Bellacino's Pizza & Grinders

Update: 9/1/17

What a great experience today! After my first review, the manager, Jeff, reached out via a message on Yelp inviting me back to try another pizza - on the house.

I finally got back in here today and got a Chicago Steak pie, along with the smallest grinder, coming in at 4 1/2 inches.

The food came quickly and the grinder, as usual, did not disappoint. So tasty!

The pizza was waaaay different from the first time I tried it. Nicely browned, evenly topped, hardly greasy on the bottom.

Also, the new menu board looks great! The writing is a bit tilted, and kind of small, but the bright colors and easy-to-read format make for a quick choice.

Thanks, Jeff, for personally inviting me back in to show me how a Bellacino's pie should look and taste!

My first review...
This is some of the worst pizza I've had in St. Louis - and I've had a lot of pizza.

I haven't been here in a while and they are (I surmised) re-doing the menu panels, which typically are on the wall, where patrons can awkwardly look up at them to decide what they want.

In the absence of those, there is a printed menu taped to the counter. I had seen a sign for a Chicago style pie on my way in and decided on getting that and a grinder, which is basically a sub sandwich.

I opted for water, which I got from the branded Coca-Cola machine. I noted a sign on the wall nearby that misspelled Anheuser-Busch as "Anheiser." A bit of a faux pas, imho, especially being located here in STL.

While waiting for my food, I noted that the place is showing it's age.

It took a few minutes to get my food and I was immediately disappointed when I saw the pizza. Now I don't expect everything I eat to look just like the advertisement, but I didn't feel this pie looked much like the picture at all.

It tasted like a Domino's pizza; very greasy on the bottom with a dense, hopelessly dry crust. One of my biggest pizza pet peeves is uneven distribution of toppings.

This one takes the cake in that category.

I've only had grinders when I've been here before. The taste of this one was fantastic. I ordered chicken with melted cheese, lettuce, tomato - and mayo on the side.

The bread was kind of crispy and dark brown in spots. At first, it looked overdone, but when I tasted it, I found that the crispness added a pleasant taste and crunch!

With so many chopped ingredients on the sandwich, I will have to remember next time to ask that they do not slice all the way through the bread. When you pick it up, lots of things just fall right out, making for a frustratingly messy meal.

I'll definitely be back for a grinder, but will NOT order pizza here again.

I just moved here last month. I decided tonight I would try Bellacino's on Mexico Rd. I had a bad experience, but the store manager Jeff has since changed my mind about Bellacinos.

Update: I may or may not go back to this location, but the store manager is also the store manager for the St Charles location.
He is exceptional at customer service and shouldn't be blamed for the experience I had. He allowed us to try the Reuben and Veggie sandwiches from the St Charles location. It was extremely good! Because of Jeff's service he showed to my wife and I, I am changing this review to 3/5 stars. I would definitely eat Bellacinos again.

Below is what happened at the St Peters location:

The lady at the register had a piss-poor attitude, I placed my order, and waited. TWENTY minutes later, I was informed that my food was just put in the oven and it would be 10-15 mins longer. When the food was done they brought it to me. I sat the food down before I was about to leave and saw that I didn't even get the salad I had ordered. I asked for the salad and they handed me another bag. When I got home, there wasn't even dressing in the bag.

The Pizza was terrible, so much so that I am literally throwing away half of the pizza.
(It was made apparent to me by Jeff the manager that I should have been offered a traditional veggie pizza with normal veggies and pizza sauce, but I hadn't been. This will probably be what we order in the future.)

This place was recommended by our hotel and it did not disappoint. We ordered the PRIDE and it was delivered right to our room, hot. The ingredients were fresh and heaped with a plentiful amount.

We also made a special request for our daughter and they accommodated with out any issue and it was done exactly how she liked.

This was our first visit, but not our last for sure.

Great staff, great service, quality food. Place is great! Chicago pizza is amazing. They also have a bunch of different grinders you can choose from and a bunch of different appetizers and specials. Definitely a go to place. Wait isnt too long. And you can enjoy a cold beer while you wait.

Bar is packed. Restaurant part is packed. Food is fantastic. Grinders perfect. Glad to see Phillip back. Blues and Cards are on the TVs. Lots of TVs. Not a bad seat in "house".

Been here a few times since my last review! And it has become worse! No pretzel dough apparently made for pretzel bites on one visit and no mix to make margaritas!
Came in today and the AC still isn't fixed 83 degrees in an empty restaurant! A sign saying they cannot sell alcohol due to the state "misplacing" their liquor license. I've never heard of such a thing! I'm going to contact their corporate office and let them know. It just seems like the management and or owner doesn't care. Especially given the AC of all things has yet to be fixed! I will not return here and will tell everyone I know that this location at least is not worth the trip! This deserves no stars at all!!!!!

I have been here several times . It is a great place to eat you, can't beat the baked grinders. Plus they have great pizza. Great value and the staff is very friendly.

Jen was excellent. I came in with five hungry girls who are picky eaters and have never been to Bellacino's before. She very patiently described the menu options and the service was great.

Food was fantastic too!

I have been eating Bellacino's for many years and have always enjoyed their food. I did have a horrible experience with this location a few months ago though in which it took three different delivery trips to get my order correct. I told myself I wouldn't order from this location again because the experience was that bad. I gave in tonight for convenience since this is the location that delivers to my house and also because I hadn't had any problems before that incident. I didn't think that my experience could get any worse than last time, but I was wrong. I ordered a buffalo chicken grinder and a pizza. The food came an hour later and the grinder was not a buffalo chicken grinder. I called to tell them of their mistake and a manager apologized and said they would get a new one made and have it sent out and it should be here in thirty minutes. After an hour and a half of waiting I called again because I still never recieved my sandwich. This time when I called I was informed that they closed 30 minutes prior and this manager, a different manager than before, told me that they didnt know anything about this, but that she tried to call me because they didnt have my credit card information. This was throwing huge red flags in my head because A.) No one tried to call me. The number I gave for my order was the same number that I called the store on 3 different times and I have placed several orders for my address with this same number. B.) If you couldn't process my credit card then why would you have delivered my food to me in the first place. I still did not complain to the lady, I just thanked her for giving me a refund. (The absolute least she could do). When I got off the phone I looked at my bank history and I see a pending transaction on my account from Bellacino's. If you didn't have my credit card information then how did you charge me? I will never eat at a Bellacino's again because of my experience at this one location. I do not recommend it for anyone unless they are looking for a lack of communication skills and a headache.

Sincerely,
Josh

The smaller the pizza the better it is. If you get a bigger one the cheese just gets to be to greasy and heavy.