Blue Steel Pizza Company — Restaurant in Bloomfield

2 1/2 stars

This was the most uneven dining experience I've had in ages and one of the most disappointing, given that I came here for lunch about a year ago and had a perfect meal. There were a few moments of greatness, but also times (especially at the end) that left a bad taste in my mouth and probably ensured that I'm not coming back any time soon.

I came here for brunch this past Sunday with one of my chums. Blue Steel's brunch is exclusively done in their Alice in Wonderland-themed lounge Rabbit Hole. To access it, you have to walk through two different empty dining areas, one downstairs by the bar and another upstairs in a spacious loft. The Rabbit Hole itself is dimly lit with a lot of neon lights and mushrooms hanging from the ceiling - it reminded me a lot of eating in Spencer Gifts circa 1999. Definitely a unique atmosphere.

My friend and I both ordered individual pizzas (based on the size, I think you could easily split one if you weren't insanely hungry), a Classic for me, the Stuffed Mushroom for her. The pizza is amazing, and I couldn't endorse it more highly. It's delicious and will make you feel embarrassed that you spent so much time at Pizza Hut in your childhood. The Mushroom was also well received, though my friend wasn't sure she could actually taste the mushrooms - they seemed to be breaded and a bit subtle, but I didn't get the impression that was a negative.

I want to be as diplomatic as I can here, but the service just wasn't good - there were long stretches throughout brunch where we were waiting longer than we should have, especially at the beginning and end. I ordered a mimosa to start, which I wasn't crazy about because it was really pulpy (I like to drink mimosas, not eat them). The menu indicated it had fresh OJ, so I think there's some debate on whether I should have been expecting that. I didn't explicitly ask, so I'm willing to take most of that blame. As I was close to finishing that drink, I asked the waitress for a bellini as my second and final drink. Her response was, "That's not your last drink." Um, yes, I was driving, so it was. Devil's advocate, she may have just been trying to good-naturedly upsell, but it felt a little more aggressive than that, especially since I had to re-confirm that it was going to be my last drink.

Then when she came back with my bellini, she pointed to the mimosa (which had a little bit left in the glass, and told me I had to finish that before i started drinking the bellini. I then told the waitress that the rest of the mimosa was just pulp, so I didn't intend to completely empty the glass. She then lifted up the mimosa glass to examine it, and informed me that, "It's not just pulp." I then had to tell her firmly that I wasn't going to finish it. Again, MAYBE this was an awkward/heavy-handed attempt at banter, but when you're getting to the point as a customer where you have to defend the decisions you're making during the meal, it's crossing a line in my opinion. For what it's worth, the bellini was excellent. I had a fantastic drink the last time I was here, so they've clearly hired high quality bartenders/mixologists.

As we were winding down our meal, the waitress came back to ask if we wanted anything else. I said, "Just the check, please." Her response was, "Really?" and walked away. The part that really rubbed me the wrong way though was when she came back with the check and announced that there was a 20% gratuity automatically added into the bill. For a two-person party? I've never heard of that before, and I didn't see any reference to that when I checked the website later, so that definitely felt a little shady. And frankly? When the service overall was mediocre at best on multiple levels, it's hard to give the benefit of the doubt and not assume that it's partly because the waitress knew she was getting 20% anyway. I sincerely hope that's not true, but the optics there weren't great.

I definitely wouldn't come back for brunch, but I might be willing to try the downstairs area again for lunch. It's going to be a...

Beware of DECEPTIVE BUSINESS PRACTICES

On 11/5/21, I contacted Blue Steel Pizza Company about hosting our company Christmas party. After the initial discussion with their Events Mgr, we ran into issue after issue going back on her commitments and representations. Here's the highlights: From the first conversation, we explained we would be expecting 30-35 people, and could be as many as 40, but doubtful. After confirming the requested date was available and promised to us, we were told that another party had booked their "Rabbit Hole" and may want to take the upstairs area we were promised. The problem - We were offered both the Rabbit Hole and the upstairs space as both were available. Ultimately, we did book our promised date. Sales Mgr wrote up proposal for 35 guests, explaining they'd get a more accurate count a week before the party. She also explained that although our party would be booked for 4 hours, the open bar is limited to 3, which I agreed was probably better for all and not a problem. She also explained the proposal would include a sample menu and that we'd make specific choices one week out. Paid a $500 deposit based on the written proposal. Approx. 10 days before the party, we're e-mailed both food and open bar options. The e-mail states the open bar is for 2 hours with what would amount to about $1,000 more for a 3rd hour. We were already paying $55/person for just the open bar, which did not even include premium liquors! The Sales Mgr insisted she explained that previously, but absolutely did not. Neither of the two of us she'd spoken to ever heard her say anything like that. Even the Open Bar menu she sent with the e-mail, showed the Open Bar package was for 3 hours. After much back and forth, the Sales Mgr accepted that the original written proposal she sent, upon which the $500 deposit was taken, did not mention anything less than the 3 hour open bar as promised. A day later, we confirmed 30 guests and commented that we were not being offered any choices of appetizers or pizzas, again as originally promised for the price Tier we chose. 4 days before the party, I get a call from the owner, saying they decided our party was not going to work for them and cancelled it. When I challenged it, he explained that we were only gong to be 30 people (even though we originally discussed 30-35) and with the 3 hour open bar and asking for some food choices (as we were originally promised we'd be given) without an up-charge, it didn't work for them. Other than acknowledging it was an "inconvenience" he didn''t care at all about cancelling a company party my employees and their guests had been looking forward to for weeks only a few days before it was to be. Keep in mind, on top of the open bar at $55, the food charge was $50/person for an offering of 4 appetizers (two of which were salads), with no choices and 4 pizzas with no choices and 1 pasta dish.

So while my employees and I are certainly disappointed about not having our party this weekend as planned, I'm much happier to give our business to a different local restaurant. Unfortunately, it will just have to be after the holidays are over. I'll also certainly be happier offering my employees much more than an open bar with a few appetizers, pizza and one pasta for $105 a head.

Bottom line, Blue Steel Pizza has nice space with a cool vibe upstairs, which is what initially attracted us, but it is very overpriced and is run unscrupulously! At least they did return my $500 credit card deposit.

Be very careful booking any kind of event...

Everything was absolutely delicious. From the cocktails to the appetizer to the main meal- so much flavor, cooked it excellency, and filled our bellies to satisfaction.

We ordered the Saturn and the New Motto cocktails and they were sweet and delicious. Garlic Soy Chicken Wings to start and the chicken was moist and filled with flavor from the sauce. The green dipping sauce was very light in consistency and flavor but complimented the wings well.

We ordered the White Pizza and the Angry Vodka Pizza to split. The white was my favorite, but both divine. The Angry Vodka has a slightly spicy sauce topped with a drizzle of pesto but was overpowered by the vodka sauce. This is definitely a heavy slice. The White Pizza was lighter, with great flavors from the chorizo and sweet peppadew peppers combining perfectly with the cheeses, whole cooked garlic cloves, and slight spice from the slices of jalapeño. We kept the sauce from the wings to also dip some bites of pizza into and it was a great pairing as well since the sauce was so light!

We wish they had more white pie options. Too many vodka pie options, or maybe I just don’t like vodka sauce that much. It’s too heavy for the pizza, in my opinion. We tried the pepperoni, ranch, and banana pepper red sauce pie and the stuffed mushroom vodka pie at a later time. We LOVED the pepperoni ranch banana pepper one. The banana peppers were perfect match on this pie and the red sauce is excellent. Like I said before, the vodka pies are just too much for me. Can’t eat that much as it absolutely fills me. The stuffed mushroom one came out a bit burnt but didn’t taste that way. Didn’t have much flavor other than vodka sauce and bread crumbs. Wouldn’t order again but didn’t hate.

The sweet plantains were amazing. So different and unique but worked so well we were licking the plate clean!

Service was excellent. Our waitress was very sweet and always had a smile. Was consistent with filling our waters often as we kept chugging them due to all the salt.

We came another time and the service was VERY slow to take any of our orders including drinks and lacked personality from the male waiter.

Only issue was the manager (who I’m assuming the man was) kept dimming the lights lower and lower what seemed to be every half hour. Customers had to use their phone flashlights to read the menu, as most of them were over 40 and it was just way too dark. As someone who has a difficult time seeing in the dark, it was very tough on the eyes. Not a very practical way to dine. We like to see the menu, the dishes, and our accompaniments. Maybe keep the lights a little brighter? This was our only complaint.

Definitely recommend having a meal here. Pizza is deep dish/chicago style and definitely rare to see in New Jersey- being the home to a good slice! But oh so delicious that you need to...