It’s tough to have a bad night with the sound of John Fogerty’s raspy voice and jangly guitar playing over and over again. Little Tony’s, located in Palace Station – finally a reason to go to Palace Station – plays a soundtrack of classic rock, mostly Credence Clearwater Revival, in a dark space in the middle of the casino. The overhead lights, sometimes built into cool fixtures with fans attached, make the place more visible, but apparently not visible enough as one would expect a pizza joint with Tony Gemignani’s name attached to be a lot busier.
Gemignani, the multi-time award winning pizza champ, has made his presence known in Las Vegas in a quick manner. Pizza Rock downtown always seems to be buzzing with patrons. A second location just opened at Green Valley Ranch along with a quicker on-the-go outlet Slice House, in the food court. With hip and upscale locations, Palace Station, where you might imagine some patrons when hearing a Credence tune would curse, “those damn kids and their rock’n’roll music” is an odd fit for the pizza entrepreneur who, until this place, seems to have been very calculating with his Vegas moves.
However, if success is based solely on quality food, then Little Tony’s will do just as well as the rest of Gemignani’s empire. Now let’s review our meal and soundtrack each plate with an appropriate song.
Course 1: Meatballs 3 for $5
Song 1: Mama, I’m Coming Home – Ozzy Osbourne
Gemignani keeps it old school here with a grind consisting of beef, pork and veal. As desired, the exterior had just the right firmness, getting the correct amount of cook time while the interior was soft and juicy. Smothered in tomato sauce with hints of both tangy and sweet, it married nicely with the noticeable pepper and even more noticeable hot pepper aftertaste, a component featured prominently in multiple dishes. These are the type of meatballs you would expect to taste at an Italian mother’s Sunday dinner table.
Course 2: The Bronx 9 inch pie $11
Song 2: One Way or Another (Remastered) – Single – Blondie
There are so many pizzas to choose from in five different styles: classic American, Chicago Cast Iron, New York, classic Italian and gluten free. From the New York section, this is a foldable pie bombarded with toppings. Start with the peppery tomato sauce and mozzarella. Then add hot coppa, a spicy cold cut looking meat made from pork shoulder and seasoned with chili pepper and paprika. Think prosciutto with a nasty attitude. Then pile on cherry and peppadew peppers, kalamata olives, arugula and goat cheese. Sounds like too much? It is. Some of the flavors get drowned out. There’s plenty of saltiness and where you think goat cheese might mellow certain sensations, it’s overpowered. Arugula adds a clean bite but again can’t compete with all the peppers, which could have been halved and still had the same effect. Sure it’s tasty, but it could use some editing.
Course 3: Cal Italia 9 inch pie $10
Song 3: Sweetest Thing – U2
There were high expectations for this pie from the Classic Italian section which was the Gold Medal winner in Food Network’s Pizza Champions Challenge. This was a four cheese concoction featuring asiago, mozzarella, imported gorgonzola and Parmigiano-Reggiano. The mozzarella had excellent elasticity. The star was the shaved Parmigiano which was assertive and an excellent counter punch to the sweetness supplied by sweet fig preserve and balsamic reduction. Figs and cheese are a natural fit and the fruit is becoming an increasingly popular pizza topping. The balsamic reduction was awesome. Smooth, tart, sweet. That along with the Parmigiano made the pie. The prosciutto de Parma was nice but basically unnecessary on this already delicious invention.
Course 4: The Dillinger $35
Song 4: I Want It All – Queen
Gemignani has won many awards. This pizza, from the Chicago section, is advertised as having won the “World’s Best Pizza” in 2014. I looked but I couldn’t find which competition or organization that bestowed the honor on this deep dish pie. The pizza was unique, but best in the world? Maybe not. This is a monster of a pie featuring 7,057 ingredients. Okay, not that many. But a lot. Smoked vodka cream sauce, chicken, bacon, bell peppers, mozzarella, provolone, cheddar, artichoke hearts, broccolini, fresh lemon, crushed red pepper, parsley. With that many cooks in the kitchen, not everybody is going to get their moment. The broccolini shines as a centerpiece for each slice but then the artichokes are hard to find. The mozzarella is the only cheese I tasted, partially because of the thick sauce. But it’s still good. The crust is thick and crisped parmesan makes the edges taste like your are eating toasted cheese scrapings – which is one of those things we might not want to admit we do, but come on. I needed more lemon to cut all the richness. There’s a lot going on.
Course 5: Mud Pie $9
Song 5: Talk Dirty to Me (Remastered) – Single – Poison
Another behemoth of a slice. The ice cream was soft. Vanilla had your sweet tooth covered, but the real winner was the coffee ice cream made with espresso beans. Many coffee ice creams overpower the rest of their counterparts but this one was so subtle, it made everything else pop. Oreo cookie crust, chocolate ganache, hot fudge, caramel and whipped cream. And it’s big enough for two people. Can a mud pie be sexy? Maybe…
Course 6: Caramel Budino $7
Song 6: Smooth Operator – Sade
Little Tony might be a master of combining huge amounts of ingredients, but his basic dessert might have been the most delicious bite of the night. Lusciously smooth caramel pudding with a hint of bourbon, homemade whipped cream, and sea salt to elevate the entire thing. This dessert should win Gemignani’s next award. Sometimes simplicity is best.
Walkout Music: Travelin’ Band – Creedence Clearwater Revival
Little Tony’s 2411 W Sahara Ave, Las Vegas, NV 89102
(Palace Station)
(702) 898-2813 http://littletonyslasvegas.com
