Dove Vivi

Finally made it back to Dove Vivi...took my mom and Armando there to show-off the amazing cornmeal crust. This place serves an unfrogettable pizza pie.

Yelp review from 8/15/09:
Unbelievable experience with Dove Vivi last night. After spending more time reading Portland pizza establishment reviews than I would like to admit, I choose Dove Vivi as my next pizza adventure, and I am still smiling about my experience as I write this review. Here's how it breaks down:

Atmosphere:
From the modest exterior to the quaint and comfortable interior, Dove Vivi provides a casual and relaxing environment to enjoy a great meal with friends. Three outdoor tables welcome you, and inside provides a sprawling bar with seats looking outside the restaurant (great for someone dining alone) as well as small and large tables to accommodate any number of guests. Interior décor is very clean and welcoming.

Service:
We were warmly greeted by a very sweet hostess as soon as we walked into the restaurant (don't be fooled by the deli-style counter, you need to have them seat you and order at your table) and were lucky to snag a table outside (score on a Friday night at 7:30). The waitress was great, and recommended a good bottle of Sangiovese Italian red wine for starters (and totally inexpensive at $14 - try finding other places in Portland with such an affordable bottle on their standard menu). Water came immediately served in an old Mason jar for full vintage/Portland effect. Attentive throughout, she went through the specials with us and let us know how to order (pizzas come in 1/2's). We were advised to order 1 full pizza, and that was the perfect amount for 2 hungry people (but don't expect leftovers, you will eat it all!). Overall great service!

Food:
Ah, the pizza. A great specials menu was provided, so we chose to order 1/2 of the special Spanish Chorizo pizza and 1/2 of the Veggie pizza from the standard menu (both were perfect combinations with our bottle of red wine). The pizza arrived straight from the oven in a heavy cast-iron looking round pan, with toppings piled high. The chorizo was sliced nice and thin, and onions layered on top balanced perfectly. The Veggie came with mounds of chunky eggplant, tomatoes, mushrooms and green peppers, with the perfect blend of spices for a slight kick. Then there was the infamous corn meal crust - best idea ever! It literally makes the pizza over the top delicious, and worthy of all 5 stars in this review. The pizza is deep dish style, but without the heaviness of the traditional doughy deep dish because of the corn meal base. It complimented the salty flavors of the pizzas we choose remarkably well, and was never dry or soggy at any point throughout the meal. With every bite I was more impressed.

Ok, and if all that wasn't enough, they have great deserts as well! A glutton for chocolate, we ordered the homemade Zuccotto. Unbelievable! I will just call it out from the menu "chilled chocolate whipped cream cakes with a crushed biscotti layer and a ladyfinger crust." Need I say more? The perfect way to end your meal at Dove Vivi.

Cost:
At $40 for the entire meal, this was a total steal! I left completely stuffed and overwhelmingly happy with my entire Dove Vive experience.

Dare I say it...yep, here I go...Dove Vivi has the best pizza in Portland! Thank You Dove Vivi, and I will see you (VERY) soon :)

*Jayne