Mellow Mushroom

I did this focus group regarding eating experiences and Mellow Mushroom was involved. They wanted advice on going more upscale so they could go into a higher price range.

I never had actually eaten in one of those before and was elated when part of the compensation was a $25 dollar gift card! I was planning to take my friends out for pizza night.

That was right before the holiday season so it got put off due to no one being available. One night later on in january I was far across town on a miserable drissly and cold day and wanted to leave jobsite and go to a warm home.

I didnt have much in the way of easy to fix food items on hand back at home, was too far tired to store shop, and was dreading another fast food dinner, and didnt feel like defrosting something. It dawned on me that I had that gift card and there was bound to be at least one location on way home. There were two.

That wasnt a problem and is a plus for them. However when I got there, I had trouble deciding WTH the place was. EVERY SINGLE STORE HAS A DIFFERENT SIGN, a different theme, a different store front.

DISGUISED you may say. Its the same on the inside... AS FAR AS DISGUISED GOES. In our focus group there was all this company propaganda regarding them being a "family dining place". OH NO IT ISNT.

And I dont understand the posible upscaling either. This is clearly a trendy and yuppie hangout. THE PROOF RESTS IN A COUPLE OF THINGS: a bar area center of store, & the menu.

With a $25 gift card and 1 person to feed I should have been fine... I WASNT and had to add 42 cents out of my pocket and it was all for 1 pizza!

I have had some great pizzas over the years, everything from brick oven, to actual italian made, to gourmet, and have never spent that for a single pizza ever.

The next item goes both good and bad...

I took it home and made a hot tea and sat down to enjoy it. The applewood bacon all over it was nice. Amazing actually. However even though I specified no hot peppers on this (which was part of the managers special style on menu that this was), somehow I kept finding some blazing hot something in that somewhere all along.

3 pieces did fill me up to stuffed. Do keep in mind I didnt have lunch and my stomach maybe had shrunk. Next morning I had 3 more for breakfast and then 3 more for lunch and then 2 for diner. I would NOT do it again, but I did enjoy my $25.42 pizza MANAGERS SPECIAL.

Next day however I had this horrific discovery... I had gained 10 pounds off that 1 pizza!

Above I mentioned MANAGERS SPECIAL! And yes this pizza was billed as a MANAGERS SPECIAL. One that was most expensive of all which is totally backwards.

BUT COULD YOU GO ANOTHER WAY? No. Their menus are nightmares. The "build a pizza" page has NO PRICES and only ingredient PACKAGES. Thats why I gave up and chose the one I did.

In my mind this is another hippie anti establishment business that is MORE ESTABLISHMENT THAN ANYBODY EVER WAS.

Whats sad is, that applewood bacon was really great on that pizza. The price and the weight gain were horrible on it. I wouldnt go back, even to complain. Also if I as a single person am going to spend $25 on a single meal...

It better be an actual fine dining establishment of some sort or involve a nice steak. At the end of the day, and beyond all the hype... this chains products are not better than national chain pizzas of far better value.