QC Pizza — Restaurant in Mahtomedi

The back story: during the pandemic, I’d ordered a selection of QC Pizza’s best sellers via Goldbelly and was blown away by the complex and unique flavor profiles - as well as how well they held up after being flash frozen and shippe any others in the country and that set what happened next in motion; I happened to be coming to Saint Paul, MN on a concert tour, and ended up having a chat with QC Pizza owner Dennis who subsequently suggested we stop by to try some of his new creations! We couldn’t pass this up and the bottom line is: even though the frozen versions I cooked at home were delicious & obviously made with the finest possible ingredients…there simply is no substitute for fresh pizza coming straight out of the oven! Despite the allure of the newer Taco Pizza or the Jerk Chicken options amongst many others, we decided to reprise the Kinda Big Dill (the one that put QC on the map!), the Big Popper (a jalapeño popper inspired pizza finished with a raspberry glaze), and Dennis suggested we try the “Curd-A-Roni” as well, which was a great idea since I personally always first judge a pizzeria by its most basic option past plain cheese. Needless to say, all 3 were incredible! So many textures, so many layers of flavor… and what was most astounding was how much better the already amazing crust was fresh! The dusting of cornmeal allowed for a crispy bottom and pleasing chew that firmly supported the weight of the ample toppings across the board! For those unsure of the “exotic” pizzas, let me just say the Big Dill is essentially a deconstructed Cuban sans the mustard (but I do recommend try a slice with a some for the full effect!) and the locally smoked Canadian bacon is smoky heaven! The Big Popper does the same for jalapeño poppers with the piece de resistance being the aforementioned raspberry glaze! Both are next level and worth exploring - there’s nothing to be alarmed by as ever component is truly complimentary! And that cup pepperoni with the Ellsworth cheese curds? For traditionalists, it’s easily the last stop on the bus! I was concerned it would be an overdose of salt, but in the end, as with the others. It was the perfect blend. I cannot recommend QC Pizza highly enough! I would drive 1K+ miles for it again in a heartbeat! Bonus tip: the local Northern Soda Company’s cane sodas sold at QC were equally unique and delicious! The Butterscotch Root Beer, Cherry Citrus, and North Coast Cooler were magic...

Updated. Dropping some stars off the review. We've been busy lately and ordered pizza nearly every weekend from QC for the last month and a half on top of at least monthly orders.

Our last four orders have had to go back. Including the one tonight that has 3/4 pizzas wrong. Starting to lose loyalty.

Called the store. "We just have a lot of new kids". I do believe that, I believe there are many hard times. I also believe that at some point if there are new "kids" then you have to spend time with them to get them trained so you can keep your loyal customers.

Update, same evening.

I'm the one with a food allergy. We are DONE. My pizza was missing a topping the second time (it was missing a topping and on the wrong crust the first time). The manager behind the counter said we were lying... About jalapenos. The cook verified the ticket. Once they knew we weren't lying, they added jalapenos on the already made pizza and put the pizza back in the oven. That's not what we ordered. That's not quality. Pepperonis are now burnt, the cheese is degraded. Pizzas don't get put back in the oven after they come out for a reason like this. This is not the way to right this second mistake.

One of the pizzas is STILL not on Cali crust. It's missing the fresh mozzarella.

On the way out, the staff called out, "won't happen again". Yeah, they got that right. It won't happen again.

2 of the 3 remakes are wrong. That's just disrespectful. We're giving you the chance to make it right, not asking for a discount, just coming back... And it's still screwed up.

I can't trust that my pizza will be on the right crust. I can't trust the toppings will be right, and I can't trust the store to remake it.

There's no reason to call your customers liars when they're willing to come back and give the store the chance to fix mistakes, especially after several orders that have been messed up. We were regulars.

One star. Do not recommend.

**

Original review, 6 months ago. Was five stars. This place has excellent pizza every single time. Just dilly is great! Taco, awesome! Philly, decent!

Their specialties are all excellent blends! Thinking about this place,...

I am from Davenport, lived there until I was 11, and have been back many times throughout the years. My parents ordered pizza when we lived down there, a lot, and I distinctly remember the look and the flavor. It's not like other pizza that I've had anywhere else!

I ordered a thin crust pepperoni for my kids and I to have for dinner, and a half baked sausage (and green pepper on accident lol) to give to my dad as part of his birthday gift the next day.

First, the thin crust pepperoni...amazing! So flavorful, and you can tell that they use very high quality ingredients. The crust still had form, even though it was thin. It was perfectly crunchy and soft where it needed to be. Next, the sausage and green pepper, regular crust...the parents fully cooked it the next day while we were there celebrating: the sausage flavor is just like we all remembered, it was completely nostalgic. The cheese is very distinct on QC style pizza, because it is freshly shredded, and this was exactly the same. I would do 4x cheese if I could have lol.

I feel like the thin crust might be more like what they used to get back in the day, and maybe I would add an extra dose of sausage and cheese on there? Just because I like lots of toppings. That being said (just as a personal preference), this pizza was a 10/10. I want to eat it every day lol.

When I picked up my order, the owner told me exactly how to finish cooking the half baked pizza, he was very helpful and personable, and I could see how passionate and proud he is about his pizzas!! I love that! Seems like a very genuine human that you could have a meaningful conversation with.

I will be going back to get more pizza soon, and they also have frozen pizzas! I can't wait to grab a few of those also. I'll probably grab some of those for...