News
The Mill House: Lovin' from the Oven
By Justin Schoenberger
THUMP - Greenwood
August 9, 2010; Vol:1 Issue:1
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The oven is fied up and ready for some hand-tossed pizzas at The Mill House. (Photo by Tom Lewis)
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Greenwood, SC - If you’re looking for artichoke hearts, prosciutto or goat cheese on a pizza, The Mill House is just the place. Or, for toppings that might be a little more traditional - such as pepperoni or mushrooms – The Mill House, with its pizza’s crispy yet- chewable crust, is where to find them.
This reviewer visited the 237 Maxwell Ave. establishment one Friday evening in July. In tow was an adult female and a 5-year-old girl.
From the outside, the Uptown restaurant looked like Greenwood and Italy at the same time, with a bistro table or two before the glass windowed front. Even an Italian flag poked out from the rustic brick exterior.
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Inside, the ambience was similar: Greenwoodaly or Italwood, whichever one prefers. Chatter beneath the music, or music beneath the chatter. Again, it depends on one’s perception. Either way, the mood seemed to cater to several genres of diners, from casual to formal, love birds to businessmen.
And while the wait staff hustled to clear tables and seat the next round of customers - the place would fill up between 6 and 7 p.m. - it seemed in little hurry to take the next step, which some might consider the most important: serve.
It should be said that this particular reviewer isn’t necessarily a “standard” diner. While he enjoys the socializing and chance to eavesdrop on a fellow Greenwoodian’s conversation, make no mistake about it - he goes to a restaurant to eat.
For drinks on this particular night, the youngster in tow wanted milk. Not an option at The Mill House, where the next-best thing is soda. She got it - in a cup that was actually larger than the two adults’ drinks. No problem, though, as free refills make every cup “bottomless,” right? When you are a Diet Coke addict like this reviewer, five to eight minutes between the refills seems like an eternity.
Then came the menu, boasting nearly 30 pizza toppings, a dozen predetermined combinations and an exponential number of sub, sandwich and entrée possibilities. Unfortunately for this parent, the menu lacked what my youngster wanted: macaroni and cheese, chicken nuggets and grilled cheese sandwiches. One thing to consider is that there is only one size of pizza available, and this reviewer paid almost $10 for a 10-inch pizza.
However (and this is a big “however”), The Mill House has some of the best pizza this reviewer has had since he moved down south from New York six years ago. It is comparable to pizza in southern Italy, which emphasizes sauce, freshness of toppings and crust more so than it does New York-style cheese. The Mill House menu boasts its use of a brick oven. It’d be reasonable to assume that oven’s responsible for the crust - rising, fluffy, crispy and chewy without overtaking its buddies, the toppings and sauce.
This reviewer recommends the traditional pizza sauce - it’s tangy enough to be tomato, but mellow enough to taste the herbs cooked within.
Overall, The Mill House appears to be fitting in nicely with Uptown Greenwood. The food, while pricier than many others and a bit restricted in terms of portion sizes, is unlike most in the Emerald City. The décor – professional photographs of Greenwood’s mill district, framed, and affixed to an orange, red and brown brick wall held together by chipped, crumbling but-still-together mortar - serves as both a local history lesson and mood-setter.
And the atmosphere - quiet in the booths, boisterous at the tables and however one wants it to be at the bar - can be a great spot for a weekend dinner, business meeting or date. [Thump]
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