I think it looks a wee bit undercooked. 
Many places have just one guy working the pizza station, bestia, sotto, jon & vinnyâs, i think lodge just doesnât know what the fuck theyâre doing.
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Donât most restaurants have a chef checking that mistakes donât leave the kitchen? #dontgiveafk
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The pictures donât lie.
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i went there last night and absolutely the dedicated pizza oven is an entirely new addition.
in the beginning they were making their pizzas in the bread oven.
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Finally made it out to Lodge for a light lunch.
We had the roasted cauliflower and a pea/burrata/tomato pizza. Iâm not usually one to photograph my food (just a personal choice), but I thought in light of the âburntâ controversy I should.
So yeah. I mean. Thatâs burnt, right?
Except itâs not. I get that it might not be everyoneâs cup of tea, but this is just right for me. Iâm with @CiaoBob here. Donât #fearthechar. Yes, there is a bitterness that comes from the char, but itâs a complementary flavor to the pizza.
I liken it to the difference between a brown v. black butter sauce. Or a standard caramel v a âburntâ caramel sauce.
So a personal preference, but Iâll take a little chat adding some interesting flavor to the insipid, undercooked bread and pizza most places truck in.
Color me a fan.
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Yeah, but the crust-to-topping ratio is still (for me) totally off. The char doesnât bother me a ton, but the untopped crust does (did).
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Yeah. The crust with toppings is exceedingly thin, so I think a larger cornicione is called for. It photographs differently than it eats, but youâre right that itâs crust heavy.
My only issue with the pizza is that the dough is hydrated more than I like. To me, the cornicione can eat a little gummy because of that. My love didnât agree. She was over the moon about the whole thing.
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I had to look up âcornicione.â 
I actually think the only reason they can get away w/ so much cornicione is b/c of the high hydration! Theyâd otherwise have to give you a side of marinara or something to help wash it down.
I canât remember the thickness very well, but I donât remember it being, say, cracker-thin. Itâs sufficiently soft, and I can certainly understand why someone would like it that much untopped crust. Itâs just a different philosophy than what I prefer.
Mostly crust b/c maybe theyâre a bread bakery first and forestmost.
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Maybe. Guessing the intentions of a group of chefs while also being a bit reductivist is usually not very fruitful. That said, Iâll give it a go.
I suspect the crust is the way it is because chefs at Lodge think that ratio makes the pizza taste and eat better. If they decided to showcase a huge cornicione simply because they felt a need to represent themselves as a bakery first then thatâs a faulty approach. Chefs always appear to go to great pains to make the experience of eating their food the best it can be while maintaining proper food costs.
Shakshouka at Lodge.
This was okay. The shakshouka itself was fine, if a bit bland. I was bored of it halfway through. There was an absence of flavor depth, but Iâve thought that just about every time Iâve had the dish anywhere, so itâs not really Lodgeâs fault.
The real problem was the bread. One piece was good, with a slight char imparting an interesting contrast to the sweet tomato. But the other pieces were plain burnt and inedible. I think Iâm done with this place.
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Such a shame b/c it looks SO goodâŚ
Oh, just ask them for less burnt bread. Itâs not a big deal.
And yes, eggs in tomato sauce is a pretty disgusting dish, anywhere.
Bummer.
I love shakshouka, but rarely out. Its not worth following a recipe to make it, but Michael Solomonov recommended grating some Persian dried lime into the sauce and that makes a difference.
Do you mean shakshouka in general? Or just shakshouka in LA? The first time I had it was several yrs ago at some random eatery in London (which looked more like a neighborhood coffee-and-pastries kind of place). I quite enjoyed it. Havenât liked the ones Iâve had in LA as much (and some have been very bland).
This place is so great. I love their food, but right now, I am overwhelmed with garden tomatoes.
I wanted to make pizzas, but homemade pizza crust eludes me. I went to Lodge and asked the cashier f I could get a couple of plain pizza crusts. She looked confused and fetched one of the owners from the office, where he was busy with paperwork. I explained hopefully what I wanted. He said he wasnât sure how it would come out, but he would try. I said Iâll take it however it comes out, Iâm sure it will be fine! So he made me some pizza crusts, and they were perfect, and my pizza was great.
So nice!! A lovely example of a small locally-owned business that defines hospitality and community.
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I am hardly an expert, but what eludes you about pizza crust? Might make for an interesting discussion (perhaps in the Home Cooking section?).
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OMG!! I would eat those with just a drizzle of olive oil and sea salt! They also would make awesome carrier for burratta⌠MUST HAVE!
âDommy!
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actually looks better than the bread upthread.
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