Aurelio's Pizza in LaGrange

Dining at Aurelio's Pizza in LaGrange on Monday evening, was my second dining experience at the Aurelio's Pizza franchise. The first dining experience there, being last week on Tuesday evening, started off when the hostess was rude by her wanting to seat me far in the back of the restaurant, her being totally ignorant of my disability. Also, the pizza which I had ordered : small 10-inch thin crust pizza, cooked until extra crispy, small amount of cheese, turned out to be a large pizza with alot of cheese and I didn't even dare to notice all of the ingredients on it underneath the many layers of cheese. The server seemed to expect me to eat the pizza anyways, which certainly I did not eat. Instead, I asked to speak with the franchiser who was present that evening. The franchiser had his son remake the pizza, rather than having the poorly trained pizza chefs potentially fail again. The pizza. once remade, finally was corrected to the original order, which by the way, I had written my order to paper, describing exactly what I wanted, so that the server could not have miswrote it.

Anyways, the dining experience there on Monday evening was much worse than the previous dining experience there last week on Tuesday evening. Unfortunately, unlike the previous visit, I didn't actually get the opportunity to eat anything except for an undercooked, soggy, incorrectly made pizza, which I did not eat. Actually, the first pizza that they made, wasn't even brought out to the table by the server, because she noted that there was too much cheese on the pizza. To make matters worse, she brought out two additional pizzas, both which were undercooked, soggy, and incorrectly made. Of course, I made sure to write my order to paper again, which obviously is not understood well by the staff, despite that the server had read it back to me before even taking the paper back with her to the kitchen. These problems resulted in yet another visit with the franchiser, who blamed my mother and I for the problems, rather than him taking responsibility for his apparent lack in knowledge of how to properly run a business. He claimed that he had "learned that he cannot please everyone, from him having been around the planet". Well, throughout his adventures around the planet, he ought to have learned to stay far away from LaGrange, so that Aurelio's Pizza could have a decent, knowledgeable, responsible person to operate the franchise of their respectable business.

I have dined at the family-owned Homewood location of Aurelio's Pizza many times since the late 1980's, and never have I had a problem with the pizza there. Unfortunately, considering the price of gasoline, it costs too much to travel to/from there to LaGrange. Besides, businesses ought to be consistent. After all, Pizza Hut sure seems to be. After we left Aurelio's, we went to dine at a Pizza Hut, which the pizza I had ordered there, was correctly cooked the first time made. I like pizza to be crispy and not to fall apart like slop. The Homewood location of Aurelio's is pizza, like the motto says, however, the LaGrange location of Aurelio's is slop.

I'm sorry you ran into these issues in La Grange. Growing up in Villa Park, I could always count on the location on Roosevelt (Oakbrook Terrace / Villa Park); they handle many special requests with a smile and deal with a very diverse clientele. Same kind of pride is in evidence as the Homewood location. I don't much trust the W. Harrison franchise downtown. I like Aurelio's pizza quite a bit when it's well-executed (I also go easy-cheese, extra sauce).

Since many family-run, artisanal places beloved (by at least some, for each establishment) on the board have pricepoints similar to the franchise* places you've tried, you might consider our GNRs (a few forums down) and other active pizza threads as a starting point for good cooked-to-order pies. With your interest in high-quality toppings and relatively little cheese, you might really dig Spacca Napoli or Coalfire. The Pasta Shoppe (Oak Park) also has newly-introduced Neapolitan-style pizza. Piece in Wicker Park does special orders very well. The Pizza Metro locations built and bake right in front of you. My Pie does a decent medium-crust rendition. Vito and Nick's is consistent and friendly. GNR Burt's quality is a home run, but the service may not be your style. Even Q's Pizza in Hillside and the "original" (relocated) Salerno's in Oak Park certainly can edge your Pizza Huts, Dominos, Papa John's, etc. Flatbreads are currently in vogue with many chefs; just in the near Western 'burbs, you can get carefully crafted appetizer pizzas (sometimes delivered by the chefs) at Trattoria 221 in Oak Park and Gaetano's in Forest Park. Go into the city, and you'll find them at Avec, Bluebird, Sepia, and Crust (recent good reviews). I know and appreciate that accessibility is an issue, so please call ahead to any of these places.

In short, I hope you keep trying, and encourage sampling of some of the great neighborhood pizza joints we have around the city. In general, it's a genial and customer-oriented business managed by people who like what they do. And the next time you have an Aurelio's sweet-sauce craving, try Oakbrook Terrace.


Signed,

The PP

* though nothing's inherently wrong with franchises if they're done well <cough> unlike Uno's and Home Run Inn <cough>

Thank you for your suggestions, Santander.

I really have liked Aurelio's Pizza in Homewood when I have been there in the past. I find it disappointing that the franchises are either hit or miss. I don't eat pizza too often, although when I do, I like Aurelio's, at least I have until recently. Another really good pizza place is Joe's Italian Villa in Bridgeview, which always seems to know how to make the pizza extra crispy. However, the taste is quite a bit different compared to Aurelio's. Sort of spicy rather than sweet. Anyways, I'll try to go to Oak Park soon, in order to try some of the places around there. I haven't been to Oak Park in quite a while, so it'll be interesting to see how much has changed around there.

Rather than vent about the problems with that particular Aurelio's on this board, I suggest you go to the Aurelio's web page and let them know about your problems with the store. I live in Homewood, grew up with the Aurelio kids and I know they take great pride in their pizza. I also know they have shut down franchisees for not making the pizza according to their specifications, so I would have no qualms about complaining about a store that carries their name.

Suzy

sdritz wrote:Rather than vent about the problems with that particular Aurelio's on this board, I suggest you go to the Aurelio's web page and let them know about your problems with the store. I live in Homewood, grew up with the Aurelio kids and I know they take great pride in their pizza. I also know they have shut down franchisees for not making the pizza according to their specifications, so I would have no qualms about complaining about a store that carries their name.

Suzy

Hi Suzy. The Homewood location is great. It is disappointing that it costs so much to drive nowadays, otherwise, I'd just go dine there for Aurelio's Pizza. Anyways, my mother told me that she is planning to contact the corporate office today, by phone. Hopefully the issue will be resolved.

I had a really bad experience at the Aurelio's in Valparaiso, IN. a couple years ago. I contacted Aurelio's via their contact information on the website and was basically told that they can't control what the franchisee does. My concerns were not addressed and no apology was offered for what I felt was an extremely negative experience. Having worked in the industry for many years, I was pretty surprised by this response. It has definitey insured them permanent spot on my "can't do" list.

BP wrote:Another really good pizza place is Joe's Italian Villa in Bridgeview,

I haven't been there in a long time. Might be time for a re-visit. They always have good thin crust.

Thanks for the info BP. It's too bad they are performing well as I have friends that were anticipating the opening of this particular Aurelio's for much the same reason as you....much closer to home than Homewood.

Be curious what corporate says......

Marquee wrote:I had a really bad experience at the Aurelio's in Valparaiso, IN. a couple years ago.

What was the problem?

Delicious pizza and a great dining experience! From the moment I walked into the door at the new Aurelio's Pizza in La Grange, I knew that this was a special place. From the personal greeting I received from the owner, to the piping hot cheese and sausage pizza and cold pitcher of beer (with a frosty cold glass!), I was very pleased with my experience. I had been to the original Aurelio's in Homewood a few times in the past and couldn't wait to try the sweet sauce and crispy thin crust again. The family-feel to the restaurant, nostalgic decor, and comfortable atmosphere made this place worth the trip from the city. I would definitely recommend giving it a try!

gaskinsl wrote:Delicious pizza and a great dining experience! From the moment I walked into the door at the new Aurelio's Pizza in La Grange, I knew that this was a special place. From the personal greeting I received from the owner, to the piping hot cheese and sausage pizza and cold pitcher of beer (with a frosty cold glass!), I was very pleased with my experience. I had been to the original Aurelio's in Homewood a few times in the past and couldn't wait to try the sweet sauce and crispy thin crust again. The family-feel to the restaurant, nostalgic decor, and comfortable atmosphere made this place worth the trip from the city. I would definitely recommend giving it a try!

And you have no personal, professional or financial affliation with the restaurant? Sorry, but we get a little suspicious when a first-time poster uses so many exclamation marks.

gaskinsl wrote:Delicious pizza and a great dining experience! From the moment I walked into the door at the new Aurelio's Pizza in La Grange, I knew that this was a special place. From the personal greeting I received from the owner, to the piping hot cheese and sausage pizza and cold pitcher of beer (with a frosty cold glass!), I was very pleased with my experience. I had been to the original Aurelio's in Homewood a few times in the past and couldn't wait to try the sweet sauce and crispy thin crust again. The family-feel to the restaurant, nostalgic decor, and comfortable atmosphere made this place worth the trip from the city. I would definitely recommend giving it a try!

Perhaps the beer influenced your opinions about the place. Also, I find it interesting that you went from the city to LaGrange, in order to get pizza. There are many (and better) pizza places in the city.

Anyways, my mother is in the process of waiting to hear from some people in Homewood. I'll update everyone as soon as I get the information.

It really is a shame that you guys take all of your opinions about the Aurelios in Lagrange from one unhappy customer, and then when someone gives remarks saying how good they actually believed it to be you automaticaly shoot them down. I have had this pizza my entire life and can honestly say that the pizza served at this location is as good as the pizza from the homewood location. I'm sure most of the cinics reading this will just assume I have something to do with the franchise so I challenge you to go there, you do not even have to order any food, just talk to people who have recieved their food. I am sure that you will find a common theme of enjoyment throughout the majority of the patrons. The fact that someone even compares a hand made pizza, that if you ask anyone who has actually had to make a pizza they would know each pizza comes out different every time, to pizza hut is a joke. Pizza hut is able to stay consistant with their pizza because everything is premade, that is also why there food doesn't even compare to that of Aurelios. If you want a pizza cooked to the exact way you want it down to each peice of cheese, do it yourself, if you want a quality pizza that has been perfected by using one recipe for almost 50 years then come to Aurelios.

kdthele2 wrote: Pizza hut is able to stay consistant with their pizza because everything is premade.

I'm confussed. The Aurelio's in LaGrange is a franchise right? So they get the sauce from the franchisor premade and the dough is delivered to them premade??? or do they do it differently there?

The sauce is premade, but not applied to the dough until the pizza is ordered unlike many chains where they will make pizzas ahead of time when they can. The dough is made fresh every day in the back the exact same way it was made by Joe Aurelio when he first opened up, all of this information is easy to get by just going there. The owner is always happy to give tours of the restaurant even back in the kitchen all you have to do is ask.

kdthele2,

Thank you for defending your favorites and I hope you will post again on other food you love. Just because people may say state their opinion, it does not mean it becomes universally accepted. It's like watching Siskel and Ebert: you come to learn which one may reflect your tastes or don't. Sometimes if they hate it, then it must be really good based on their track record with you.

Regards,

kdthele2 wrote:It really is a shame that you guys take all of your opinions about the Aurelios in Lagrange from one unhappy customer, and then when someone gives remarks saying how good they actually believed it to be you automaticaly shoot them down. I have had this pizza my entire life and can honestly say that the pizza served at this location is as good as the pizza from the homewood location. I'm sure most of the cinics reading this will just assume I have something to do with the franchise so I challenge you to go there, you do not even have to order any food, just talk to people who have recieved their food. I am sure that you will find a common theme of enjoyment throughout the majority of the patrons. The fact that someone even compares a hand made pizza, that if you ask anyone who has actually had to make a pizza they would know each pizza comes out different every time, to pizza hut is a joke. Pizza hut is able to stay consistant with their pizza because everything is premade, that is also why there food doesn't even compare to that of Aurelios. If you want a pizza cooked to the exact way you want it down to each peice of cheese, do it yourself, if you want a quality pizza that has been perfected by using one recipe for almost 50 years then come to Aurelios.

The Homewood location always has been consistant, yet, in the few experiences which I have had at the LaGrange location, they have severely botched every pizza they made for me, with the one exception on the first visit (the pizza which the franchiser's son made). To me, that says something about the quality of the franchiser. This wasn't just an issue of slightly undercooked pizza. The pizza was very undercooked, yet, even when it was remade, they still didn't cook it enough and they refused to cook it longer, showing horrible customer service. Whereas, the Homewood location always has made the pizza correctly. There are no reasonable excuses for the incompetancy of the LaGrange location's franchiser's operation of the place.

kdthele2 wrote:The sauce is premade, but not applied to the dough until the pizza is ordered unlike many chains where they will make pizzas ahead of time when they can. The dough is made fresh every day in the back the exact same way it was made by Joe Aurelio when he first opened up, all of this information is easy to get by just going there. The owner is always happy to give tours of the restaurant even back in the kitchen all you have to do is ask.

I don't believe that the owner would show people in the kitchen, otherwise, certainly he would have taken me back there, and even offered for me to make my own pizza, as certain places have done for me in the past. The fact is, that he did not offer anything to me in order to try to resolve the issues, except for the first visit when his son was there. Instead, all I heard from him was about how he "learned that he cannot please everyone, from him having been around the planet". Again, he made no attempt at actually trying to resolve the issues on the second visit. Also, the fact that Pizza Hut is mostly premade, it still was cooked correctly, whereas the Aurelio's Pizza in LaGrange, was not. Therefore, the "premade" excuse, is not valid.

I have never been to the location in Lagrange, but have been to the one in Valparaiso as well as the one near UIC (unsure of the exact location - I want to say it's on Harrison) and maybe I'm just picky about my pizza, maybe it's the sweet sauce. Between the unpleasant atmosphere, the cheap food, the all you can eat aspect, cheapens the feel of the food, it's not for me. I am shocked that people have such positive opinions about this place.


This may come off really harsh, and I do not mean it to be that way, but I'm shocked Aurelio's is even being discussed as a Chicago Pizza Place. I'm sure their pizza is fine in the grand scheme.

Heather, I have only eaten at the Homewood location and used to get carry out from the Chicago Heights location when I lived in Park Forest. I did one time have carry out from the Harrison Street restaurant and agree that it was not very good -- I still think the Homewood restaurant is good, if you know how to order there. For some reason, when you order a pizza cooked in the "old oven," it just tastes different from simply ordering a pizza. I can't explain why this is so, or why there is a difference in taste.

Also, I have to admit that eating a pizza in the Homewood restaurant is better than bringing one home, even though we live two blocks away and the pizza certainly doesn't sit in the box for very long.

Aurelio's has good pizza. I don't know if you have ever eaten a fresh one there, or just someone's leftovers. I find the quality suffers in any pizza if it sits too long. I've never seen an all you can eat program in the Homewood store. And I don't believe their pizza in any way resembles Pizza Hut or Domino's, both of which can be found in the neighborhood if you look hard enough.

Suzy

As a former manager of an Aurelio's I can shed some light on some of these issues. My guess as to the inconsistencies from one location to another my be the type of oven each location has. I know Homewood has deck ovens which one would assume all locations would have,but not necessarily. I happened to work at the now defunct Schaumburg/Hoffman Estates location which when it first opened had conveyor ovens which didn't cook as well. When the location moved across town into the Hoffman Estates location the boss made a wise investment and bought a deck which made a huge difference. Any knucklehead can cook a pizza in a conveyor oven !! As to comparing Aurelio's pizza to Pizza Hut......pppllleeeeaaase !!! I may be biased but for thin-crust Aurelios is one of the best in the Chicago area. And I grew up eating Barnaby's . I can't vouch for most of the locations as I've only eaten at the Homewood,Oakbrook Terrace and Naples,Florida locations but a lot goes into a consistancy of a pizza and if one thing is done differently (making the dough,sauce,quality of ingredients) the quality will suffer. I know the management of Aurelios took away a franchise because the store was cutting corners w/ their ingredients
so I truly believe that Joe Aurelio cares about the legacy his father started. 49 years is a long time in any business but pizza places come and go,especially in a market like Chicagoland.

Heather22 wrote:. I am shocked that people have such positive opinions about this place.

Having only eaten at the Homewood location, I was shocked that anyone had negative opinions about it. Apparently it's best if we make the commute when we get the hankering for Aurelio's.

After reading all the posts in this thread about this location in La Grange I decided that tonight after work on our way home my husband and I would stop in to check it out and see what sort of experience that we would have.

We got in about 8 or so, promptly seated, drink order taken immediately, and the rest of our service was speedy, efficient and without incident. My husband just wanted a plain cheese pizza, and then I also ordered a small Hawaiian to see how that was. The server did mention twice that it came with Bbq sauce, and not marinara, and said it could be switched either way, but that sometimes people didn't notice that on the menu and aren't happy when the pizza arrives.

Our pizzas were both cooked well no issue of soggy pizza or an incorrect order. The cheese only was well browned on the top and bottom with the edges done a dark crispy brown. I thought that it could have used more sauce because they were very generous with the cheese, however my husband took the opposite viewpoint and thought it would have been over kill. The Hawaiian had the pineapple on top of the cheese and it had a nice little char to it that I enjoyed, it was sauced well, and the ham was generous. I can say that this isn't by any means on par with Pizza Hut or Domino's or any chain pizza establishment I have ever been into.

Is it the best pizza I've ever eaten in my entire life, no. I am still nostalgic for the Barone's we'd get when I was a kid over on Archer Ave. However it's pretty good pizza.

I had an opportunity to chat with the manager/owner ( I didn't get his title correctly) after we finished eating. I asked him to tell me a bit about the store and what was going on there. He said that they have been received very well by the neighborhood, and he's been very thankful for that. Mondays are their slowest nights. In the 7 weeks that they have been open he said that they have sold well over 11,000 pizzas. He said that the Aurelio's name is very important to them and he knows what the chains reputation means to people from the area. He said that when people see the Aurelio's name you only have one chance to get things right.

I asked him about the types of ovens that they are using there. He said that they have two brick ovens, and then three conveyor ovens. I might have the numbers here wrong, but either the brick ovens are 15 years old, and the conveyor ovens are 17 years old (vice versa you might have to flip those numbers). He said that was a very purposeful decision on their part because they wanted to be using seasoned ovens.


I realize that everyone has different experiences at different places, all and all my service was good, my food was good, and the staff seemed pretty friendly and open to suggestions. Tonight was their slow night, so maybe that made it better, or maybe they're just now getting broken in and heading down the right path.

Erzsi, was the bottom crust of the pizzas, completely crispy, or were they foldable, like a New York - style pizza? When I went to the LaGrange location, all of the pizzas, with the exception of the pizza which the owner's son made, were foldable and not crispy. Whereas, at the Homewood location, the bottom crust of the pizzas are crispy. Also, ovens do make a big difference. I think that "deck" ovens, are what Joe's Italian Villa in Bridgeview, uses to cook pizza. The pizza there always is crispy and very good.

BP wrote:Erzsi, was the bottom crust of the pizzas, completely crispy, or were they foldable, like a New York - style pizza? When I went to the LaGrange location, all of the pizzas, with the exception of the pizza which the owner's son made, were foldable and not crispy. Whereas, at the Homewood location, the bottom crust of the pizzas are crispy. Also, ovens do make a big difference. I think that "deck" ovens, are what Joe's Italian Villa in Bridgeview, uses to cook pizza. The pizza there always is crispy and very good.

The bottoms were completely crispy, and a tan to dark brown in color, I had to use my knife to cut through the crust, it wasn't easily rippable or foldable. The top of the cheese had been browned as well, not darkly but enough to where the cheese was not loose or gooey. The edges of each pizza also were browned, in some places, erring towards being burned if it was let go a lot longer.

Also when the pizzas were brought to the table they were not placed directly on a pizza pan but on top of little circular cooling racks with a pizza pan under that.

I would really suggest if you had an awful experience to go back in and speak to the gentleman I spoke with. He was had on an Aurelio's shirt and seemed to be a manager or owner. He seemed interested in hearing feedback. I don't have a dog in this fight, I just thought I'd pop over to check the place out since we also stop for ice cream down the street from there.

I haven't been to Joe's Italian Villa in a year, I remember they used to use the deck ovens there and their pizza was always pretty crisp. They make a good pizza as well but they're usually pretty swamped on the weekends to get into so I haven't been in a while.

I'm glad that you had good pizzas there, Erzsi. Hopefully, they have resolved the cooking issues, although it's apparent that their customer service issues still exist, since we have yet to hear from them about how they plan to resolve this situation with us.

I've had pizzas at the Oak Brook Terrace store and also one in Indiana, think it was around Hobart. Both were very good, IMO.

BP wrote:I'm glad that you had good pizzas there, Erzsi. Hopefully, they have resolved the cooking issues, although it's apparent that their customer service issues still exist, since we have yet to hear from them about how they plan to resolve this situation with us.

I have been following this thread, I am curious what exactly do you want from them & how do you want them to "resolve this situation" as you put it. You didnt like this locations pizza, these things happen. I say cut your losses, quit wasting your time/energy and move on.

I also have been following this thread. My wife is from the south suburbs, and she is a huge fan of Aurelio's. Her family considers the Aurelio's in Homewood the Holy Grail of pizza. (I personally prefer Malnati's and some others, but have learned to appreciate Aurelio's after initially being turned off by the sweet sauce.)

I've noticed some consistency issues at the Naperville franchise, but they seem to have turned things around. Our last several pizzas from there have been very good. Unfortunately, sometimes franchising a well-loved brand and not paying close attention to quality control, as Aurelio's seems to have done, can lead to disappointed customers -- especially customers with high expectations. It sounds like the La Grange restaurant may have had some issues, but is working to turn things around. I'm not sure what they can do at this point to make the OP happy, so perhaps he or she is better off taking his or her business elsewhere.

IMO, these comparisons to Pizza Hut and Domino's are totally inaccurate. People are entitled to their own opinions, but many in the Chicagoland area -- particularly the south suburbs -- consider Aurelio's to be right up there with the very best Chicago pizza that our area has to offer. Also, FWIW, I have never experienced an unpleasant, "all you can eat" atmosphere at the Homewood location. Perhaps this poster has Aurelio's confused with someplace else.

Ron A. wrote:IMO, these comparisons to Pizza Hut and Domino's are totally inaccurate.

+1

The only Aurelio's I have sampled in the last ten years is the Naperville location Ron mentions, so I will refrain from commenting on very old (but generally positive) experiences elsewhere. Including a place in LaGrange (on 55th just east of LaGrange Road on the south side of the street - is that the same place as this new location?) which if my memory serves me at all well was an Aurelio's 20 years ago, too, but I cannot swear that is correct.

Aurelio's is not my preferred pizza - in Naperville, I prefer Traverso's (but only buy pizza at Traverso's as their other food is not good), and there are a lot of other places I like more. But I want to echo and amplify what others have said - Aurelio's uses high quality ingredients and makes a quality pie. Different locations at different times may execute better or worse, but that is solely based on the oven and execution, whereas places like Pizza Hut or Domino's are, from start to finish, working with cheap, low quality ingredients and a process designed to deliver as inexpensive a product as quickly as possible, so it will never be any better than mediocre. Aurelio's is trying to deliver a delicious pizza, not just a cheap, fast one. They may miss the mark at times, and it may not be to every one's taste, but to say they are making the same low quality junk as those crappy chains is just wrong.

Let's at least give places that use quality ingredients and try to put out a high quality product credit for that effort. Then if we can help them achieve their goal more consistently by providing good feedback, well, it ain't ending world hunger, but it is a good thing.

Got that off my chest now, rant over.