Reader Mailbag: Pizza Parlors and Hipster Haircuts

Dear Girl Friday,

This is a little off the GF beaten path, but your recommendations are probably the most reliable in The Cities so I thought I'd give it a shot...

In your metro area travels, have you come across a good salon or stylist that a hip young man (or woman) can go to for a cool haircut at a (fairly) reasonable price?

Hoping for another Girl Friday home run!

Ben Miller

Dear Ben,

I appreciate your confidence in me, even though you've never seen my hair.  Which I couldn't be happier with, by the way, but only because I have found the best hairstylist in Minneapolis.  I started seeing the lovely and talented Miss Sarah Buckley a few years ago on the recommendation of my sister.  She was at H Design in Uptown at the time, and has since worked at the Jon Oulman Gallery & Salon in Northeast. 

Because Sarah is both a wizard and a genius, she decided to take the plunge just last week: I'm very pleased to announce that she has now opened her own shop, Sassy Lu Salon.  It's on University and 13th Avenues NE, in the same building as Erte and the Peacock Lounge.

I've referred several friends to Sarah, and they've all been very happy with her skillz.  Also, Todd Trainor of Shellac refuses to allow anyone but Sarah to touch his hair.  If that's not a great endorsement, I don't know what is. 

 

Dear Girl Friday,

Can we talk about pizza? What's the best in mpls? I just moved here and need a good slice. Also, where can I get my eyebrows threaded in this city? Oh, i have so many questions. I'm glad I found you.

Andrea (from the comments on this post)

Dear Andrea,

I asked around, but no one that I talked to knew of any particular salons that do threading.  Instead, I got a bunch of vague suggestions.  So I just did a Google search and came up with ekNazar, a yellow pages directory for the Indian community.  It has a list of several salons in the metro that offer threading.

(For those that don't know, threading is an old skool Indian technique of facial hair removal, wherein cotton thread is rolled along the skin to entwine the hair and pull it out.)

Alright, let's talk about pizza!  I'm going to give you my top five, in no particular order.  Try them out and let me know what you think.

- Punch Neapolitan Pizza (Highland Park, Lake Calhoun, Eden Prairie)
The crème de la crème.  Authentic Neapolitan pizza (so I'm told, I've never been to Italy) with a perfect chewy crust and the highest quality ingredients.  I prefer the Calhoun Village Punch; counter service but lots more elbow room and much brighter.

- Fat Lorenzo's (Lake Nokomis)
I'm a bread-lovin' girl, so when I want puffy, yeasty, doughy crust it just doesn't get any better than this.  And the sauce is pure chunky tomato goodness.  You can get it by the slice, served appropriately with a knife and fork, for an indulgent lunch.  Also, the guys that work there are hot.

- Pizza Luce (Uptown, Downtown, Seward, Duluth)
Gourmet pizza with creative topping combinations.  I like to get half Spinocchi and half Garlic Mashed Potato, but go ahead, try something crazy and get jiggy with it.  Just don't deviate from the pizza.  The hoagies, pastas, and desserts are average on their best day.

- Davanni's (Several Locations)
Another local chain, Davanni's doesn't have anything too special until you start talking about their Chicago Deep Dish pizza.  Oh boy how I love that thick and buttery crust.  This baby stands about two inches tall and comes topped with a flavorful, chunky red sauce that's only served with the Deep Dish version.

- Crescent Moon Bakery (Northeast)
Some nutty fellow decided to take a giant Afghani flatbread, slather it with spicy, garlicky, tomato sauce, then add cheese on top and stick it in the oven.  What came out was a pretty kick-ass pizza.  Go straight for the Afghani Pizza, not the regular version, and make sure you dip your crusts in the green hot sauce.  I don't know what it is exactly, but I do know that it's required eating.

Dear Girl Friday,

I love your blog!  Thank you so much for the great advice!  I'd love to compensate you for your time and effort.  Do you have a PayPal account?

Grateful Reader

Dear Grateful Reader,

I've actually been thinking about this for a while.  I spend a fair amount of time answering Girl Friday Reader Mailbag questions, and I also reply to quite a few email questions that don't always make it to the blog.  Many of them require a bit of research, which is something I normally charge to do.  And keeping a blog isn't generally a paying gig.  (In fact, I have to pay Typepad to keep this one.)

But is it tacky?  I'd hate to do something distasteful and offend my readers.  Then again, I link to my Amazon Wish List in the side column.  Is that any different?  I strive to help people find exactly what they're looking for.  It's part of what I do for a living.  So... yeah, I guess it's okay to give you the option to compensate me for my time and effort.

What the hell, let's try this out.  There is now a permanent link to my shiny new PayPal account on the Girl Friday About page.  Maybe I'll eventually figure out how to put it in the side column on the main page.  All signs are currently pointing to "not quite that web savvy", but who knows.  I finally figured out how to make movies on the computer today, which was giant leap for me.

I'm really happy that so many people find my blog useful.  Thanks for reading!

Comments

[Ashby]

I went to some pizza joint with our favorite amateur comic after an open mic - I think it was well into the single digit hours too.

I think it was Pizza Luce, I think, and it was damn good. I was pretty drunk, though. Drunk on the order of proclaiming my new found love of "fake" duck as a pizza topping.

Tennessee is ashamed to let me go anywhere on my own.

[hedgie]

If you're willing to make the trek to St. Paul for Punch pizza, I recommend leaving the NY style pizza to those crazy New Yorkers, and trying something that I've never seen duplicated. Just a mile or so from Punch, still in Highland Park, is a pizzeria called Carbone's. It's on the corner of Randolph and Davern, and is a singular store (there is a chain of the same name in the Twin Cities, but this is the original).

They serve meatball hoagies and spaghetti, but their menu is really rather limited because if you go there for anything but the pizza, you're insane. All their pizzas are thin-crust, and the toppings are under the cheese, but there is just something about it... It's definitely a unique experience.

The service varies, but that's because it's a real mom&pop joint. There's a jukebox, but no hipsters. If you're sick of the Pizza Luce crowd and want something mighty tasty, brave the wilds of St. Paul and enjoy a little something unique.

[MOM]

Like usual, I haven't had my first cup of coffee and I read your blog and immediately get hungry! Twice I've driven down for Afghani pizza and was disappointed - they're not open on MONDAYS! I second all the pizza places!! Also, I heartily endorse Sarah Buckley -- I have the worst hair and she performs miracles...

[hue]

Great Call on the pizzas I agree with every one.

Everyone should try Mock Duck on a pizza at least once. They also have a great Chick-less Parm sandwich.

If mock meat isn't your thing, the good people at Luce have "The Bear" (all the farm animals are represented: Pig, Cow, even Chicken).

I can't talk about Luce without mentioning the Tuna Calente and Tiramisu... Luce is definetly in my top 5. Excellent lunch, dinner, and "Post Bar" Food.

[herb]

hair salon - olive. very cool. very cool people.

http://www.olivesalon.com/

[Alexis]

Great suggestions, everyone. Keep 'em coming!

[Domenic]

Can't agree more about Sarah Buckley. Not only is she great with hair, but she is fun to know. Tip - schedule your appointment for around 4:00 p.m. so you can go to the adjacent Peacock Lounge for 2 for 1's afterward (start at 5:00).

[Geoff]

Hair & Pizza for Men:
On the topic of hair and pizza, here is the 2nd best use of $25 & 1 hour in the entire metro(please refer back to Derusha's report on Alexis' service for the best use of $25 and 1 hour):
Right between the 8th Street Saloon and Bombay Bistro on Marquette Ave is Feature Cut Barber Stylist. You want to go to the Filipino guy with the nicotine stained fingers, as the other guy (presumably the owner) has a terrible toupe and totally botched the first cut I had there. Once seated, you can get a simultaneous cut and shoe shine while reading Maxim, Playboy or Dirty Old Men's Journal for just $18, including gratuity. From there, walk across Marquette and into the skyway level of the TCF Tower to Gianelli's, where you can get a 2 huge pizza slices for under $5.

[Alexis]

Ginelli's just started delivering, too. And they're open until 2am Fridays & Saturdays.

Geoff, do they serve anything unique for breakfast? I'm looking at this coupon flyer I have and it says they open at 7:30am Monday-Friday.

[ben]

Sarah's online appointment schedule was just so damn handy, I went ahead and set something up for this weekend. I'll be sure to let you know how it turns out.

Shameless plug in 3...2... 1...: You could also check out the "Before" version at O'Gara's tonight at 8 and the "After" version at Whiskey Junction on Saturday.

[Geoff]

I haven't walked by Ginelli's before 11am in about 2 years, but I seem to recall 3 "morning pizza" options:
1) Apple Cinnamon
2) Scrambled egg & sausage
3) Scrambed egg & veggie.
4) Cold leftovers (they don't really offer it, but if they did I would go out of my way for if)

In the name of defending my reputation as a professional caterer (and eater), this is in no way an endorsement of Ginelli's breakfast, as I have never tried it.

Just out of curiosity, what does Sarah charge for styling? I only continue going to a barber in a vain attempt to balance out my wife's gazillion dollar monthly hair care bills. In the name of fairness, I would like to either upgrade my steez or at least make her's more affordable.

[Geoff]

Forgot about the new Mama's Pizza on the skyway level of the US Bank building...better pizza than Ginelli's, full buffet, plasma TVs and better people-watching considering its proximity to the Targetto.

[Alexis]

Geoff: my last cut & color was $85.00, and I think it's $40 for a haircut. That was 2 weeks ago, though, when she was still working at Jon Oulman. Give her a call and ask. Oh, and tell her I sent you. Because then I get $5 off my next service.

[Sarah Buckley]

Hi, Wow in such good company as a pizza conversation.. I feel like I made it. I LOVE Cresent Moon Afgani Pizza. I have to control myself not to eat it all because I love it cold the next day too. As far as my rates for hair doos a cut is $40 and it includes a scalp massage. I also do color, all over is $45 and a foil is $85. Thanks for the props Alexis.. xoxo Sarah