Giovanni's Pizza — Restaurant in Allentown

I ate here about a month ago, and wasn’t impressed. After reading the latest Dept. of Agriculture inspection report, I will NEVER eat here again. I’m just going to copy and paste the inspection report here for anyone thinking about patronizing this establishment.

Giovanni’s Pizza
1001 N 19th St., Allentown
Compliance: Out
Violations: 15
The Person in Charge does not have adequate knowledge of food safety in this food facility as evidenced by this non-compliant inspection.Bread was observed on top of refrigerator in the prep area. Empty boxes were placed directly on top of the bread. The contaminated portion of the bread was discarded. –Food in the refrigerator was stored with no covering. Ensure all foods are stored with a covering.Plastic bowl was being used as a scoop in dry seasoning. Scoops must have a handle that can sit above the top of the food.Observed wet wiping cloths in cookline area, not being stored in sanitizer solution. Ensure all wiping cloths are stored in sanitizer solution.Frozen sausages observed thawing in standing water in the three-bay sink, which is not an approved thawing method. Use an approved thawing method such as under cool running water, in a cold hold unit, or in the microwave for immediate use.No time/temperature control for safety (TCS)foods were date marked. Date mark all time/temperature control for safety foods held for more than 24 hours. These foods may be kept for up to 7 days, including the day the foods were prepared.Pizzas are left on the counter and use time in lieu of temperature without written procedures/documentation of how long the product is out. Document facility process for use of time in lieu of temperature.Cakes were being offered for sale that did not have any label on them. Label these items with common name of product, ingredient list, and any allergens.The staff do not use available test strips to check the chlorine sanitizer concentration. Use test strips to check the concentration of the sanitizer.Chemical sanitizer was not being used on equipment or dishes after being washed and rinsed. Staff were instructed on how to set up a sanitizing solution and proceeded to use it for cleaning within the facility. Always prepare a sanitizing solution to use in the wash, rinse and sanitizing process.A utility sink or curbed cleaning facility with a floor drain is not provided in the food facility. Facility reported dumping mop water outside. Install utility sink. Dispose of mop water in the sanitary sewer by flushing down the toilet until utility sink is installed.Women’s toilet room is not provided with a covered waste receptacle for sanitary napkins. Obtain a lid for the waste receptacle.Personal items such as a purse was stored on food prep items rather than in a separate area. Ensure personal items are stored in a separate area.Parakeet in a cage observed on the premise of the food facility in the prep area. *Parakeet was removed immediately. Clean and disinfect area.Mops are not being hung to air dry. Hang all mops to air dry.

This. Is. Disgusting. On. So....

I’ve been a loyal customer and have always loved this place, but unfortunately, I had a really disappointing experience with a recent delivery. This is a burner account bc on my main account it is 5 stars but I ordered the chicken piccata tonight, which is described as being in a lemon butter sauce with garlic and capers—but what I received had no lemon flavor at all, literally ZERO and was completely overpowered by RAW undercooked garlic all over. I even had to add lemon from my own fridge just to balance it out. I was going to cook it myself but decided to support a local favorite business just to regret spending over 35$ with them.

I called to let them know—not to ask for a refund or replacement, just to give honest feedback—and was met with defensiveness and was told there's no lemon in the dish, despite it being listed on the menu. Chicken Piccata IS a Lemon Chicken. I was even told, “Well, you added lemon, right?” which was frustrating. He assumed i wanted something free when I didn't - i am one person the whole dinner was large enough on its own i didn't want a second- i just wanted it to be right the first time. The amount of garlic aroma that met me when I opened the dish would be enough to kill a fkn vampire - ok. Not even a hint of lemon. And I'm not going to argue with someone that I just gave my hard earned money to - all I expect is a half decent dish of food for fkn 20$ bro. Not buttered noodles with raw garlic. Atleast throw some damn fkn parsley in it. SEE PHOTO FOR CHUNKS OF RAW UNCOOKED GARLIC that's only 10% of it. Learn how to mince your garlic at the very LEAST! Chicken didn't even have salt and pepper - no seasoning at all!

It’s disappointing when a place you trust doesn’t stand behind their food or treat customer feedback with care. I’m hoping this was just a one-off, but the way it was handled has definitely made me reconsider...

Popped in this afternoon for a slice. The place was really quiet. The young girl who served me was chilling at a table on her laptop when I came in, "slice of cheese" I said, as always. While she was getting my slice I had a quick look around. The restaurant itself was very organized, tidy, and clean. Very simple decor that wasn't too overpowering with a really nice medium grey feel that was super relaxing 😎 While I waited, an older Italian dude came in and was speaking Italian to the younger dude making pizzas, I can only assume the elder was Giovanni himself. They seemed to be discussing something involving pizza pans, I think the young dude was getting scolded, but all Italian sounds like arguments to me. Both Italian dudes had face masks on, but they had them on their chin with face and nose exposed. I don't care about coronavirus really, I just don't like people that don't follow the rules...so dock 1 star for that. The pizza itself was alright! The crust was actually the best part, really good! Sauce was pretty good too, kinda sweet and robust at the same time. The slice just had too much cheese, with each bite you were left munching on a bunch of cheese, this seems to be an issue for me at a lot of spots. So 1 star dockage for the plethora of cheese. If it was balanced out, I'd be going with a 4 star review, but that ain't the case. Gonna go with a 6.2 on the 🍕 outta 10...alright stuff, too much cheese. Nice place though! Girl was nice too, good service,...