Party in the market

What’s this? There is a party in the grocery store. A couple of dudes from Drake’s Brewing Co. are pouring the brewery’s beers and people are standing at a pizza bar, eating, drinking and getting loud and happy.

That was not what I expected to see walking into New Earth Market to pick up a brew for band practice one evening. It turns out that, during the store’s regular beer- and wine-tasting events at its Rolling Stone Pizza Co.—a little cafe nestled in the inviting beer-and-wine corner of the store—New Earth is a pretty fun place to hang.

When I finally got around to returning and joining the fun a few weeks ago, there weren’t any tastings on the immediate schedule, so I tested the scene with a Saturday lunch date with my wife, Connie.

No beverage rep, no problem, because one of Rolling Stone’s biggest selling points is that you can choose what you want from the New Earth stash and drink your purchase with your meal right there in the store. And with bottles of wine stacked to the ceiling and an entire aisle of coolers filled with one of the most interesting collections of beer in Chico, the selection is impressive.

Connie grabbed a bottle of rosé, I got a tall can of IPA that was on sale, and before our pizzas went in the oven, we were already partying on our bar stools.

There are two sections to the Rolling Stone menu: the build-your-own pizzas and the house pizzas (split between “classic” and “specialty” varieties). Prices range from $12.99 for a personal and $22.99 for a large for both the build-your-own (up to three toppings) and classic pies. Add a buck or two for each size on the specialty list, and certain crusts—Udi’s gluten-free and the local Cali’flour—cost a little bit more as well.

Connie built her own, staying true to her traditionalist nature and getting pepperoni and black olive with mozzarella and the Northern California red sauce on a personal-size lavash (thin, crispy) crust. Initially, I had my eye on the intriguing-looking Indie Go-Go, a specialty Indian-inspired pie with butter curry sauce, mushrooms, red onions, grilled chicken, black olives, jalapeños, garlic and cilantro. But I decided to put my fate in the hands of the cook, and asked him to split a medium in half with the two most popular choices. Naturally, I ended up with the Stoner 420 on one side, and Grilled Chicken Feta Spinach (also a “stoner favorite”—no, really, it says so right on the menu) on the other. My crust was “The Longboard,” Rolling Stone’s rectangular-shaped standard thin (but not crispy) crust that’s used on most of the pizza sizes. (The lavash, Cali’flour and tandori flatbread are available in the personal size only.)

The crusts come lightly prebaked, and once topped are finished in Rolling Stone’s 650-degree oven, then served on a cutting board.

The skinny personal pizza came out first, and it was very good—a nicely composed version of a classic tied together with a basic red sauce (tasted mostly of just tomatoes—my preference over a heavy hand with herbs and spices) and nice, crispy crust.

My stoner pie was two very different experiences. The 420 side was very similar to the personal pizza—with the red sauce, mozzarella and pepperoni, plus fresh garlic and a dried herb blend. The sweet zing of chopped garlic was a nice addition.

The other half—with chicken, red onions, tomatoes, feta cheese, spinach and garlic-Parmesan sauce—was my favorite combo of flavors. All the strong elements—onion, garlic, feta—were well-measured and very complementary to the chicken and tomatoes. The crust was fairly light and airy, and probably would’ve been moreso had it been tossed fresh to order.

I suppose the common element between the two—the stoner connection—was the fresh garlic. I wasn’t stoned, but we were both pretty happy, and the garlic, which was never overpowering, was a fine pairing with the IPA.