Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Pizza, Produce and Signs!

How about a ‘variety blog’ for a change!  We’ll start with food…continue with food…and then we'll end with 2 small but clear and sensible signs that anyone can understand…


I love this old style sign...  The Pizza Palace is a Knoxville landmark… As you can see, it’s been 51 + years since Al, Gus and Arthur Peroulas pooled their savings and opened the Pizza Palace.  It’s still owned and operated by the family.  The Pizza Palace basically introduced pizza to Knoxville!

But…did you notice anything unusual in the photo?

How about a pizza joint that’s a drive-in restaurant!  Eating pizza in my car…or spaghetti for that matter…would guarantee that I’d be bathed in tomato sauce and other bits of food!  Still…even though a pizza drive-in doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense, they’ve been operating for 51 + years!

In 2007, the Pizza Palace was the second restaurant featured on Guy Fieri’s new show, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.  To view that clip and to take a closer look at this restaurant, just go to http://www.tvfoodmaps.com/place227.html 

If you didn’t believe that this was a drive-in just based on the outdoor photo, let me assure you that this narrow counter with stools suffices for those wishing to dine inside the restaurant…it's all there is! 

 FYI…pizzas cost from $5.75 for a small 10” cheese on up to $17.60 for a large 14” “Super”.  Spaghetti is another big menu item.  Meat sauce is the only option…no straight tomato sauce...but you can get your spaghetti and meat sauce with meat balls, mushrooms or pepperoni. ($7.65)

As you will note, our pepperoni and sausage pizza just barely fit on that narrow ‘dining ledge’.  The crust was nice and thin and fairly crispy but the crumbled sausage lacked definition as regards flavor… This was a good pizza, but we still think that Big Ed’s in Oak Ridge turns out the best pizza in the metropolitan area. 

Other food options on the menu include dinners…lasagna, ravioli, tenderloin steak, fried chicken, fried shrimp, fried oysters, a fried fish plate and veal cutlet a la Parmigiana.  The most expensive meal dinner cost $10.65!  There is also a plethora of sandwiches, salads and the Pizza Palace’s famous Hand-Breaded Onion Rings. ($4.15 for a whole order…a true stack of rings!)
The Pizza Palace is close to the Knoxville Zoo, so it’s a good place to pick up that pizza on the way home from a day with the kids and the wildlife.  Address: 3132 Magnolia Avenue, Knoxville Tennessee.  Phone: 865-524-4388.  Website: http://visitpizzapalace.com. 
To review my thoughts about Big Ed’s in Oak Ridge Tennessee, just go to http://bigdaddydavesbitsandpieces.blogspot.com/2011/12/best-pizza-in-east-tennessee.html.

This nice basket of fresh produce was courtesy of Larry ‘Big Dude’ and his wife, Bev. (http://bigdudesramblings.blogspot.com/) Big Dude is a Master Gardener, with a really great and large garden…as well as the king of smoking some very fine meats.  The green beans were terrific and the zucchini will be devoured very quickly.  There is nothing like fresh produce that’s just been harvested!  Thanks Larry and Bev!


These yellow signs on the back doors of that semi rig are the clear and sensible signs that I was talking about.  This photo was taken on I-90 between Cleveland and Erie Pennsylvania.  You will need to enlarge the photo to appreciate the two signs with the arrows as shown above… there both a clever warning and an example of some really wry humor!

Just click on any photo to enlarge it…
Thanks for stopping by for another visit!
Take Care, Big Daddy Dave 

6 comments:

  1. At least once a month, my boss springs for lunch for the whole office and we always vote for Pizza Palace. Only in Knoxville would one expect pizza with a side of onions rings. Somthing about a simple old-fashioned somewhat greasy pizza that hits the spot mid-week!

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  2. omgosh---i love eating pizza in the car--as a matter of fact i love eating in the car, better than inside!

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  3. wow..sounds and looks like a feast!! I would NEVER allow spaghetti to be eaten in my car..oh my gosh..I do not even want to think about it!

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  4. I loved your post today, Dave. The truck signs were right on point. I hope you have a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  5. Great post, Dave! The pizza drive in is a blast and I wish we had one here! The pizza looks so good and I'm starved now. More trucks should have those signs! :) A truck accident here on 8 lanes of traffic shut down the road--all lanes-- for 7 hours this morning. Talk about a mess.

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  6. Hope you enjoy the produce and thanks for the nice comments.

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