How nice to finally want to leave a fully-positive review of a business!…read more
I've been familiar with LIsa's for decades, and have visited it every now and then over the years . . . even having spent 25 years on the west coast . . . and having first been entranced as a young man by its over-the-street, nearly treehouse-like vibe. (NEARLY. With a little imagination (or actually, a lot), a window seat, in view of the mature tree outside, Lisa's achieves realizes its full charm.) The interior is an understated, tasteful, comfortable, semi-hippie blend of artwork and plants.
Last visit, I enjoyed perfect fried eggplant, and one of the very best Margherita pizzas (here, the "Margaret") that I've ever had. Real, fresh mozzarella; real, fresh basil; and, maybe most important, actual slices of red, fresh tomatoes (not just cheating with a mere tomato sauce, as some places do).
This time, I started with a real bargain of a tossed green salad. It had so many ingredients (by my rough count, around a dozen) that I couldn't even identify some. A heaping, colorful, healthful and appealing salad that puts to shame the side salads that most other restaurants merely "phone in". (The balsamic vinaigrette is strong, so I'm glad that I stuck to my rule of ordering it on the side, so that I could control the amount used.)
Pizza: Pepperoni and mushroom, with FRESH mushrooms, correctly sliced (large, flat slices taken top to bottom) to maximize their flavor. A satisfyingly thin and crispy cracker crust. Nice sauce. (My only disappointment -- a slight one -- was finding the taste of the crust rather bland. But on the other hand, even though I've had more than one flavorful crust elsewhere, I assume that it's easier to pack a thicker, more doughy crust with flavor than it is with a cracker crust.)
Great service, with a winning, genuine smile, from Cecilia.
A nice way to begin an evening out on a fine summer day in Milwaukee.