Demico's Pizzeria
 Canton, Ohio           Date of Visit: 11/15/13           
http://www.demicospizza.com/

Groupon leads us to North Canton to a pizza shop. Not many food options cooking on Groupon lately. I had minimal expectations. I left more impressed than I would have thought possible. Pulling into the strip plaza didn’t heighten anticipation, given the teeny frontage of the space. The three folks behind the counter with the two deck ovens seemed to be your typical pie slingers. We were trying to decide which of the three booths to occupy when they noticed we had walked in and offered us a menu.
 



 


 
 


Simple But Tasty Slaw Was First Step Towards A Good Meal Out
 

The dude asked if we had any questions while we were pursuing the menu and we later learned he’s the owner. I was looking at other-than-pizza options until we saw the haphazard sign in the window stating they had just been voted the best pizza in Stark County. He suggested a number of things from different parts of the menu and once we had decided, we stepped to the counter to deliver our typically ridiculous order.

This was when things started to change. I wanted to try something made in house so we ordered their slaw. It was then we discovered the slaw isn’t the only thing they are making from scratch. Sauce, I think crust, meatballs. When Steph asked if she could have her extra meatball in the ziti unsliced, the owner gushed with pride about someone trying his homemade meatball. It was a nice thing to see. They don’t make their own bread…they get it from the bakery down the plaza a ways, we saw the delivery. So all told, we ordered the slaw, a small pizza, the ziti, a Panini and dessert. We ended up bring a few meals home.
 

 
 
Small SMOG Pizza
 

Fresh Ingredients, Piping Hot, Excellent Combo
 
 

The slaw is simple but very nice. Sliced cabbage, light vinaigrette, celery seeds. That’s it. The pizza arrived next. A small S.M.O.G. (sausage/mushroom/onion/green peppers) which the menu states is a New York favorite. The crust has a yeasty bite and serious chew, the toppings were being sliced fresh while we were watching the pizza being put together. The sauce isn’t overly sweet or acidic or herbaceous, it hits many notes without standing out in any. Put it on serious crust, imbue it with super fresh ingredients, top it with mozzarella, provolone, then bake. When finished, dust with grated parmesan and pecorino romano cheeses. Viola. Best pie in Stark County. It is very well done.
 

 
Pasta Bowl Great, Except For Over-Cooked Noodles
 

Not Sure How These Keep Their Shape
 
 

The Ziti Bolognese comes with the homemade marinara and a splash of cream, two sausages, one crumbed, one sliced, and the aforementioned meatball. The pasta was definitely overdone. The sauce was tasty with a bit of spice pushing through the tomato and cream. The two sausages were flavorful. The meatball was undeniably nice. So little binder it struggled to maintain it’s orb-like countenance, quickly surrendering once it’s delivered to your pie hole. It just dissolved into a lightly seasoned meaty detonation. Serious work in a pizza shop, if only the pasta was more towards al dente, this would have been a great dish.
 


Enormous Panini...
 

...Look Out Pittsburgh
 

On the heels of the pasta came the sandwich and this thing is a monstrosity. The Italian version consists of genoa salami, ham, mortadella, pepperoni, provolone, seasoned fries, the homemade slaw, lettuce, onion, tomato, an Italian vinaigrette and a pickle spear. For me, the celery seeds in the slaw are a distraction in the sandwich, but that is a personal preference. Past that, if you enjoy Primanti’s sandwiches with the fries and slaw packed in with the rest of the goodies, you will enjoy this thing. Nice bread, toasted mid-brown, classic Italian meats, cheese, veg, then the slaw and fries, it works for many reasons.
 

We had three to go containers. We were bloated…but there are cannoli on the menu. Somehow, the gods decided to reward our gluttony with amazing treats. If you order cannoli, be prepared to give them a couple of minutes to fill them fresh, as God intended. The menu describes them as Brooklyn style. I’m not sure what that means, but these things are glorious. The incredibly crunchy cookie reeks of spice that seems to be lacking in other versions. I am used to mascarpone filling but theirs has a chocolate chip and cream cheese mix filling the tube. I thought I would miss the mascarpone but it turns out the difference is really negligible, a little extra tang and less texture but I didn’t object to either. Both ends of the dessert are smeared with the nutty/chocolaty nutella. There’s nothing about this little nugget that would make you regret ordering one of these, except for not ordering two. Demico’s turns out to be some folks who take their food and their customers seriously, and it shows.

 


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