Review: Culinary Circle Pizza, LEAVE A COMMENT, WIN A PIZZA (Maybe), & The Google Throat Tattoo

Junk Food Nation, let’s talk about how Google is trying to take over the world.  Last week, Google filed for a patent for a electronic skin tattoo that applies to the throat region of the body.  It would, apparently, communicate with smart phones and gaming devices WITHOUT needing to wear Google Glass or have an earpiece.

The potential benefits: the skin sensors could measure blood sugar.  Could measure heart rate, and have incredible medical benefits.  It could reduce waste and mean less to carry.  The negatives: IT’S AN ELECTRONIC NECK TATTOO DESIGNED TO TAKE OVER YOUR LIFE.  DAMN YOU GOOGLE.  IT WAS THE STATUE OF LIBERTY THE WHOLE TIME!!!

How do you all feel about this?  Feels eerily like getting a barcode on your body, right?  You can imagine a dystopian future where we have been enslaved by the machines using these throat tattoos as our shackles. The article even says “The filing says that in addition to sticking via an adhesive to the throat, the tattoo could go on a collar or a band around the user’s neck.” Oh really, a collar around my neck!?  THAT DOESN’T SOUND SCARY AT ALL.

On the positive side, no earpiece.  AH THE FREEDOM.

Personally, I am accepting that there will come a day when our electronic superiors lord over us like the machines in the matrix.  I mean, I already use my smartphone for WAAAY too much and I’m never going back, so it is inevitability for me.  Gimme the neck tattoo, I’m ready – just do it already.  I want Siri in my brain.

Today’s junk food: Culinary Circle Pizza!

So Culinary Circle is a company that makes a bunch of products, like meatballs, sauces, pastas, and frozen pizzas. Culinary Circle wanted me to review one of their frozen pizzas for National Pizza Month, and I am not one to turn down free pizza.  Of course, National Pizza Month was October, and while I’m a little behind, better late than never!

When I went to the store, there were PLENTY of options:

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Stacks and stacks of flatbread pizzas, rising crust pizzas, ultra thin crust pizzas.  I settled on the one below:

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

I chose the Culinary Circle Italian Wood Fired Crust Pizza, the Italian Sausage and Caramelized Onion Pizza.  I chose this one because generally frozen pizzas tend to get onions ALL WRONG, so I wanted to test this brand.This Culinary Circle Pizza was a standard, maybe 10-11 inch pizza, perfect for one-two people.

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza features “imported Italian crust” although the product is not handmade.  The juxtaposition of these words and the photo is priceless.

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

When it comes to frozen pizza, I’ve eaten a lot of it.  My favorite, by far, is the DiGiorno Pizzeria! Pizzas, but my general go-to are Freschetta pizzas or Red Baron pizzas.  We;ll see where Culinary Circle Pizza stacks up…

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

1/3 pizza is a serving?  I like that – although I could probably eat this whole thing…

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Pre-caramelized onions on this Culinary Circle Pizza? Smart move – I don’t like when frozen pizzas just come with white crystalline onions in its frozen form.

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

When frozen, the Culinary Circle pizza looks standard – I did enjoy the look of the pre-caramelized onions, however.

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza – DIVIDED IN TO 1/3 PIECES!  Nice.  It smelled pretty good – cheesy and onion-y.  I did get the hint of sage, but I mostly smelled the onion.

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

Culinary Circle Pizza

I ate 2/3 of this Culinary Circle Pizza, and can give my assessment:

THE POSITIVES: GREAT crust.  Like, really good.  It crisped up in a way that wasn’t TOO crunchy, but provided a nice crispness that went all the way to the center of the pie.  There was no droop at the tips of the pieces.  The edges were crispy yet light, and I didn’t feel like I was stuffing myself with bread.  Italian Wood Fried Crust – thumbs up!

Also, wonderful caramelized onion taste.  Spot on. Unlike other frozen pizzas where the onions are usually a throw away, it was clear that this flavor profile was focused on delivering that sweet onion flavor and making sure it lasted throughout.

THE NEGATIVES: Not really negatives, but the rest of the frozen pizza was just pretty standard in my book.  Reminded me a lot of a Freschetta or Red Baron Pizza.  The cheese was ok, melted well.  The sauce was sweet, but wasn’t bursting with tomato flavor.  The sausage was flavorful, but not memorable.

All in all, I enjoyed this frozen pizza!   And now I’d like for YOU to enjoy one too.

***COMMENT CONTEST***

Since you guys are so good at leaving comments, Culinary Circle is offering a $10 gift card so that you can go to your grocery and buy one or two of their Culinary Circle Pizzas.  All you have to do is leave a comment!  Well, more specifically:

1) Leave a comment about what you think of the Google Neck Tattoo, or of the Culinary Circle Pizza, or of frozen pizzas in general.

2) Be sure to include your email address in the applicable field below so I can email the winner.

3) US ONLY.  Sorry, I don’t think Culinary Circle Pizzas exist outside of the US.

So that’s it!  Leave a comment below, and I’ll chose one …I dunno, by Friday or something.

SO, ENTER THE COMMENT CONTEST!  WIN A $10 GIFT CARD!  BUY PIZZA AND NOM NOM! And thanks again to Culinary Circle.  See you guys tomorrow!

PURCHASED AT: Shoppers

COST: $4.00

Thoughts? Please comment below or hit me up on Twitter @junkfoodguy or LIKE my Facebook Page and message me there. Let’s hang out.

Sincerely,

Junk Food Guy

Discuss - 74 Comments

  1. Movie and a Pizza night MOM says:

    I found your pizza in my local supermarket( Western Beef) in New York. We had the Pepperoni and the 5 cheese. It was GREAT and CHEAP. We(my family) decided to do it again and why not they’re $4.99 a piece. Even the cheap dollar store Pizza
    (RedBaron) is now $5.50 and your pizza tastes BETTER. So we open the boxes and guess what we got literally half a pepperoni pizza. An odd,oval looking 1/2 a pizza.
    Thank god we got 3 pizza’s today instead of two. Still love your pizza but try to check that next time.

  2. Paul Clark says:

    after years of trying frozen pizza I have never found one that is as wonderful and tasty as yours.Your Supreme Pizza with the Ultra Thin Crust is without a dought the very best pizza ever outstanding Yum E I will from now on only buy your pizza’s

    Im one happy camper Thank You

  3. dave says:

    we been loyal consumer of your pizzas for years .and have told our friends .now the recipe has changed and we no longer feel the pizza is as good .disappointed .

  4. Ed says:

    I have bought many Culinary Circle pizzas in the past, and most were very good…..but I just baked (at the recommended temperature) a frozen/rising crust Culinary Circle spinach and mushroom pizza that was the absolute worst pizza that I have ever had of any brand, frozen or fresh. I baked it for 27 minutes until the outside of the crust was brown, and the cheese was thoroughly melted. When I cut it, the inside of the crust was gooey and soggy. I put it back in the oven for another 4 minutes until the outside was practically burned, and the inside was still soggy, and tasted like raw dough. I ended up throwing it away, and will not buy another Culinary Circle pizza.

    • BEN says:

      I actually have a life so I son’t do this message board stuff very often. CULINARY CIRCLE PIZZA’s are awesome. For $4.95 its absolutely fabulous. Thin crust italian sausage is so so good. I’m 6’1″ 200 lbs and 1 of those is a perfect meal for me.The rising crust are excellent as well. I didn’t care for the buffalo chicken but I really don’t like that kind anyway. I could eat one of there pizza’s every night. There sauce is outstanding. The 5 cheese is better than PIZZA HUT. I could go on and on. I’m a single guy and its hard to shop for just 1 person as far as having a healthy diet. I pretty much live on these pizza’a and LOTS of Ice cream and I’m not gaining a pound…..I LOVE CULINARY CIRCLE>

    • Bob Walen says:

      I don’t know what happened Ed, but you just have to be a better cook than me since nobody is worse at that craft. Try my favorite the pepperoni rising crust. I’ve had dozens and if I can’t screw it up nobody can. Damn, spinach and mushroom, that combination should be illegal.

  5. Pat Fink says:

    As a rule I don’t buy or eat frozen pizza as it’s never very good….not any of it including the fancy expensive ones. However, while visiting friends in Maryland i was introduced to Culinary Circle pizzas….all I can say is wow, they’re outstanding. I’ve now had both thin and rising crust pizza’s and can say nothing bad except the store when my friend buys them has a very limited selection.
    They search is on now to find them in the North Georgia Mountains!

  6. Diane Dawson says:

    Wow, zesty pepperoni is amazing… Love the sauce and crust too! This is my new favorite pizza!

  7. Donna says:

    I’m totally addicted to your pizzas
    the thin crust and the topping are amazing.
    I would recommend these pizzas to anyone.

  8. Suzann Kellerman says:

    I FOUND YOUR PIZZA WHILE I WAS LOOKING FOR RED BARON. DECIDED TO TRY IN I NOW REFUSE TO BUY ANY OTHER BRAND.WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IF YOU MAKE A BREAKFAST PIZZA I CAN GET TO MAKE ON THE WEEKENDS AT HOME? NO OTHER COMPANY MAKES ONE FOR A FAMILY. IF YOU DO WHERE CAN I BUY SOME?

  9. Denise Flora says:

    My Family tried the Culinary Circle pizza’s and loved them. They ARE our pizza night, Now they are closing the Shop N Save store in my area. Ok, so now we are hooked where are we supposed to buy them???? I will miss my Shop N Save for so many reasons, and these pizzas are a major reason.

  10. S.L. says:

    Hands down, best frozen pizza on the market. Even my picky kids like it, especially the mac and cheese with bacon. When on sale, my local store offers them 3/$10. This is the only brand I am buying from now on.

  11. I believe that I have tried every frozen pizza on the market. Recently the grocery that I frequent began handling Culinary Circle pizza for the first time. They are charging $5.99 for an approximately 10″ pizza, so I decided to try one. Since I prefer thin crust pizza, I decided on a pepperoni ultra thin, which is the only crust I have seen that was advertised “ultra thin”. The crust was the best I’ve ever eaten, and the flavor of the sauce, cheese, etc was excellent. I also purchased a sausage pizza, and while it was very good, I prefer the pepperoni. the thing I liked about the crust, is that the cooked texture was the same throughout each piece, and the slices did not droop. As long as my store continues handling culinary circle, it is the only brand I will buy.

  12. Bob Walen says:

    The Culinary Circle Premium rising crust pepperoni pizza is as good as frozen pizza gets. The premium is the one with the silver logo on the box that looks like the primer end of a pistol cartridge.

  13. Michael J. Huckstep says:

    I have an idea for a few new pizzas. “BBQ Bacon Cheese Burger.” On a rising crust with sweet BBQ sauce cheddar mozzirela beef bacon and maybe onions. :Triple Pork Recipe.” Sausage bacon and ham with provolone mozzirela and cheddar on a rising crust. “Garlic Bread Meatball Marinara.” Mozzirela and meatballs over a spicy marinara sauce on a rising garlic bread crust. “Spicy pepperoni”. And chicken pot pie. Thought they’ed might be good. Hope they give you some inspiration. Thanks.

  14. Hm, I don’t think I’ve ever heard about this pizza before, but any pizza looks good to me. I’ve been craving a good cheesy pizza for the past few days, and I hope that I can get some tonight. I’ll have to talk to my boyfriend, maybe he’ll want to go out to get some dinner tonight.

  15. Jessica koivu says:

    The chicken alfredo pizza from culinary circle is the best I ever had it taste so fresh and it is bursting with the best flavor ever every bite is absolutely amazing this is the only Pizza I will ever buy from the grocery store ever again

  16. Deb says:

    I bought the pepperoni and bacon pizza. It was the worst pizza I have ever had. All I could find for the bacon was pieces of bacon fat. Nasty. I called the company to complain as it says on the back that they guarantee your satisfaction. All I got was an email saying sorry and hoped I would try them again. Cold day in hell will I spend money on their products. Bad customer service and bad pizza.

  17. Linda Franzen says:

    HI I BROUGHT A 3 MEAT CULINARYCIRCLE PIZZIA . FOR MY G. KIDS FOR DINNER ONE NITE AND WASN’T HAPPY THERE HARDLY WASN’T ANY MEAT ON IT. what a joke. LINDA F. MINN.

  18. John Heinlein says:

    My local grocery store has them on sale for $3.99. Never heard of the brand before. However the price is right and picking up a couple pies tonight. I hope they continue to carry the brand especially if they are as tasty as the other commentors praise!

  19. chalen wilson says:

    can’t find your pizza In our area. zip 46356 Lowell In.

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