Cheesy Does It @ Luigi’s

I was fashionably late to the event, so I figured my review should follow suit. I made it to the event just as the mozzarella making demo started. I was handed a delicious plate of pizza and a wonderful staff member asked if I wanted sangria and immediately poured me a glass. They also brought me out a sampling of the appetizers that I had missed. Bravo, and thank you very much for that.
It was neat to get a chance to experience a restaurant I otherwise would not think to go to. I am often in the area for work, but I seemingly never remember there is a restaurant over there.
The pizza I sampled was delicious. Its been a while and I (shamefully) do not remember the exact type that I sampled, but what I remembered most was the crust. It was moist, without being too «doughy» or too dry. Just right for a thin-​crust pizza.
We all left with a gift basket full of coupons and mozzarella cheese. Amazing!
Like the others, I would say my only «complaint» of this place was the noise. But hey, I think a successful restaurant would say that a packed, noisy place is a good thing!

This was my first Unilocal event, and it was the best introduction I could have asked for! I’ve been to Luigi’s before with my family, and we have returned several times, though I usually gravitate to their fresh salads. I certainly didn’t know what was missing! This was a smaller group, so being crowded together wasn’t as much of a problem as it has been at some of the Big Bite events. We were immediately greeted when we walked in, and Corey gave us a big «hello.» We soon took our seats, and generous carafes of two kinds of sangria were brought out. We were all seated in a U-​shape and front and center were the owners and head chef. The owners and their head chef detailed their pizza philosophy, with an emphasis on fresh ingredients and taking cues from the Old World. I may have missed a few things, as at this time the staff was bringing out pizza after pizza. Every flavor was delicious. The crust had a perfect mixture of chewiness and crispiness, the sauce had zing, and the cheese was fresh and toasted perfectly in a high-​temp oven.
While we were being presented with dish after dish (appetizers, pickled vegetables, and so many varieties of pizza), we were treated to the aforementioned talk about Luigi’s, their practices, and their ingredients. The sangrias were delicious — I’d tried the red before, but never the lighter-​colored options. While I see they’re expensive on the menu, I’d say they’re worth at least one carafe for the table, provided you like sangria.
When most of the food had been distributed, the cheese demonstration began with their head chef (who looked like a Son of Anarchy, which was pretty cool). He took us from the very beginnings and carefully illustrated each step. We were encouraged to try the curd (yick), which happens before the salted boiling water is added, so it’s very bland. We then were allowed to hold and mold the balls of fresh mozzarella, so that we each created a smooth uniform ball. They make their cheese fresh every day, which is encouraging me to return soon.
At the end of the meal, they each gave us sweetly prepared gift baskets full of souvenirs to take home. We were allowed to bring home our ridiculous Italian chef’s hats (my kindergartners will love its addition to their dress-​up closet), and they also gave us a coupon, mustache-​themed notepad, mustache tattoo, a fresh ball of mozzarella to take home, and a useful basket. I really appreciated their over-​and-​beyond approach to customer service, as well as their attention to people already in the restaurant — the servers seemed just as attentive to the non-​Yelp guests, which is always a good sign. The cornucopia of food made me feel full but not heavy like greasier crusts do. And I ate the first dish with truffles that hasn’t tasted like feet to me, their truffle pizza! If they can make a truffle believer out of me, you know it’s really good.

I might have written this in every single Unilocal!Elite event review I’ve written so far, but THIS WAS MY FAVORITE EVENT EVER!
Not only did we get to try amazing appetizers, sangria, and pizza, but we learned how to make mozzarella too! I had no experience with cheese-​making going into the event, but after watching the demo, I feel fairly confident that I could successfully make mozzarella myself now. I can’t wait to try!
Food highlights of the night? The peach sangria, prosciutto appetizer, and truffle pizza stole the show for me.
Thanks so much to Luigi’s, Food Fight, & Unilocal!for a unique and fun event.

Pizza and a mozzarella cheese-​making demo on a Monday night? Yes, please. As we watched Jon (the «chef du jour») unravel the mysteries of cheese-​making for us, we noshed on appetizers made from fresh mozzarella and sipped on three different flavors of sangria (white, peach, and red). We got to sample all the appetizers on Luigi’s menu (my favorite was the fresh mozzarella, prosciutto ham and roasted red pepper roll), and the fresh cheese made all the difference in the world.
Then, Matt started bringing out pizzas for us to try. We sampled the Truffle pizza (white sauce, roasted mushrooms, fontina, mozzarella, and truffle oil), the Bada Bing (bacon, fontina, grilled asparagus, white sauce, caramelized onions, and roasted mushrooms), The Goods (white sauce, pesto, fresh tomatoes, spinach, caramelized onions, roasted mushrooms, mozzarella, and parmesan), and Fugetaboutit (tomato sauce, Italian meats, red onions, olives, and mozzarella with arugula). As you can see, they play to the Italian theme quite heavily.
Although the mozzarella making was more of a demo, we did get to stretch and shape the curds into balls of mozzarella. So, it was a little bit hands on. Bill wrapped up the demo with a quick talk about the history of Luigi’s (most of which I had a hard time hearing due to the background noise; you’re not an old fart, Steve L!)
The evening ended with a group photo and a swag bag which included our very own mozzarella cheese ball, a coupon good for a free appetizer on a future visit, a cute notebook emblazoned with a mustache, and a small bottle of pinot grigio. Oh, and also a white chef hat which I promptly made my boyfriend wear when he got home. He had a great time pretending to be Swedish Chef from the Muppets.
Thanks for making this awesome event happen, Corey! I’m glad I got to experience Luigi’s, and they will for sure be my go-​to place when I’m in the mood for pizza.

I’m so happy that I joined Unilocal… when I registered 4 years ago, who’da thunk I’d find myself sitting at a botique pizza place, surrounded by online buddies, drinking sangria, eating awesome pizza, and learning how to make mozzarella?
Anywho… another great event from Corey. I’m sounding like a broken record, but oh well.
Highlights:
+ Matt kicked-​off the evening by laying out the agenda, setting the tone, and sharing some info about Luigi’s — great info, and Matt was a stellar host
+ Jon showed us how to make fresh mozzarella; he did an outstanding job of answering questions, sharing tips and tricks, and keeping the demo fun and interesting. While I didn’t squeeze the cheese, it was cool to see others gettin’ into it.
+ Bill gave us a great bit of background info about Luigi’s; it was cool to hear about the various artifacts they kept from the prior location, and it was interesting to hear about how they purposely and dutifully set-​up some interesting booths/​tables within the new space (I want to come back and visit the disco ball booth!!).
+ THE FOOD. Seriously — great pizza (FINALLY!). I loved the crust — perfectly charred, crispy, the right thickness, and the right chew. This is what I’ve been searching for in Madison. The toppings were fresh; the cheese abundant and perfectly stringy. The appetizers were good as well; I have to agree that the prosciutto and roasted red pepper were amazing; Jon confessed they were the most difficult to make (go figure!). ;-)
+ The gift basket. Our own, fresh ball of mozzarella? Coupons? Thank you! I loved the inclusion of the small group catering menu — I’m DEFINITELY ordering from Luigi’s for my project teams at work. We constantly struggle to find quality places for grub, so expect a call from me very soon, Luigi’s…
The only downside? It was quite noisy in the place, and it was difficult to hear some of the details. I totally appreciate the corner they gave us, and it’s awesome that the rest of the restaurant was hoppin’ all night, but it did make it a tad hard to hear at times (well, that and I’m an old fart whose hearing is shot). :-D
Kudos, again. Great event, great space, great food, great staff! I doubt I’ll ever try to make my own mozzarella, but I enjoyed learning how it’s made (I’ll leave the cheesemaking to the pros). And, as mentioned, the real bonus was discovering how awesome the food is from here. I can’t wait to return and throw a few more slices down my gullet.