Taking a Punch

     Perhaps there is no better place to experience true Minnesota pizza bliss than at Punch in St. Paul.  Their menu offerings have been described as Michael Jordan playing in the 6th grade basketball finals.  There's no competition!  The owner, John Sorrano, grew up in Milan and learned first hand from local pizzaiolis how to craft an authentic Italian Neapolitan pizza. He was able to translate that experience when he opened his first restaurant in the Twin Cities.

   So I had to try one of the best and visited there last August.  They are a certified VPN restaurant (more about that in a subsequent VinnyPost) and the first thing I noticed was their huge wood burning oven that dominated the space.  It heats up to a blistering 800 degrees F and cooks a pizza in 90 seconds.  Using only fresh ingredients the menu lists 17 classic style pies with names like Napoli, Borgata and Vesuvio.  For those who like their pizza sans tomatoes there are 5 blanco pies to choose from.  And if none of those nearly two dozen possibilities are to your liking you can craft your own with a mind dizzying 28 different toppings.  The combinations are endless!!!  So I combined sausage, arugula and feta on my personal pie and in less than 2 minutes it was ready and I carried it to my family style table.  Magnifico!  The ingredients were all fresh and enhanced by the tangy sweet tomato sauce and the secret recipe dough that was soft and pliable, not burnt and stiff.  Punch is definitely in a league of its own.

     But just on the outside chance that I wasn't satisfied with my meal there was a line at the bottom of the menu that read:

SECOND CHANCE FOR PIZZA ROMANCE?

Don't like your pizza?  Tell us - no matter how busy we are!

Come up to the pick-up counter and we'll remake it in 90 seconds.

Now that's customer satisfaction!