Arrived at 12:32 PM
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Appetizers to Table at 12:43 PM
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Entrees to Table at 1:13 PM
THE BOOT PIZZERIA | The Boot Pizzeria is a little far down South Memorial Parkway from our office but we happened to be in the area today, so we stopped in for lunch. Upon arriving, the restaurant was not exactly what we expected – it’s on the end of what used to be a grungy motel-type building, turned into an office space (?). When we went inside, the hostess seated us quickly at a table for nine people. We essentially got our own private room at the end of the restaurant. The room had a large faux fireplace on the far wall, giving a cozy environment to the place.
Our waiter was kind and attentive, but I think he was over-occupied serving at the bar on the other side of the restaurant because his trips to the table were infrequent. Read on for all of our opinions on The Boot.
Appetizers
Calamari - $8.99
Deep fried crispy calamari sided with fresh marinara sauce.
The Calamari had a strong fishy scent right when it was set on the table. Those of us who tried it said it wasn’t very good calamari, but a couple of people liked it. The serving dish had lettuce filling in the bottom, which we thought was odd and somewhat deceptive.
Bruschetta Pomodoro - $5.99
Garlic toasted bread topped with diced fresh tomatoes and homemade pesto olive oil.
$2/slice? That seemed a pretty pricey for this dish. The bread was crispy, the tomatoes were fresh, and the seasoning and olive oil were just right! It was very good, just very overpriced, in our opinions!
Eggplant Parmigiana - $8.99
Nonna's deep fried eggplant layers with fresh marinara sauce melted mozzerella and parmesan cheese
This dish was also very overpriced for what you got. We couldn’t tell what was what in the layers of eggplant, breading, sauce, and cheese. By the time we got it, the breading was soggy and nothing was crispy. The taste was good, the texture was not. It was also very hard to share. At $8.99, this was a very small serving size.
Appetizers Assessment: Overall, we were not really impressed with our appetizers at The Boot. If they were more reasonably priced, we would have been happier. But the high prices for small quantities and not great quality was not really cutting it for us. The Bruschetta was a favorite at the table, but was still more expensive than we would like.
The Boss
Walking into The Boot, we were greeted and seated quickly. I liked the room we were seated in because it was on the end of the restaurant so it was private and we could all hear the conversation at the table. It was a little warm on the end of the restaurant because the sun was shining into the windowed wall as well as the heater blasting warm air into the room. It was a nice contrast to the bitter cold outside, though, so we didn’t complain!
WHAT SHE ATE:
Canelloni Ricotta e spinaci - $11.99
Homemade and hand rolled fresh pasta dough filled with spinach and ricotta cheese with from scratch Alfredo creamy sauce, melted mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Topped with fresh basil, olive oil, and crushed parmesan cheese.
I ordered Canelloni, which had a LOT of cheese on it/in it. It was just pasta shells, cheese, and a little spinach. It was really flavorful, with rich mozerella, parmesan, and garlic flavors. I ate about half of it and took the other half home because it was just too rich to eat all in one sitting. Our waiter seemed a little preoccupied (I think he was bartending as well as waiting on our table) and was a little slow to bring what we asked for. I sampled The Hipster’s pizza and didn’t really like it – the chicken was dried out and the onions were just thrown on top after the pizza was baked. Not a great presentation.
The Apprentice
The Boot is everything you are looking for in terms of an enjoyable dining experience. The exterior of the building looks more like Mexican restaurant than it does a pizza parlor. Not that it really matters, it could look like a dilapidated warehouse so long as the service is the same. Our waiter was professional, funny, and very attentive to our table. Overall, the experience was exactly how it should be, not too rushed, good service, and a great interior.
WHAT HE ATE:
Unlimited Pizza Slices Lunch Special - $7.99
Cheese, Pepperoni, Ham & Pineapple, Veggie, Etc.
I got the endless pizza deal, which came with unlimited pizza, served two slices at time, with a drink. While the experience was great, the pizza was far from mind-blowing. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying it was bad, it just didn’t give me any reason to love it. If I could pair the Boot’s atmosphere with another restaurant’s pizza, then it would be perfect. However, until then, I’m going to have to give this pizza The Boot.
The Hipster
The Boot Pizzeria is an Italian restaurant in South Huntsville. The environment feels inviting and is decorated with Italian-themed decor. The walls had paintings of familiar Italian scenes and the tables had Italian-themed travel pictures printed onto them. The lights were dimmed throughout the whole restaurant, although we ate in an area that was close to windows. Our waiter only refilled my drink once, which turned out to be a problem later. On the menu they have a gluten-free option for their pizza crust for $2 more. The restaurant is wheelchair accessible.
WHAT SHE ATE:
12-inch Smoked Chicken Pizza - $16.99
The Boot's slow-smoked tender chicken, fresh pizza sauce, feta, and mozzarella cheese topped with fresh crispy fried red onions.
I ordered a 12-inch Smoked Chicken Pizza. My pizza was the last to arrive. The pizza was thin crust and had loose, fried onions on top which promptly fell off when you picked it up. I did not anticipate it to be spicy, but it got pretty hot and I started drinking my water immediately after I started eating it. Also, some of the chicken was more burnt than smoked. The idea of this was yummy but the execution was less than amazing. I loved the environment of The Boot but the pizza I ordered was a little disappointing.
Mr. Clearwater
(Disclaimer: I have had a cold all week, so I wasn’t exactly able to taste the food as well as I would have liked.)
We were seated as soon as we arrived. Almost immediately, our waiter greeted us, went over the menu with us, and took our drink orders. He promptly came back with our drinks and took down what we wanted for appetizers and for entrees. Our entrees came out about 10 minutes later and our food within a reasonable timeframe after that. Overall, I was very pleased with the experience.
WHAT HE ATE:
Big Ed Sandwich - $8.99
Ciabatta bread with The Boot's smoked pork belly, corned beef topped with arugula lettuce, served with a spicy chipotle mayo, served with a side of fresh cut French fries.
Our side of the table got 2 separate appetizers. The first was a fried calamari basket. I am usually a big fan of calamari, but today I didn’t really enjoy it. I don’t know if it was the cold I had or that it just wasn’t very good calamari. The second appetizer was fried eggplant. I ordered it because it sounded interesting, but in actuality it turned out to be so greasy and cheesy that I couldn’t even distinguish what part of it was the eggplant. Could be my lack of experience in eggplant eating, but this one wasn’t very good. For my main course I got a pork belly sandwich, which was decently tasty, but I ended up not eating much of it due to me feeling under the weather. This isn’t my first time going to the boot, and my last time was much better. I’d rate the food of this outing to be a 2.4/5
The Engineer
The overall experience was very pleasing. I enjoyed being there because it was tidy and the service was attentive and wasn’t too slow. The waiter visited the table enough times to take good care of us without hovering. The music being played was enough to keep some background noise when we were eating, but wasn’t intrusive, and we didn’t have to speak over it. I would definitely recommend this restaurant to anyone wanting a good meal and has a group of people with them.
WHAT HE ATE:
Unlimited Pizza Slices Lunch Special - $7.99
Slices of Cheese, Pepperoni, Ham & Pineapple, Veggie, Etc., pizza, brought out two at a time.
I ordered the unlimited pizza lunch special that was very affordable, and a lot of pizza. They have 6 different pizza options for unlimited, and you can pick any of them with each new plate you get. They come out two at a time, so its always fresh and hot. The flavors were rich and had unique flavors. I had a lot of the veggie pizza since it is my favorite. I felt that the pizzas had generous portions of veggies on each slice. This is definitely a dish for the hungry! It’s a great deal and a LOT of food!
Give them a visit!
The Boot Pizzeria
11505 Memorial Pkwy SW
Huntsville, AL 35803