evening.  It was not a large place - it sat possibly 35 people maximum.  Bright red and green accent trim - the main colors on the Italian flag - were prevalent throughout the place.  It wasn't posh, but it was certainly cozy in the dining room.  This was your quintessential neighborhood pizza joint. 

I took a spot at a booth along the wall.  A young lady came out and gave me a menu.  They don't serve beer at Primo's Pizza, so I just had a water with my meal. 

They do a large amount of carry-out pizza business at Primo's.  While I was in there, at least a half-dozen people came in to get pizza to go.  I understand that they also have delivery at Primo's. 

In addition to pizza, they have a number of pasta dishes - lasagna, mostaccioli, spaghetti, tortellini - as well as chicken and veal parmigiana.  Appetizers, salads, and sandwiches rounded out the menu at Primo's.  They have three different types of pizzas to choose from - thin crust, pan or stuffed.  Sizes range from a 10" (small) to a 16" (X-large). 

I ordered my standard Italian sausage, pepperoni and mushroom thin crust pizza in the small size.  My young lady server brought it out and set it on a pizza rack on top of my table.  The crust was thin, but it was light and airy, almost sort of fluffy around the edges. The toppings were plentiful with large slices of pepperoni, a good amount of sliced mushrooms and some good sized chunks of sausage on top of the pizza.  The pizza wasn't overly flowing with mozzarella and sauce, but it was enough to make an edible impact with each bite.  This was simply a very good pizza.   

One thing to take note - Primo's is closed on Mondays.  Also, they don't have beer or wine in the place.  I don't know if you can bring your own in, but it wouldn't hurt to call ahead to see if that would be all right with them before you go.  I can't say enough about the pizza I had - it was superb for a thin crust pizza.  The crust was light and airy, the toppings were plentiful, the sauce was tangy, and it had just about the right amount of mozzarella to help compliment every bite of the pizza.  My friend didn't steer me wrong on the pizza at Primo's.  While it's far to say this was an elegant or classy place, Primo's certainly served up a killer pizza.  

Capri Restaurant and Pizza - Rockford, IL

 
I found myself staying Rockford, IL one evening recently.  I had to do an early morning training there and I decided that even though it was a 90 minute drive from home, I'd just spend the night in Rockford rather than making the early morning drive and not be fresh for the training.  I was in the mood for pizza that evening and I found a place in downtown Rockford by the name of Capri Restaurant and Pizza (see map).  It is an old time Italian restaurant that has a history as colorful and lively as the stucco walls inside and out, along with the large mural that adorns one wall in the main dining room.

Vito Grisanzio was born in Italy and moved to America with seven of his nine siblings in the late 50's.  They ended up in Chicago and all worked various restaurant jobs at different points in their lives. 

Vito was invited by two childhood friends who had settled in Rockford and opened a restaurant, the Capri, a few years before.  Not knowing a word of English before he moved to Rockford, Vito ended up learning the restaurant business from his two friends.  After seven months, Vito called his brother Domenic to invite him to Rockford to work with him at the restaurant.  It wasn't long after that, the Grisanzio brothers bought the Capri in 1963. 

The Grisanzio's grew the Capri's business over the years and it soon became known as "THE" Italian restaurant in Rockford.  It was also the favorite pizza restaurant for thousands in the area and was well-known in Northern Illinois for having the best pizza around. 

The first significant change to the Capri happened in 1979 when Vito and Domenic bought the building next to them, an old bar called "The Navy Club".  They closed up their front entrance and began to make their back entrance in the alley/parking lot directly behind the building.  They effectively doubled their dining space and put in a little bar area off the kitchen. 

In the early 80's, the Grisanzio brothers split their business and Vito stayed at the original location.  He and his wife, Janette, had three sons - Domenic (named after his uncle), Vito, Jr., and Michael.  Vito Grisanzio still works at the Capri as does his wife and his sons, Vito, Jr. and Michael.  Domenic and his wife help out in the restaurant when needed.  This is the 48th year the Grisanzio family has owned the Capri making it the oldest single family Italian restaurant in Rockford. 

The sign on the front door along State Street in Rockford told me that the main entrance was around the back of the Capri.  I found the parking lot just to the south side of the building and went in the main doors under the lighted Capri sign.  You go past a big picture window that looks directly into the kitchen at the Capri.  One of the cooks was making a pizza, rolling it out before putting the toppings on.  I was greeted by a matronly hostess at the stand next to the bar area and she asked if I wanted to sit at the bar or in the dining room.  I decided to sit in a booth in the dining room that evening.  I had a Chicago Tribune that I wanted to read with my meal and it was sort of dark in the bar area. 

As I said, the Capri had a full mural on the side wall of the main dining room.  With the high back booths, sturdy tables and chairs with subdued lighting, the Capri had a real old world Italian feel to the place.  The hostess showed me to a booth and dropped off a menu.  I said, "I understand that you're famous for your pizza." 

She said, "We're pretty well-known for our pizza, yes."  It wasn't long before a waitress came over to get my drink order.  I just ordered a Bud Light and looked over the menu.

Although I knew I was going to get a pizza, I wanted to see what other Italian items the Capri had on their menu.   It was definitely a full menu at the Capri with a number of pasta dishes, chicken and seafood entrees with an Italian twist, sandwiches and even a filet mignon for those not looking for full Italian food.  The Capri also featured a family style Italian dinner that allowed groups of four or more to order two different types of pasta with meatballs and two different entrees.  Along with that came a family style salad, garlic bread and pizza bread for $16.50 a head.  I'm sure that would have been a big deal for some families to get the family style dinner at the Capri.

But, nope - I was there for the pizza.  When the waitress came back with my beer, I was ready to order.  I got my standard Italian sausage, pepperoni and mushroom.  Even though they had seven inch personal pizzas, I went with a twelve inch pizza knowing that what I couldn't eat tonight would keep in my hotel room's refrigerator and be able to warm a couple three slices up in the microwave for breakfast the next day.  She told me it would be about 15 to 20 minutes on the pizza and I told her to keep checking back on me for my beer level.   And she did. 

When the pizza finally showed up, it was cut into party slices.  I like the square party cut pizzas the best.  The crust was thin, but not overly thin like I like a little bit more.  It had an ample amount of toppings including fresh mushrooms. 

The first bite told me three things - First, the crust was a little too stiff and crunchy for my taste.  I like the dough a little more soft and chewy for a thin crust.  Secondly, the sauce had a sort of sweet and smoky taste to it.  It was different from a lot of pizza sauces I've had and I'll say that it wasn't bad.  It took a couple more bites for me to decide if I liked it or not.  And I finally realized I did.  And last, the sausage came in the big chunks that I like, but it was pretty bland to the taste.  I like a good fennel Italian sausage, but some pizza places (such as Lou Malnati's in Chicago) say that fennel hides the real taste of the sausage.  The Capri's Italian sausage did not have fennel with it. 

 
Still, it was a good pizza, not the best I've ever had, but better than I can get at most places back home in the Quad Cities.  I was able to eat just over half the pizza and I saved my last piece that I was going to eat that evening to be what I call the "honey pot" piece in the center of the pizza (above right).  It's generally the piece where all the flavors congregate and the crust is usually sopped with a combination of sauce, grease and cheese.  But the crust of the Capri's pizza didn't allow for anything to seep into it, it was too hard and brittle. 

I kept what was left of the pizza and had my waitress box it up.  It did keep well overnight and I did have about two or three pieces in the morning and threw the rest out before I left the hotel.  

The most pleasantly surprising thing about the Capri was the bill.  For a 12" cheese and three topping pizza, the price of the pizza was $10.25.  Now, that's cheap for a pizza.  My waitress was attentive and got a nice tip, as well.  It was a great value, to say the very least. 

And the pizza the Capri was good, not great or outstanding in my book.  But like anyplace, the people who grew up on the Capri's pizza probably think it's the best in the world.  

About a week or so after I was in Rockford, I happened to run into an old friend in an audio store in the Quad Cities.  He had moved to Rockford a few years ago and I told him that I'd been to the Capri recently for pizza.  He said, "The locals seem to like Capri the best, but I think there's a couple others that are better." 

I don't get up to Rockford all that often (even though it's pretty close to home), but he did give me a couple suggestions to try on my next visit.   Still, for an old time pizza/Italian restaurant with a great value I'm still glad I gave the Capri a try.  For the price, the pizza was above average.

 

 

Smoking Harry's - Creston, IL

On my continued quest to find a great burger when I travel, I found a place in Creston, IL - a small town of about 550 people near Rockford (see map) - by the name of Smoking Harry's.  I was doing some on-line research and found that Smoking Harry's was named by WIFR-TV, a local television station, as having the best burgers in the greater Rockford area.  Given that it's about 15 to 20 miles from Rockford, it's sort of a stretch.  But I thought I'd stop in there for lunch recently. 

Harry Coleman (left) is the "Harry" in Smoking Harry's.  I thought that the place was possibly a barbecue place with the term "Smoking" in the name.  But I soon found out when I walked into the small restaurant/bar along Highway 38 that was far from the reason.  The real reason was wafting through the air.  Harry was sneaking drags off a cigarette behind the bar - a no-no in any public place in Illinois.  But this just didn't seem to be a public place.  It was like the Coleman's opened their first floor up, put in a small bar in the front living room and took one of their back rooms and put four tables into it.  And that's basically what happened.

Harry and his wife - both well into their 70's - bought the place in 1988.  Harry's wife, who was seated at the bar with an oxygen tank attached to her nose, told me that they lived upstairs.  "We actually have quite a bit of room up there," she told me.  Harry's son works the grill during the day and evening.  There was some argument between Harry and his wife as to when they open up for the day.  "We open up at 8:30 every day," Harry said.

His wife countered, "Oh, when have we ever opened up at 8:30?!  You may be down here at 8:30 having coffee, but the doors ain't open!"

I immediately liked them both. 

I was the only person in the place when I got there around 1:30.  I told Harry, "I understand you have a pretty good burger here."

He said, "They tell me that.  We won an award for our burger."  He pointed out the plaque and a copy of the article from the local paper proclaiming Smoking Harry's as having the best burger in Rockford. 

I said, "Well, let's try one.  I'll take one of your cheeseburgers with everything."  Everything is adding lettuce, tomato, pickles and onion.  Mustard and ketchup are available upon request.

While Harry's son worked the grill, I got to talking about Harry's signature 3/4 lb. burger with him.  "We worked on trying to find a good burger for 13 years," Harry said.  "We finally found one in 2001.  We had a food salesman come in here with a meat rep.  They dropped off a box of burgers.  Frozen burgers.  All our meat is frozen.  We don't have the room to keep fresh hamburger meat here." 

Harry told me the meat rep said to him, "I understand that you've been looking for a good burger.  Tell you what.  Try these and if you don't like 'em, don't pay for 'em.  If you like 'em then keep orderin' 'em up.  Well, we liked 'em - a lot.  And we kept orderin' 'em."

He said he finally found the burger that he wanted to sell, "but I wasn't happy with the buns we had."

I said, "I subscribe to the theory that the bun is what makes a great burger."

Harry said, "So do I!  So do I!  It wasn't until about a year and a half ago that we found a good bun."

He said that a food salesman who knew Harry was looking for a good bun came in with a few samples of one style.  It was a big bun, light and not very chewy.  It was made by an Italian bakery in the Western suburbs of Chicago.  Harry said, "It's expensive - about 50 cents a bun - but it don't fall apart like the other buns we used to get.  I don't like it when a bun falls apart."  

Harry said that as soon as they served up the first burger with the new bun, they new they had a winner.  He said, "And it helps that we still have the same flat top griddle that has been in here since well before we bought the place."  I agreed with him that the griddle can help enhance the taste of a good burger. 

The order was up and Harry brought out the burger.  It literally covered the whole basket he served it in.  It was big.  But I was hungry.  Harry sat back down at the end of the bar with his wife and continued to watch "The Beverly Hillbillies" on the small television near the kitchen.

From the first bite, I was definitely impressed with Smoking Harry's cheeseburger.  It was juicy and flavorful.  The bun was just excellent.  And it didn't fall apart just like Harry said it wouldn't.  It was huge - as I said 12 oz before cooking - but Harry said that the meat is so lean that it doesn't cook down very much on the grill.  Usually, lean burgers have a tendency to be somewhat dry.  This wasn't it was very good.  

As I finished, Harry's wife called down the bar to me.  "So, was it good?"  

I said, "It was damn good, ma'am.  It was very damn good.  I am impressed and pleasantly surprised."  

She said, "Well, good.  That's what we want to hear."  

Creston isn't that far off of I-88, just east of I-39.  I told Harry and his wife that I go into Chicago all the time and that I would be back.   And I will be - it was a damn good burger at Smoking Harry's.  Make no mistake, the place is a small town dive.  And Harry sneaks smokes when there's no one in the place.  (Hell, he probably smokes in there when he has familiar customers in the place.)  Even though I enjoy having places that are smoke free, I didn't mind it that much at Smoking Harry's.  The burger trumped the ambience and the tinge of tobacco smoke in the air.  It was very, very good.   

Irish Rose Saloon - Rockford, IL

There's an American TV store in Rockford that I needed to train for both Focal loudspeakers and Cambridge Audio electronics earlier this summer.  I got into town around 8:30 p.m. and looked for a place to get a bite to eat.  I found this little place - Irish Rose Saloon - near the downtown area of Rockford.  (see map)  I decided to stop in and give it a shot. 

Even though I've lived about 90 minutes from Rockford since 1991, I think I've been to the city - maybe - four times.  I've called on a couple of independent dealers there with no success.  I've passed Rockford countless times on my way to Milwaukee and points north in Wisconsin, but there's really been no reason to stop.  So finding the Irish Rose Saloon was sort of a pleasant surprise. 

Mike Leifheit, a gregarious 60-something man, is the owner of the Irish Rose.  This is a picture of Leifheit with his daughters Kat and Kara.  The restaurant features a nice little outside dining area, an old time bar and a wonderfully furnished dining area complete with linen table cloths, artwork on the walls, and sort of an antique feel to the place.  

I got into the Irish Rose around 8:30.  There were a number of people out in the beer garden with Mike Leifheit holding court talking to a number of friends who were enjoying a nice evening.  A few people were seated at tables in the dining room.  There was no one seated at the bar.  The Irish Rose doesn't have any televisions in the place, so I couldn't pass the time watching television while waiting for my dinner.  

I asked the hostess if it was too late for dinner and she said, "Well, it may be.  Let me check with the chef." 

She went back into the kitchen, then came out a minute later and said, "Yeah, you just missed the cut off.  If you want, you can eat off the late night menu."  She gave me a menu to look over and while there were only a few things on the menu, a couple things caught my eye.

I sat at the bar and ordered up a Smithwick's beer while I looked through the menu.  The late night menu begins at 8:30 p.m. - it was 8:35 according to my cell phone - and it consists of a 1/2 hamburger, grilled goat cheese salad, linguine with fire roasted marinara, sirloin steak and woodfired, grilled pork chops.  And the prices were relatively cheap, but the catch was that you had to have at least one cocktail or beer.  If you didn't have alcohol, it was an extra $2.00 on the price of the entree.  I thought that was a rather unique way to sell alcohol with food, especially later in the evening.   

I didn't have to figure out that I wanted the woodfired, grilled pork chops.  The bartender asked me if I wanted soup, salad or home fries with the order.  I ordered a salad with their homemade vinaigrette dressing.  In the meantime, I asked the bartender for one of their regular menus for me to take a look at while waiting for my food to come out. 

It turns out the late night menu is sort of an extension of the Irish Rose Saloon's "Adult Happy Meals", nightly specials where the price of the food is deflated by a couple bucks if the person buys one beer or cocktail with the meal.  But they also had something called their "Fresh Board" which featured fresh seafood, steaks, pork and lamb.  One thing they had on their "Fresh Board" menu that evening was a sushi-grade tuna steak, cooked rare and sliced.  Oh, man!  If I'd just gotten there about 15 minutes earlier!  

The salad with the homemade vinaigrette was very good and it wasn't long after that when the bartender brought out my pork medallions.  It turned out one of the Monday night specials was pork medallions with a side of baked red potato slices, topped with herbs.  They brought me out the pork medallions and threw in the potatoes as an extra.  I didn't bitch.  I would have ordered the pork medallions over the pork chop anyway.  

And it was very good.  The pork was light, lean and moist.  They were very tasty.  The potatoes, a couple bites of which is all I had, were very good, too.  The herbs were a good complement to the red potatoes.   That's about the only way I like to eat potatoes these days.  When I have them, that is.

Understandably, the bar tab (Two Smithwick's pints at $5.50 each) was bigger than the food tab ($7.95).  But the food was very good.  Surprisingly good.  I was very happy I stumbled upon the Irish Rose Saloon.  If I ever make it back someday, I'm coming in earlier to make sure that I don't miss out on the opportunity to choose from a full menu.  If their late night menu is that good, I can only imagine how good the regular menu would be.