Ale Pie House...
Not looking good on Yelp:
http://www.yelp.com/biz/ale-pie-house-jacksonville
Looking moderate on Urban Spoon:
http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/44/1735431/restaurant/Avondale/Ale-Pie-House-Jacksonville
Is it worth trying? Will Mellow Mushroom put them out of business?
Everything's worth trying once:)
Yelp only has 4 votes, that's not a good enough sample size. Urbanspoon at 78% isn't bad, but that isn't great either. 78% with 11 votes, I'd still give them a shot.
The initial reviews are not that great but they are also few in number. Sounds like they may have some weakness in their management if they have allowed such poor servers out front. This can make or break them right quick. Let's hope they get their act together and step it up. I would truly like to see them succeed. Let's see what the reviews are like a month from now. :)
Quote from: Cheshire Cat on March 21, 2013, 03:48:35 PM
I would truly like to see them succeed. Let's see what the reviews are like a month from now. :)
Might help them succeed more if you went there rather than just waiting to read the reviews in a month.
I had planned on going there and looked at their menu quickly online and didn't see pizza by the slice. I decided to go to Moon River instead.
Quote from: cline on March 21, 2013, 04:12:53 PM
Quote from: Cheshire Cat on March 21, 2013, 03:48:35 PM
I would truly like to see them succeed. Let's see what the reviews are like a month from now. :)
Might help them succeed more if you went there rather than just waiting to read the reviews in a month.
Cline, If my health would allow it, I would have already gone. Unfortunately, my body just won't allow me to do what my heart and mind desires as readily as it used to and I can tell you it is not at all fun when you are used to being very active in life. :)
I've been twice, and they do have pizza by the slice. The pizza is pretty good, and the calzone's are huge. I consider it a good addition to the neighborhood. Not to mention the interior is really upscale for a pizza joint.
Worst Yelp reviews I've seen in a long time! Damn!
Quote from: CG7 on March 21, 2013, 05:10:05 PM
I've been twice, and they do have pizza by the slice. The pizza is pretty good, and the calzone's are huge. I consider it a good addition to the neighborhood. Not to mention the interior is really upscale for a pizza joint.
How would you rate the food and your service CG7?
The Food Bitch rated it as pretty much meh...
http://thefoodbitchblog.com
Quote from: cline on March 21, 2013, 04:12:53 PM
Might help them succeed more if you went there rather than just waiting to read the reviews in a month.
+1,000,000
Quote from: Cheshire Cat on March 21, 2013, 04:28:15 PM
Quote from: cline on March 21, 2013, 04:12:53 PM
Quote from: Cheshire Cat on March 21, 2013, 03:48:35 PM
I would truly like to see them succeed. Let's see what the reviews are like a month from now. :)
Might help them succeed more if you went there rather than just waiting to read the reviews in a month.
Cline, If my health would allow it, I would have already gone. Unfortunately, my body just won't allow me to do what my heart and mind desires as readily as it used to and I can tell you it is not at all fun when you are used to being very active in life. :)
Why not let them bring it to your door then... They do deliver.
The wife and I tried them out earlier this week, even after the lackluster reviews. I thought the NY thin was pretty good and arguably the best delivery option for the neighborhood.
Quote from: Shwaz on March 21, 2013, 11:04:24 PM
Quote from: Cheshire Cat on March 21, 2013, 04:28:15 PM
Quote from: cline on March 21, 2013, 04:12:53 PM
Quote from: Cheshire Cat on March 21, 2013, 03:48:35 PM
I would truly like to see them succeed. Let's see what the reviews are like a month from now. :)
Might help them succeed more if you went there rather than just waiting to read the reviews in a month.
Cline, If my health would allow it, I would have already gone. Unfortunately, my body just won't allow me to do what my heart and mind desires as readily as it used to and I can tell you it is not at all fun when you are used to being very active in life. :)
Why not let them bring it to your door then... They do deliver.
The wife and I tried them out earlier this week, even after the lackluster reviews. I thought the NY thin was pretty good and arguably the best delivery option for the neighborhood.
I had no idea they delivered. That is good to know. :) Just for the sake of clarification folks, my comment about seeing the revues in a month was meant to give the restaurant a chance to get over the opening jitters and see what "others" had to say about it and not depend on one opinion including my own. My hope is that the reviews will improve for them and not a statement to say I would not try them until that amount of time had passed. Knowing they deliver, I will indeed give them a try but that still will not equated to a visit there in regards to service. :) I hope they do very well.
I agree, Cheshire. I'm the same why. (Not always a popular sentiment on the forums.)
Found a link for the FB page. Also, looking on the Yelp page at the last few pictures of some of their entree's, I have to say that the ziti and garlic knot's look darn good, as well as the lasagna and pepper jack pita. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ale-Pie-House-St-Johns-Ave/453631734698610?ref=stream
Here is the menu.
http://www.thehandmadepieandalehouse.com/
Cheshire, that menu does look good but I think its for a pizza place in England. :-)
Quote from: Kickbackssteve on March 22, 2013, 06:19:41 PM
Cheshire, that menu does look good but I think its for a pizza place in England. :-)
Oh my goodness, glad you noticed that Kickback! I am afraid that is a bit too far to travel for me and it is my guess that they will not deliver. lol My sister and her hubby are going to try them out. I suppose I just better have them pick me up a menu. :)
Anyone else think their Facebook page is incredibly sloppy and lacks any sense of energy at all.
Quote from: ben says on March 22, 2013, 06:55:53 PM
Anyone else think their Facebook page is incredibly sloppy and lacks any sense of energy at all.
Funny Ben Says I drove by the Ale Pie House tonight 6:45pm and it seemed full with a lot of cars parked across the street? Why so negative towards this business remember Rome wasn't built in a day. Mellow Mushroom sure is taking their time to build. If Ale Pie could get it together maybe they would be alright even when Mellow Mushroom comes to Avondale. ;)
Quote from: If_I_Loved_you on March 22, 2013, 07:22:53 PM
Quote from: ben says on March 22, 2013, 06:55:53 PM
Anyone else think their Facebook page is incredibly sloppy and lacks any sense of energy at all.
Funny Ben Says I drove by the Ale Pie House tonight 6:45pm and it seemed full with a lot of cars parked across the street? Why so negative towards this business remember Rome wasn't built in a day. Mellow Mushroom sure is taking their time to build. If Ale Pie could get it together maybe they would be alright even when Mellow Mushroom comes to Avondale. ;)
Huh?
Quote from: ben says on March 21, 2013, 05:18:26 PM
Worst Yelp reviews I've seen in a long time! Damn!
Funny Ben Says I drove by the Ale Pie House tonight 6:45pm and it seemed full with a lot of cars parked across the street? Why so negative towards this business remember Rome wasn't built in a day. Mellow Mushroom sure is taking their time to build. If Ale Pie could get it together maybe they would be alright even when Mellow Mushroom comes to Avondale. ;)
Quote from: ben says on March 22, 2013, 06:55:53 PM
Anyone else think their Facebook page is incredibly sloppy and lacks any sense of energy at all.
is there anything you do like?
It's kind of a weird name, no? Just sayin'...
Quote from: tufsu1 on March 22, 2013, 09:04:09 PM
Quote from: ben says on March 22, 2013, 06:55:53 PM
Anyone else think their Facebook page is incredibly sloppy and lacks any sense of energy at all.
is there anything you do like?
^^^ +1,000,000
There's obviously tons of places I like....13 Gypsies, Bold Bean, Tres Leches, Orsay, Black Sheep, Cozy Tea, etc...
What I don't like is half-assed attempts at opening restaurants by people who think "gee, opening restaurants look easy, let's make a shitty product at 1000% of what it costs to make, not train our staff, be too lazy to think of a good name/make a real Facebook page, and then lets be surprised when we epically fail"
^No, you love that, because it gives you a chance to complain about it on the internet. ;)
This is the correct URL for their site:
http://alepiehouse.com/
And the menu: http://alepiehouse.com/images/AlePieHouse_menu.pdf
So, my sister and her husband visited the Ale Pie House yesterday for lunch and got a pizza later for dinner. They also brought me a takeout and some pizza. Here is what they had to say. Their in restaurant experience was okay. The first thing they remarked about was the fact that the restaurant was playing "Indian" music which kind of put them in the mood for Indian food as opposed to Italian. lol Their server was definitely new and not familiar with the menu, but nice. There is no lunchtime menu or special so they ordered from the regular menu and just got a chicken parmesan and meatball sandwich and brought home a meatball sandwich for me. They liked the sandwiches. The meatball one I had was good as meatball sandwiches go. The ingredients they used were all fresh and of top quality which is what made their sandwich better than others I have tasted. The sandwich was large and will make two lunches for me. Later they picked up a pepperoni pizza which was very tasty. It was better than the fare one gets from places like Pizza Hut, Domino's etc. The ingredients were good and the cheese was top quality. It had a nice subtle garlic flavor to the sauce. We would get the pizza again. Plan to try some of the pasta dishes soon. I believe the fact that they deliver will help them find their niche in Avondale. I would choose their pizza over the others who deliver in a heartbeat. It was true old fashioned N.Y. style. :)
They offer vegan cheese! It's only the second pizza place (Carmines) in the Riverside/downtown area to do that (besides Sun Ray).
Quote from: ben says on March 23, 2013, 11:23:38 AM
There's obviously tons of places I like....13 Gypsies, Bold Bean, Tres Leches, Orsay, Black Sheep, Cozy Tea, etc...
What I don't like is half-assed attempts at opening restaurants by people who think "gee, opening restaurants look easy, let's make a shitty product at 1000% of what it costs to make, not train our staff, be too lazy to think of a good name/make a real Facebook page, and then lets be surprised when we epically fail"
He who has little faith, relax. ;)
Riverside seems to go in phases with it's food expansion. First it was sushi, then frozen yogurt now, the most exoctic of all: pizza.
As long as the owner of Ale's pie house doesn't put coupons in the Folio they won't honor I'll give them a shot!
Quote from: Cheshire Cat on March 25, 2013, 12:27:13 PM
So, my sister and her husband visited the Ale Pie House yesterday for lunch and got a pizza later for dinner. They also brought me a takeout and some pizza. Here is what they had to say. Their in restaurant experience was okay. The first thing they remarked about was the fact that the restaurant was playing "Indian" music which kind of put them in the mood for Indian food as opposed to Italian. lol Their server was definitely new and not familiar with the menu, but nice. There is no lunchtime menu or special so they ordered from the regular menu and just got a chicken parmesan and meatball sandwich and brought home a meatball sandwich for me. They liked the sandwiches. The meatball one I had was good as meatball sandwiches go. The ingredients they used were all fresh and of top quality which is what made their sandwich better than others I have tasted. The sandwich was large and will make two lunches for me. Later they picked up a pepperoni pizza which was very tasty. It was better than the fare one gets from places like Pizza Hut, Domino's etc. The ingredients were good and the cheese was top quality. It had a nice subtle garlic flavor to the sauce. We would get the pizza again. Plan to try some of the pasta dishes soon. I believe the fact that they deliver will help them find their niche in Avondale. I would choose their pizza over the others who deliver in a heartbeat. It was true old fashioned N.Y. style. :)
CC Thanks for your honest opinion of this restaurant. :)
Had a takeout pie on Saturday. It was quite tasty.
Slankinship --- Moon River is now offering vegan cheese as well.
We had to stop going to Carmines, i've been screwed over one too many times now and have finally given up even though I love their pizza. I will have to give AlePie a try.
After I found out they delivered we have ordered from them a couple times, and I gotta say the food is pretty damn good. I love Carmine's but they don't deliver and sometimes I don't feel like going out. Ale Pie's stuff is heads and tails above anything else that delivers around here. I can't speak as to the restaurant experience since I haven't eaten there, but this place is very solid food-wise.
Quote from: ChriswUfGator on April 24, 2013, 06:57:44 PM
After I found out they delivered we have ordered from them a couple times, and I gotta say the food is pretty damn good. I love Carmine's but they don't deliver and sometimes I don't feel like going out. Ale Pie's stuff is heads and tails above anything else that delivers around here. I can't speak as to the restaurant experience since I haven't eaten there, but this place is very solid food-wise.
Thanks, Chris. If they delivery to 5 Points, I'll give them a shot as well.
On another note, I'll say this about Carmine's...they've gone downhill, in more ways than one. My biggest pet peeve when going to a restaurant is seeing an owner/manager treat his/her employees like garbage. I've heard from 3-4 ex-employees that the management/ownership there treats everyone like shit. I've seen the owner yelling at a cook, too. Not ok.
Quote from: ben says on April 24, 2013, 07:14:55 PM
Quote from: ChriswUfGator on April 24, 2013, 06:57:44 PM
After I found out they delivered we have ordered from them a couple times, and I gotta say the food is pretty damn good. I love Carmine's but they don't deliver and sometimes I don't feel like going out. Ale Pie's stuff is heads and tails above anything else that delivers around here. I can't speak as to the restaurant experience since I haven't eaten there, but this place is very solid food-wise.
Thanks, Chris. If they delivery to 5 Points, I'll give them a shot as well.
On another note, I'll say this about Carmine's...they've gone downhill, in more ways than one. My biggest pet peeve when going to a restaurant is seeing an owner/manager treat his/her employees like garbage. I've heard from 3-4 ex-employees that the management/ownership there treats everyone like shit. I've seen the owner yelling at a cook, too. Not ok.
That sucks. I havent been in several months but this was a staple for me and I'd bring a lot of visitors there.
Since there were "questionable" opinions at the beginning of this thread I wanted to let you all know that my son and I had takeout this evening and it was really delicious. Again, the ingredients were fresh, best cheese ever and the items with crusts like the pizza, calzone and stromboli were very, very tasty and the sizes of the items were huge. I had the egg plant calzone and my son had a stromboli of steak, bacon, cheese, caramelized onions and mushrooms. Yummy stuff! We are going to try their homemade ravioli next. :)
They were open last Thursday night.
Still open and the food is still very good. Perhaps the zoning notice has to do with some exterior changes they may be planning which is why they are not messing with weeds etc. That might be what's up.
Apparently, they opened without the parking and alcohol sale deviations going through the correct processes. The previous deviations expired from the time the last occupants(Ruan) left.
Over three and a half years and Ale Pie House is still thriving and I can tell you first hand why. Their food is really good. All of their menu items are prepared fresh. They make their own mozzarella which is fantastic and what makes their pizza extra good. The pies are different than those offered elsewhere and have a gourmet taste to them. I remember first reading about the Yelp review that started this post on their opening and feeling sad that the first review was so lackluster. So glad I ignored the review and tried their food anyway because it is great. Time has proved that Yelp review missed the mark in a big way. If you want some great food to take out or eat in the restaurant itself, you won't miss with Ale House Pie. Yum My family and I are steady customers.