"Pizza. Beer. Any questions?"
The slogan of the new pizza restaurant inside Surly Brewing pretty much sums up the pairing perfectly. What goes better with delicious craft beer than a nice piece of 'za?
And yes, there are a number of great places to get your pizza fix in the Twin Cities. So what makes Surly stand out? (Besides the amazing brew hall right downstairs ...)
Chef Ben Peine is bringing a flair to the local scene, slinging their versions of "apizzas" -- a New Haven-style pie that's not currently found 'round these parts.
"I was traveling out east and I came across this New Haven style and I really got inspired with it, fell in love with some of the characteristics of it and then started to put my own spin on it," Peine said.
That spin comes in the form of a thin, crispy -- charred, not burnt -- crust made with brewer's yeast (which is also used to make that famous beer) and super fresh ingredients.
"You get that char around the edge of the crust, you get that carbon that wears off on your fingers. You lick that off and that is really good flavor," Peine said.
The pizzas, which are made-to-order, baked at a high heat and served as a whole pie, are also hilariously named. Each pie pays homage to an iconic pizza scene in a film or TV show.
For example, the "I'm Your Daddy" is a nod to Talladega Nights, when Ricky Bobby is delivering pizza and meets his father in a hotel room for the first time. The pizza, which is a must (and a staff favorite), features pepperoni, sweet and hot peppers, red sauce, mozzarella and for a true treat, a healthy squirt of burnt honey.
"Walter White," obviously a tribute to the Breaking Bad scene where the teacher-turned-meth dealer flings a full pizza on the roof of his house. The WW is a traditional New Haven-style pizza with potato, rosemary, garlic and charred spring onions.
"Spicoli" is all about Fast Times at Ridgemont High -- the pizza features fennel sausage, grilled radicchio and onion.
"Mama Fratelli" is from the classic Goonies scene and features seasonal roasted mushrooms, chebris cheese, garlic and thyme.
"Turbo Ginsu" is from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles when they throw the pizza up in the air in order to properly slice it. It's a red sauce and mozz pizza, with moratdella, giardiniera and arugula.
"Mookie" is from Do the Right Thing and as a shout-out to Brooklyn, features salami, castelvetrano olives and red onion.
"Four Stars" is the critic's choice from Mystic Pizza and takes sprinkles figs and thinly sliced prosciutto on top of a ricotta spread, dunbarton blue cheese and arugula.
There's a "Buttercup" for the scene in Half Baked, honoring the great horse cop that was fed too much junk food. That's Surly's take on a classic margherita with pecorino, pickled tomatoes, basil, ricotta and parmesan.
"Beast" is from the hilarious scene in Wayne's World after Garth and Wayne sell out to a number of brands, including Pizza Hut. This is the restaurant's tribute to the south-of-the-border flavors with chili-marinated smoked pork, grilled pickled red onions, salsa verde, radish, cotija and queso oaxaca.
The basic "Kevin" pizza is named in honor of Home Alone and the youngster's devotion to plain cheese pizza. (And yes, you can "Dress up Kevin" with additional toppings, if you so choose.)
But don't be fooled by the restaurant's "pizza-focused" name. There's plenty on the menu to feed the masses -- as another ode to the east coast, they're serving both fresh and fried oysters, plus flatbread paired apps, like perfectly cheesy meatballs, baba ghanoush and more.
They're also trying something new when it comes to service. Guests will have a 7 percent service fee added to their check instead of accepting tips.
"A portion of the service fee is used to pay our employees a higher hourly wage and keep competitive benefits," Surly states.
Surly Pizza Upstairs (yes, because of it's location) will be open to the public on Friday. For more information, click here.