Cafe Pizzaria

Pizza is great, strombolis are great, garlic bread is great, breadsticks are great. I really like the cheeseburger, but seriously, don’t order from the grill at a pizza place. It’s not cost effective and it’s not their specialty. Get pizza oven items or go elsewhere. Salad is basic but comes with crazy loads of cheese; the house dressing is pretty tight.

Love this place! Cozy, cheesy, warm, and local. Goes for the place, pizza, and the people. Even though Unilocal says it does not have wifi, they do! You can do homework there if you need to.

Delicious pizza! They have great, great tomato sauce! They have cheesy garlic bread to die for!!! I absolutely wished I lived here so my family can try it! I’m staying until Wednesday and definitely coming back!

Wowee! A Bloomington treasure! Way back in the Jurassic period when I was an IU undergrad, this was my favorite place for pizza, subs, stroms, and salad with their incredibly yummy house dressing. I’m happy to report that it is all still fabulous, plus now they offer delivery. A truly authentic hometown locally-​owned eatery. Don’t miss it!

They garlic cheese bread was amazing melts in your mouth. The pizza was very traditional and different, the crust is very thin but it was still delicious. Service was great, very friendly. I really enjoyed it.

How on earth had I not eaten here before? As an IU alum, who still lives in Bloomington after 20 years, I’m ashamed at myself. It’s terrific. My husband and son and I stopped in here one beautiful Saturday afternoon to grab lunch. We over-​ordered so we’d have some to take home. It was so good we were fighting over the left overs for dinner that night. Cheesy garlic bread, sausage pizza, and pepperoni pizza was what we ordered. So good, inexpensive.

Gotta love the pizza and breadsticks here, and the hospitality cannot be matched. The catered pizza/​breadsticks/​drinks to the camp I work for for free and let the kids watch them make it.
It’s also a very cool place and the creators of Pizza Hut and Mother Bear worked here first so it’s a true classic!!!

We have been Café Pizzaria family for over 50 years. Our last 2 visits there, most recent March 7, we noticed a change and not for the better. We generally get the Supreme. We noticed difference in the sausage and the sauce. Not awful, just less sausage and sauce tasted bit off. Another family member also was there recently and said the same thing — just not quite the same. I am curious as to what changes might have been made in the last 6 months.

One of the worst pizzas I’ve tried in Bloomington. Service was great; staff extremely pleasant. Pizza… terrible. I ordered a sausage/​onion/​cheese pizza. Sausage was something you’d find in a shepherd’s pie, onion was okay, cheese was generous (had ordered extra cheese) but was lackluster in taste, pizza sauce was virtually nonexistent and crust was just terrible. I would never go back or recommend this place. I love pizza and love local joints, but avoid this one at all costs!

Café Pizzaria is still one of the best pizza options in Bloomington. I enjoy the location and they’re quick.
Previously I’ve recommended the pepperoni and mushroom. But I’m really in love with Hawaiian (ham and pineapple). I’ve found that ordering the «Hawaiian» doesn’t usually work it’s easier to just say «ham and pineapple». But if you have a chance you should try it.

After having exhausted the usual choices for Sunday lunch, someone said, «How about Pizzeria?» Oh yeah! Bloomington favorite, local spot, why didn’t I think of that?
This casual little spot on Kirkwood is a local landmark. Good pizza, and one of the few «sit down» pizza places left in this delivery happy town. Also, the menu has a good selection of personal pizzas, strombolis and other hot sandwiches. We really like the salad with mozzerella cheese, but I’ll admit, its basically bagged salad from Kroger with pizza cheese on it. LOTS of cheese. Be sure to get the house dressing. That’s the good stuff.
Service was quick, kept our drinks full, handled special requests correctly and delivered a good Sunday afternoon lunch.
Couple of notes: one, this is a pretty empty slow summer day, once the university is back in session, that changes. I can’t vouch for the service on those days in this review, but we have been here in the school year, and it has been a lot busier. The place is much more lively and more challenging to get in. Also– all of downtown B-​town is metered parking now, but free on Sundays and holidays. So bear that in mind too. The meters do take plastic in addition to coins.
The downside of being a landmark is that some of the things are dated and in need of updating. In the dining area, you can call it vintage or classic… but in the restroom, it’s just plain stinky, and could use some work. My 5 year old commented about the funny smelling bathrooms… they were clean… but could use an update.
Overall, we are fans, like to come here for the environment, and local flavor.

Went in here and did my usual «what’s the most popular item» dialog with the uhm… «waitress». She suggested pizza or stromboli, so I went with stromboli. I guess it only comes with one set of fillings, so… OK not a big deal.
So while waiting at our booth near the window I mistakenly tried to swat a couple of the flies that were dive bombing our table with some rolled up napkins. The breeze from that was enough to blow dessicated fly carcasses from the window sill, all over our table. We quickly moved, no one who worked there said a word, so whatever.
Food finally shows… tasted… strange. Not good, not bad, just off a bit. I guess stick with the pizza? I don’t get all the 4 and 5 star reviews here. Maybe I’m doing it wrong? My guess is you’ve got to be either a drunk student or an old drunk alum to really enjoy the food here.

At one time Café Pizzaria was the best in town; but owners have changed many times and the ingredients have changed for the worse. The pizzas are greasy, the cheese is not fresh to the taste and the meat doesn’t taste fresh either. We hope the day comes when that old pizzaria taste can return to its place as Bloomingtons signature pizza.

My boyfriend is obsessed with Pizza King & was upset when we moved here from Muncie & there wasn’t one close by, but someone from his work said this place tasted a lot like it so we decided to give it a try. The first time they kinda burned the meat & there wasn’t enough cheese or sauce, but the 2^nd time we got it we added extra cheese & sauce & it was perfect. He’s happy now when he gets his PK craving we can go here & it’s actually better in my opinion.

Decent food but service was terrible. Went here on a Sat nite after an IU fball game. It was busy but not packed, there were plenty of open tables. After sitting we waited 10 mins for a server. We ordered an app and a pizza. When the pizza showed up the server promised the app would be right out. Sadly it never showed.
Pizza was good, especially the crust. It’s a slightly crunchy, thin crust with a ¼ in high rim around the edge, which is unusual for a thin crust.
Only went here because Nicks was packed. Because of the service will probably try elsewhere if in the same pinch again.

Relaxed Mom and Pop atmosphere. Some of my favorite pizza ever. Diet caffeine free soft drink options. WiFi. Really affordable specials. I love this place!

I’ve always had a soft spot for the original stromboli from this place. Crumbled sausage, onions, mozzarella, sauce, soft and chewy bread, and plenty of bread and butter pickles on the side. What a great sandwich.
I don’t know why, but I’ve never been a fan of the pizza from this place. The crust has always been a bit flavorless in my opinion, but that’s just my take. Obviously they’re doing something right.

I’ve only been here for lunch. Sometimes I get a craving for pizza, and Café Pizzaria fits the bill. I like going here on Fridays when one of the specials is an individual one-​topping pizza, breadsticks with dipping sauce, and a drink for something like 6.50. You seat yourself and can often sit and people watch on Kirkwood.
The crust is thin but not crispy. The toppings are just the right amount and all the way to the edge of the pizza. For breadsticks, you have your choice of pizza, marinara, or nacho cheese sauce. I typically get the nacho cheese. The breadsticks can be hit or miss. They are buttery and garlicly but sometimes cold and a little hard when they get to you. I’d up my review to 4 stars if they fixed the breadstick issue.
FYI, the restaurant is not handicap accessible. The bathrooms are up a narrow flight of stairs, and it’s a small one-​person room. The atmosphere is a little divey and random but cozy.

Awesome. Probably would say 4.5 stars, as I reserve that 5^th for Bobe’s Pizza in Washington, but Café Pizzaria is great. Thin slice heaven!
Located on Kirkwood, on the street known for nightlife, this is a hole-​in-​the-​wall. A large hole, but just so, e tables and booths and old IU stuff on the walls. Staff is fantastic, very friendly, Service is good, Pizza is great. Breadsticks aren’t the best, FYI, which is too bad but still a great place! Order one size larger than you normally do, because thin crust + delicious = eating frenzy!!!

It’s kind of strange that I walk by this place almost every day and never actually stopped to go inside. There seems to be one or two people inside every time I walk past, but it’s never really packed or hoppin’. I decided to give it a go yesterday and while it doesn’t make the nation’s top pizza places, it’s certainly not bad.
I got the meat lover’s pizza — the extra large is a fairy reasonable amount for 3 college students and the prices aren’t bad if you’re looking to come in and out for under $ 10. The meats weren’t bad and the crust not too thin or too thick, but it’s certainly not the sauciest pizza out there (I’m a big fan of sauce).
As for the décor, it’s pretty dated with paintings for the 1960’s or something. I guess if it works, don’t change it right? Personally, I felt like I time traveled back in time for the hour or so I was there, but it’s worth a shot if you’re looking for a different type of pizza in B-​town.