Versante Pizza
We recently had dinner at the new(ish) Versante Pizza on the south side of town—located at the old Zydeco location on south Third Street in fact. The only thing we really knew about it going in was that it was supposed to be expensive (for pizza).
Well, to be honest, it is a bit expensive for pizza—a large pepperoni pizza for $22 is a bit steep, in my opinion—but to be fair it was very good and they are going for a more upscale, gourmet style of pizza.
What’s interesting is that they’re styling the restaurant itself as more of an old-school pizza parlor: lots of vintage metal signs on the walls (soda pop signs, old automotive signs), arcade games in the back, simple chairs and tables with checked tablecloths. It’s a neat ambiance and they’ve filled the Zydeco space pretty well.
We ordered large pizza for dinner, half barbecued chicken and half Hawaiian (the "Big Kahuna"). My wife thought the BBQ chicken could have used more sauce, but overall the pizza was hearty and filling and really quite good.
They have some other things on the menu (pastas, salads, oven-baked subs) and those seem priced more in-line with what you’d expect for such food. Yes, the pizza was a bit expensive—it’s not what we’d afford to order every weekend, for instance—but it’s a nice splurge and well worth it.
Bonus reviews: I had my kids write up their own reviews of Versante and promised to run them here. It’s a pretty kid-friendly place, and they liked it. Their words:
My daughter: Versante Pizza was amazing! I got BBQ Chicken pizza and it was the best pizza I’ve ever had. Everything was just how I liked it. The whole pizza was over the top. Versante Pizza is a place I would want to go to again. Versante rocks!
My son: We went to Versante Pizza. We got our drinks. Then we had our pizza. They were Hawaiian and BBQ Chicken. The food was very good. Then we left. I think that Versante Pizza is very good, that I would want to go there again.
Versante Pizza
1085 SE Third Street
Bend, OR 97702
541-318-9177
$22 – gasp. That would be way over my budget. Bend Brewing Co on Tuesdays is more of my thing then. But thanks for the report on the place.
They need a side salad…their cheapest one was like $6 and I was told they were HUGE. I wasn’t going to do a one-time-through salad bar either. The pizza price I thought was in line with gourmet and we would have done different choices had our circumstances that night been different (I remember cranky kids, until they ate)
I think more reviews should include the kid-written reviews. Their perspective on things is always so entertaining.
But based on the fact that a large pepperoni is $22, the likelihood of ever going there is pretty slim for us. Papa Murphy’s for us, thanks 🙂
OK, so I am notoriously cheap but I *love* this place. The RHPB gets the same thing every time (Mona Lisa, sub salami for pepperoni) but the kids and I try something new every time. The sausage & grape is REALLY good and so is the chicken alfredo (or something like that).
My only complaint is that their beer selection is close to non-existent, which I know "your wife" could care less about. 😉
I also like the kids’ POV… great job and great reviews, guys!!
I liked the kids comments too – fun to read. It is nice to get a perspective of a restaurant from a family point of view:)
Pizza was pretty good but the salad bar was gross. Soggy leftover items and when we asked if they’d refill some of the items, all they did was add iceberg to the lettuce bowl. Not what you’d expect from a place that charges so much for salad.
We went tonight. Not impressed. Felt cramped and didn’t love the order at the counter format or the salad bar (yuck) or the pizza. Did like the local microbrews on tap and the kids liked the video games but I dont think I will go back. Pizza Mondo clearly the best but would also choose old town or cibellis or flatbread over this place.
I found the pizza to be amazing. Moving from Salem, our favorite place (Paddington’s…*sigh*) had a thin and crunchy crust. The only way we’ve been able to get that around here that was remotely good was to slightly char our Papa Murphy’s pizza. My husband was getting tired of it.
For the price you are getting a fantastic pizza and fresh ingredients. Pretty on par from everywhere we’ve been with similar quality.