3307 Stadium DriveWhen we moved to Kalamazoo in 2009, I started my blog over. I went from Mid-Michigan Dining to SW Michigan Dining (still wish I’d have picked a different name but whatever).
It was a pretty hasty move. J had gotten a surprise transfer from Lansing to Kalamazoo the night before out wedding. We still had to, you know, get married and we had a honeymoon planned so, reluctantly, her job honored the vacation she already had planned for the trip but once we got back, we had about two days to start a move so she could start her new position in Kalamazoo.
I still had some work lined up in Lansing so I was going back and forth for about a month. We had apartments in both Kalamazoo and Lansing as we were waiting for our lease to end.
There were a lot of weekends for a while that I would work a 12 hour day in East Lansing then drive to Kalamazoo. One of those first weekends, J decided to order a pizza and have it ready when I got there.
We didn’t know Kalamazoo pizza places very well yet and we were living at Candlewyck Apartments off Kilgore. The only place I had actually heard of was Bilbo’s Pizza in a Pan and I suggested she order from there.
She ordered from the location that used to be in Portage on South Westnedge. That location was torn down a few years later an the Chick-Fil-A now occupies that piece of land.
There were four Bilbo’s Pizza locations at one time, three in the Kalamazoo area and one in East Lansing, but only one remains. We’ve eaten at that location many times over the years. The first time being just a few months after we ate at the Portage location also in 2009.
Last Friday, J texted me and said she was hungry for pizza but didn’t want our usual Cottage Inn Friday night pizza. I told her I could order whatever she was in the mood for. We had just had Bilbo’s a few weeks ago and she said she was kind craving it again. That sounded good to me.
Bilbo’s Pizza & Brewing Company is on Stadium Drive in Kalamazoo’s Oakland/Winchell Neighborhood west of Rambling Road right next to the Buffalo Wild Wings. The building is unique, as you’ll see once we get inside, as it’s themed after The Lord of The Rings…hence the name, Bilbo’s.
We have eaten in a few times over the years but more often than not, we just do carry-out. This trip was the same as I was picking up on my way home from work and meeting the rest of the family at home after they got done skating.
When you come in the door, you’re right at the bar. The bar is massive and takes up a huge part of the first room. In addition to a pizzeria, Bilbo’s is also a brewery. They don’t have a big brewing operation but there are usually a few on tap and many have names inspired by Lord of the Rings. There is some seating around the bar and a dining room on the other side as well.
The main dining room is to the left when you walk in. It’s nothing fancy but has room for larger groups and families.
The carryout pick up is straight back when you come through the door. It’s kind of a hallway that has the dining room wall on one side and the bar on the other. I’ve actually stood at the bar a few times and had a beer while waiting for my pizza to come up.
I did my order online for a large thin crust pizza, an order of regular cheezy stix, a family salad and an extra bottle of their dressing. The cost came out to right around $60.
One of the big reasons we choose Bilbo’s is the salad dressing. It’s kind of an Italian dressing but it’s sweeter and has more of a zing to it. We always order the large family salad which is pretty simple. It’s just lettuce, cheese, and croutons. They put three small portions of the salad dressing in with the salad but those don’t go very far. J and L both go right for the salad and bypass the pizza at first.
I was smart this time and ordered an extra jar of the dressing. J likes it both with the salad and to dip pizza in to. I warned L not to just eat the dressing with a spoon because I know she’s tempted. It’s a really good take on an Italian dressing and I’m honestly surprised we still have about half a jar left a week later.
I also got an order of the Cheezy Stix as an accompaniment to the pizza. These breadsticks are homemade with their very dense dough and you can choose either white or wheat. The breadsticks are topped with the cheese blend used on pizzas, garlic butter and Parmesan. Most people order these with a side of the dill dip that Bilbo’s is so famous for but I just got Ranch because that’s what J likes.
Bilbo’s brought pan pizza to Kalamazoo 40 years ago and while it’s good, we’re a family that prefers more of a thin crust. I got a large thin crust pizza with pepperoni on half and the other half just plain cheese.
Every single layer of this pizza is amazing. The dough is made in house and it’s more of a denser bread than typical carry out pizza. It’s soft and pillowy but also very filling. The sauce is amazing. There’s a little bit of sweetness to it and a little bit of a kick to it. We ordered from Bilbo’s a few weeks ago and tried to eat it right away and the cheese has a tendency to slide off. We waited a little bit longer this time…mostly because I beat everyone home…so the pizza had some time to firm up a little. It’s such an amazingly good pizza. Every layer just has a unique, delicious flavor that’s really hard not to love. The pepperoni’s are under the cheese on this one so B didn’t know if he was taking a pepperoni or cheese slice but it didn’t matter. It was good with or without.
Bilbo’s is such a Kalamazoo institution because they have such a unique product. There is no pizza in town that is even somewhat similar to what you get at this pizzeria on Stadium Drive.