I am a “probable” for Sunday. Michelle is a “possible”. It currently appears that the rain is an “unlikely”.
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Why all the “air quotes?” 
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“because”
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Those are not “air quotes”.
They are actual quotes.
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Not going to be able to make it. Enjoy!
We are firmly ensconced down the road and will not be able to make it. Please post up details, and hopefully we’ll be able to get to the next one. If anyone chooses to stop by Beacon 70 we are at the back bar watching a little football. Both wearing long sleeve tees - Charlie in grey, me in black.
So great to see some HOs today! It’s been far too long! @seal @BossaNova @MsBean @heidicooksandbakes and I met up at Saturn as planned…
I’m posting from my phone, so I’ll start by putting all of the pictures up and then I’ll get on my laptop and fill in if others don’t, but the quick version is it was a great time seeing everyone and we tried six pies:
We sat at one of the picnic tables outback which worked out great… There were slight concern about the wildlife early on, but it turns out they were headed for the pond behind us.
And finally, proof that I should stick to landscapes and food, because I can’t take selfie’s to save my life (sorry @seal):
And @heidicooksandbakes, guess which food picture I didn’t take? Your delicious pumpkin chocolate strudel cake! Thanks for providing dessert!
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So, of course it was great to see everyone at a HODown again!
But, how was the food?
It started off well. The first pie they brought out was the Margherita. With no extra toppings to weigh it down, the crust was crispy and the tomato sauce and fresh mozz were fine. The second pie was Uranus, which was scary looking with all those fresh jalapenos, but it turned out to be my favorite pie of the day. Again the crisp crust went a long way to the overall taste and eatability and I really liked the spice.
Things went downhill quickly from there. Next up was the Mars with lots of different meats on it. The meats were not great and the sheer amount of them made eating the soggy middle of a slice very hard. And since it wasn’t that good, the extra effort was annoying.
The best of the other three pies was the moon pie with mushrooms and a nice cheese blend, but that one, the one with ham and pineapple, and the white clam Neptune pie were all lacking in both crispness and flavor.
Overall, mediocre at best and certainly not worth a franchise. I think these parbaked shells could give Boboli a run for their money in stores, but as is, this is not worth a visit.
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I thought the crust was very good, thin and with a good taste. The Margherita pie was my favorite with a crisp crust. The pizzas with toppings had a soggier crust due to the moisture from the toppings. About those toppings, they all came from a can or were cheap premade purchased toppings (meatballs, sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms etc.) which really detracted from the finished product.
Just go to Frankie Feds or Federicis if you want great thin crust pizza.
Heidi’s pumpkin cake with chocolate streusel was the winner of the day. As always, it was great to see everyone, especially after such a long time due to the virus.
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Sorry I missed you guys!!
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It was so wonderful to see some HO’s in person again!!! @NotJrvedivici we missed you too!
A big thanks to @CurlzNJ for taking the pictures.
I agree with everything @seal and @BossaNova already said. The company was much better than the pizza but the pizza wasn’t bad - just not great.
Mr Bean really enjoyed the slices I brought home. I did heat them up in a cast iron pan as we discussed and it really made a big difference - especially the clam pizza. The crusts were crisped up just enough. I know you all were laughing because I got the extra Saturn slices (mozzarella, spicy sauce, pineapple, and Saturn seasoning) as did Mr Bean but he actually liked them. With a crispy crust and a bit more red pepper it wasn’t too bad.
He also asked why I can’t bake like @heidicooksandbakes. That cake was delicious. I’m not sure I’ll be able to resist eating it until The Sprout gets home.
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Completely concur on all counts, except I can’t speak to the clam pie because I couldn’t try it (mollusk allergy). I was truly surprised by how good the crust was and I agree with @seal … make it a bake-it-yourself and they might sell a ton of them!
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I concur with everyone’s assessment of the pies. The best part of the afternoon was seeing eveyrone in person again. It was a fun time, and felt like things are returning to normal just a little bit.
And no wildlife were harmed at this lunch!
Where to next!!!
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It was SO yummy!!
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Well, your screen name is “heidi cooks and bakes, so I’m not too surprised that your Bundt cake is gorgeous, and the slice looks delicious! Sorry we missed being able to taste it.
I have to agree with @MsBean @CurlzNJ and @BossaNova that @heidicooksandbakes saved the day foodwise! And, as usual on our HODowns, being with these 4 amazing HOs live again made bad pizza seem good.
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Aw shucks! You area all too kind. It was really fun to have something to look forward to that involved great people. Even if most of the food wasn’t that great, it was a great afternoon with great people!
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I am so sorry I missed you all!!
