Fun fact of the day: fear of the number 13 is an actual,
documented phobia. In case you are a
contestant on Jeopardy! at some point in the future, you may be interested to
know that this documented disorder is known in medical circles as
Triskaideaphobia. And I imagine that
2013 has been a rough year for these poor, superstitious bastards. I mean – you can avoid the 13th
floor and you can stay home on Friday the 13th to avoid being
stabbed my crazy dudes in hockey masks, but I imagine it’s difficult to lock
yourself away from civilization for an entire year just because you don’t like
the number 13.
I, for one, suffer from many irrational fears, including but
not limited to and in no particular order:
Fear of the Bonnie Tyler song, “Total Eclipse of the Heart”. (This particular phobia seems to be unique to
me. And I stand by it. Ever since November 11, 1983, every single
time I hear this particular tune, insanely bad luck follows. Thus, I have developing a very specific
coping mechanism that includes yelling, plugging my ears, and thrashing around
until I can change the station. I am
particularly irritated to note that this ditty of doom is now used in a
FiberOne commercial. I am confident that
constipation is in my future as a result.)
In spite of my many, many fears – and there are more, mind you – I
merely highlighted the big ones for you - I do not happen to suffer from
Triskaideaphobia. I’m too busy worrying
about birds, the earth’s gravitational forces conspiring against me, dentists,
and Bonnie Tyler to be worried about the number 13. So, it was with a spring in my step, joy in
my heart, and a rumbling in my belly that I rounded up my hubby for a pizza “linner” 13
miles away from home on our 13th consecutive week of pizza
consumption. (Editorial note: “linner”
is not a typo. After waking up at 5 AM;
ingesting about 100 ounces of Starbucks’ finest; and eating nothing but a small
peanut butter Rice Krispie treat all day, I was Starvin’ Marvin
by 3 PM. Out of a healthy sense of
self-preservation, my hubby agreed to a late lunch/early dinner (aka linner)
for our pizza date. )
Pre-Pizza Moods:
Princess D: 6
Hubby: 6
Our pre-pizza moods were slightly above average. We were looking forward to a visiting Pizza
Luce in Richfield, since “the Luce” holds a special place in our hearts. And yes, you do have to endure the
story. My hubby was not immediately
smitten with me, believe it or not. I
had to expend a significant amount of time and energy winning him over and
convincing him to adjust his maximum height limit for love. Before our first real date, he became
involved in a home improvement project I was working on. It involved a lot of dirt, patio pavers,
sweat, and a third-party we’ll call “jerk face”. Long story short, although sweaty, dirty,
and disgusting, I began to sway my future hubby’s opinion about tall girls
while we shared a pie at the Seward Pizza Luce location . . . and two weeks
later, we had our first date. I like to think
it was the Luce that won him over.
Located on West 66th Street between Lyndale and I-35W, Pizza
Luce Richfield is the newest member of the Luce family and occupies the former
home of Bridgeman’s Ice Cream Parlor.
Luce Richfield opened in the summer of 2012 – and although we are big
Pizza Luce fans here (we’ve enjoyed their Uptown, Seward, and Hopkins
locations), week 13 was our first trip to Richfield since their grand opening
over a year ago.
Parking Situation: It was a
wet and windy late afternoon – the kind of weather that pretty much demands
that you sport your favorite hoodie. We
drove the 13 miles to Richfield and pulled into Luce’s parking lot – which is
well-paved, smooth, nice parking experience.
We nabbed a spot not far from the door and I’m fairly confident I could
navigate this parking lot on my own, which says a lot given my dubious parking
track record. In fact, having attempted
parking at other Luce locations, I’m going to go out on a limb and proclaim
that Richfield has a superior parking lot.
And it did not go unnoticed.
Exterior Appearance: Have you ever eaten at the India Palace in Roseville and felt
both delighted by their authentic selection of curried favorites and oddly
nostalgic for the Happy Chef
that once occupied this space? My point
is that most of the time, when you eat in a restaurant that occupies the space
of a former restaurant, you’re often surrounded by the ghosts of eateries
past. Pizza Luce in Richfield is the exception
to this rule. While they may occupy the
former Bridgeman’s space, you’re not haunted by the ghosts of ice-cream sundaes
past. Luce updated the space and it
looks like a contemporary, inviting restaurant even from the outside. A huge outdoor patio (weather permitting)
allows diners to enjoy pizza al fresco – and they have done an excellent job
giving this former ice cream parlor a hip, pizza-loving vibe.
Entrance/Welcome: Walk right
in and you’ll be greeted by a host located right inside the door. We were seated within 90 seconds of entry,
and the hostess kindly inquired if we would prefer a booth or a table. We’re booth people. And our request was graciously accommodated.
Clientele/Overall Vibe:
Keeping in mind that we were there at the “linner hour”, Pizza Luce wasn’t
busting at the seams with patrons. It
was, however, happy hour (a happy accident) and there were several small
parties seated at the bar and at tables around us who were enjoying happy hour specials. Each Luce location has a different vibe. When I eat at Seward, I don’t fit in due to
my lack of tattoos and Gap-centric wardrobe.
(Sometimes I sport an ironic t-shirt just to fit in. It’s pathetic.) When I eat Uptown, I’m surrounded by hipster
doofuses. In Hopkins, I’m surrounded by
minivan driving soccer moms and their offspring. And in Richfield . . . well, it’s different. Richfield is an inner-ring suburb, bordered
by Minneapolis to the north, Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport to the
east, Bloomington to the south, and Edina to the west. It was voted as a “best place to live” in 2011,
and Richfield boasts a lot of senior living communities as well as young
families. Richfield is kind of a melting
pot and the Pizza Luce reflects that.
Unlike the other Luces where I never really felt like I fit in – but I
enjoyed their pizza anyway – Richfield has an “anything goes, come on in” kind
of vibe. Way to go, Richfield!
Wait Staff: Our server,
Shana, was outstanding. She was helpful,
fun, timely and she helped us reach a win-win ordering solution when I feared
we’d reached an impasse. Shana is the
type of server every restaurant should have – and she was worth every red cent
of the 25% tip I left her.
Menu Selection: Pizza Luce offers hoagies, salads,
appetizers, desserts, and of course . . . lots of pizza. Special dietary needs? Vegans, vegetarians, and gluten-free diners
are all happily accommodated here. A
wide variety of interesting specialty pizzas are on the menu. If you’re feeling adventurous, Shana gave a
strong endorsement of the Baked Potato Pizza and even offered to buy it for us
if we didn’t like it. In spite of her
persuasive arguments for the potato pizza, Shana also advised us that the
Classic and the Ruby Rae are among the most popular. We proceeded to argue with one another about
which to order until the very diplomatic Shana suggested we do half and
half. So we did. She’s pretty great.
Food Wait Time: Given the time of day and the small number of
patrons, food service was slower than I would have expected. However, the $3 happy hour wine – which is
generously poured, might I add – kept my mind off my rumbling belly. The
longer wait time is actually not atypical in my Luce dining experience. There’s always a wait.
Drumroll, please . . . the Pizza
Itself: The Ruby Rae is an upside
down pizza with the spicy, saucy, tasty red sauce on top. It features spinach to make you strong,
bruschetta tomatoes, Italian sausage, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses, and
spicy crushed red pepper. Upside down or
not, it’s delicious. The crust is
nothing to write home about, but it serves as an excellent and evenly cooked
easel upon which to create a masterpiece such as the Ruby Rae. Yum, yum, yum.
Now, Ruby Rae is clearly my favorite and what I order pretty much every
time I have the opportunity to eat at Luce.
However, my hubby encouraged me to consider other options on this visit,
so half of our pizza was the popular Classic.
Simple and traditional, this pizza isn’t trying to be special – it’s
just good, old-fashioned pizza, featuring Italian sausage, pepperoni,
mushrooms, green peppers, onions, black olives, and a zesty red sauce. Fresh, hot, and delicious – the classic is a classic. We pretty much licked the platter clean on
both halves of this pizza pie. And the
Ruby Rae still gets our collective vote as one of our favorite pizzas in
town.
Price & Value: A 16 inch
specialty pizza, iced tea for the hubby, and happy hour wine for me ran us $31
plus tip. And I tipped well because I
sure liked Shana. Having spent more money
at places I’d rather not remember eating at (yes, weeks 7
and 12,
I’m talking about you!), I’m going to go out on a limb and say that this is a
good value for your pizza dollar. Even
if you leave a big tip. Which you
should, if Shana is your server.
Bottom Line: You’re going to
get a consistently delicious pizza at any of the Luce locations. And I daresay that I prefer Richfield to the
rest – the staff is great, the pizza is delicious, and there is a “come as you
are” vibe that welcomes people from all walks of life. It is 13 miles away, but 13 just might be my
lucky number!
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