Glenwood Pizza Restaurant Earns National Recognition

Adrian Kalambokidis found out only shortly before everyone else did.

He and his wife Julie’s Adriano’s Brick Oven in Glenwood had been selected as one of the top 101 pizza joints in the United States by The Daily Meal, a popular foodie website.

Not that Kalambokidis was surprised – he knows just how good his pizza is – rather of all the pizza joints in all the world, his little place on the town square in Glenwood was getting national attention.

“They let us know the Monday morning it came out,” said Kalambokidis of The Daily Meal informing him the restaurant had made the cut. “The message said, ‘By the way, you’re on the list,’ and it had a link to the site.”

The list was compiled by the expertise of Daily Meal staffers, Yelp scores, online reviews, news coverage and the recommendations of visitors. Unbeknownst to Kalambokidis, a Daily Meal reviewer had been in to try the pizza and that feedback was added to the formula for compiling their list.

Adriano’s came in at No. 99 on the list, sandwiched between No. 100 Kansas City’s Wilson Pizza and Grill and No. 98 Deluca’s Pizza in Hot Springs, Ark.

The list’s review sited the family-owned restaurant’s homemade dough and sauce and long list of choose-your-own fresh toppings.

Kalambokidis’ initial reaction was: is this legit?

“It was flattering,” he said. “But this was a website out of New York I’d really never heard of. I asked people what they thought and they said they didn’t know but to go with it. The next thing you know everybody picks up the list.”

Since the September drop of the list, Kalambokidis said business has boomed. Customers have been coming in from all over Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri and Kansas.

“It’s not just an uptick, we’re probably two or three times busier than we were,” he said. “Every time we think its going to start tailing off a little bit, we have a day like Sunday, our best Sunday ever. At least half the people had never been here before but were here because of the list and came out to try it.”

It does feel like validation to Kalambokidis, who had little background in the restaurant business before opening Adriano’s five years ago with his wife.

“We took a chance and it’s worked out so far,” he said.

What has set Adriano’s apart is its in-house sauce and handmade dough, all coming together in the 650-degree brick oven. The sauce is a secret recipe given to Kalambokidis by an award winning Las Vegas chef he declined to name. The dough is hand rolled out and typically aged in a refrigerator for 24 to 48 hours.

“We take the time to do the dough right,” he said. “You have to work it with your hands. You have to tweak it by the season too. When it’s hot and humid, you cut back on the hydration. As it gets dryer and dryer, you pump up the water in the mix a bit.”

Adriano’s makes 300 to 400 pies a week. Their two most popular are the Chicken Bacon Ranch or the Trifecta (with beef, sausage and pepperoni). But 8, 12 or 16 inch pies can also be made to order from a list of fresh ingredients that includes mushrooms, basil, Canadian bacon, pineapple and jalapenos. Their overall No. 1 most popular pizza might be the Crab Rangoon, offered seasonally and featuring cream cheese, imitation crab meat, a blend of seasonings and topped with crispy wontons.

“People are crazy about that one,” Kalambokidis said.  “The amount of people who come for that one is amazing.”
The pandemic has been tough on most businesses, especially restaurants, but Adriano’s has weathered the quarantine and the shutdowns as well as could be expected, Kalambokidis said.

“Being the pizza business, even when its not COVID, its primarily takeout. We’re 75 percent takeout all the time. We’ve looked back at last year’s numbers compared to this years and we’re right in line. We’ve been very fortunate. Glenwood as a community, for all its businesses really, has done wonderfully, is supporting local when they can.”
Adriano’s is here to stay. And expand.

The Kalambokidis’ just opened a companioned business near the corner of First and Walnut Streets. The Parea Cocktail Lounge – named for the Greek word for “friends gathering together” – opened its doors earlier this month with a full bar and free delivery from Adriano’s just down the street.

About a week after the list unveiling of the top 101 pizza joints in the U.S., Kalambokidis got a call from The Daily Meal. The website wanted to know how business was going and to let him know a plaque was on the way.

“I still haven’t seen the plaque,” Kalambokidis said. “But I told them that’s OK and that it’s been incredible. And it still is.”

 

The Opinion-Tribune

116 S Walnut St Glenwood, IA 51534-1665
P.O. Box 377, Red Oak, IA 51566
Phone: 712-527-3191
Phone: 712-623-2566
Fax: 712-527-3193

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