Many folks here know fellow LTHer jvalentino (Jeff Valentino), who launched
a line of artisanal dry pastas last year, which are truly something special. It should come as no surprise to anyone who's tried the pastas that Jeff has quite a culinary knack. He recently procured a mobile, wood-burning oven and started up a touring pizzeria business. This past weekend, he set up shop in my driveway (full disclosure: I hired him to cater a party) and the pizzas he put out were nothing short of spectacular. I was partying pretty hard, so I didn't get any pictures (though, I'm guessing that others who were in attendance may have) but these pies were textbook perfect. The crusts were crispy, light and pleasantly chewy. The complex flavor of that dough (the flavor just continued to build throughout the entire chew) was satisfying beyond words. The beautiful bits of char on the edges and bottoms of the crusts provided perfect accents of flavor. And the toppings -- all of superior quality -- were
almost unnecessary because of how sensational that dough was.
Jeff and his cohort busted their asses putting out 60 pizzas. Each and every slice of each and every pizza was devoured. At one point in the evening, my mensch of a step-father literally threw an elbow trying to block another guest from grabbing one of the last 2 slices on the table. In what was an understandable moment -- though, certainly not his proudest -- he grabbed both slices for himself. Luckily, there was plenty more to come after that. I've been hearing all week from my guests and in spite of all the other great food we had, each and every one of them has glowingly mentioned the pizzas. And I feel the same way. I've been thinking about Jeff's wondrous pizzas all week. He also threw down some peak-of-the-season Caprese Salads but those pizzas were the stuff of legends.
Again, I'm really sorry I didn't grab any pictures but hopefully, some other folks who were there will post some. In the meantime, you can check out their facebook page for at least a few images:
Pizzeria Valentino facebook page. And if you want to get in touch with Pizzeria Valentino, you can do so by calling (815) 250-7206. I'm already trying to create an occasion (aka excuse) for hiring them again.

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Pizzeria Valentinoeatpizzeriavalentino@gmail.com(815) 250-7206
I am not interested in how I would evaluate the Springbank in a blind tasting. Every spirit has its story, and I include it in my evaluation, just as I do with human beings. --Thad Vogler
I'll be the tastiest pork cutlet bowl ever --Yuri Katsuki
That don't impress me much --Shania Twain