Clever Crow

Clever Crow has been a magnet for publicity and praise since it first fired up its oven in the Circus kitchen. It gets critical acclaim from local publications like Alive and message boards like Columbus Underground. It won best veggie pizza at Pizza Grand Prix V. It was even featured on the Heartland episode of the Travel Channel's No Reservations.

This weekend, Clever Crow started daytime service by opening a station in the North Market. While I enjoyed Clever Crow from the original kitchen, I'll probably eat here with great regularity since I almost live at the North Market.

Clever Crow always features a couple of vegetarian pies as well as a vegan option. Owner Gary Robinette crafts pizza with high quality ingredients that elevate pizza making into a modern accented fine art.

Pizzas can be ordered as a whole pie, a half pie or by the slice. Prices are on the high end of the spectrum, when something is this delicious, it's worth chipping in a few extra bucks.

The vegan winter squash pizza is made with spicy walnut squash pate, sauteed spinach, red potatoes, caramelized onions and corn. The cheese pizza is topped with fresh mozzarella, fontinella and parmesan.

I ordered the roasted vegetable pizza, which seems to have a core of ingredients with one or two that shift gradually as seasonal veggies change. The crust is medium thick with a heavy cornmeal accent that lends it a hint of sweetness. The sauce has tanginess, a bright tomato foundation and hints of garlic and basil.

Mozzarella cheese held on copious quantities of roasted poblano pepper, eggplant, thick cut mushroom, corn and soft white onion. The eggplant and mushrooms are an admirable foil to the sweetness in the crust and the corn.

The pizza reheated well. Typically, veggies tend to give off too much water when reheated, but these held up well in my oven because of the initial roasting.

Ignore the protests of Public Enemy and believe the hype about Clever Crow. It's great food that caters to vegetarian and vegan diners. The North Market could open up more exciting opportunities for an already exciting pizza maker.

Clever Crow