Pizza has a side dish problem. This is a universal issue for all pizza places, whether you’re a fan of the big delivery chains, or have a favorite pizzeria in your neighborhood. This is because most pizza sides are bread-based. Considering pizza is bread with sauce, cheese, and toppings on it, coupling that dish with more bread can be pretty boring. Also redundant.
Don’t get me wrong, I love garlic bread and cheese bread as much as anyone else, but you only have so much room for bread, and at the end of the day I find myself choosing the pizza over these delicious bread sides because, well, pizza tastes better. This problem has kind of been remedied by pizza chains and restaurants adding wings to the menu. But wings are a meal themselves, so paired with a pizza you’re forced to make this choice: do you go HAM on the wings, or eat one or two wings and focus on the pizza?
This is an important question to ask yourself especially as we approach Super Bowl weekend. But I think Papa John may have solved the conundrum with its new Calzone Papa Bites.
Launched at the tail end of January, the Calzone Papa Bites are available for a limited time and are essentially bite-sized little pizzas. The Bites are hand-stuffed with mozzarella, garlic herb ricotta, green peppers, pepperoni, and Italian sausage served with a side of pizza sauce for dipping. It takes pizza and turns it into a side dish!
Here is everything we love about the new offering:
Calzone Papa Bites
Tasting Notes & Thoughts
What struck me first about the Calzone Papa Bites was how much flavor was packed into a single bite. The ratio of bread to toppings here is perfect, each bite provides a blast of garlic-heavy flavor with a mix of Italian herbs, nutty/ creamy cheese, vegetal peppery notes, and savory meaty characteristics, all elevated by a bright sauce that adds some umami sumptuousness to the whole thing.
My only real gripe is the same gripe I have with calzones in general — the meat never really gets a chance to crisp up in the way that it would if it was topping a pizza and thrown in an oven. But that’s a minor gripe ultimately, I’ll gladly accept that shortcoming given the price ($4.99 for an order of 8) and form factor. These Calzone Papa Bites are a true joy to eat and in my opinion, the best side dish to ever come to a big chain pizza place.
Especially because now you don’t have to choose between wings and pizza, you can indulge in both and come away completely satisfied. Papa Johns’s just ensured its presence on my upcoming Super Bowl food spread.
The Bottom Line:
The ultimate pizza-centric side dish. Order these and a side of wings and you have the perfect combination of the best flavors a big national pizza chain has to offer.
Find your nearest Papa John’s here.
Source: https://uproxx.com/life/papa-johns-calzone-papa-bites-review/
