GE-Jo’s by the Lake Italian

We love to stop here and grab a pizza when we are craving one! The best part is that it’s right downtown by the park where all the activities happen. It’s fun to eat outside in the summer and enjoy the air and watch what’s going on downtown.
There’s an olive pizza – the name escapes me – but it is incredibly delicious. I would go for that one if you love olives or want to try something new!

A ride on the Lady Of The Lake, capped off with a visit to Ge-Jo’s is the perfect evening here in Clear Lake Iowa. Spend the day on the lake, visit the ball room where Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valenz, and the Big Bopper last played, then come here to eat. Great pizza. Small restaurant, but awesome food. I recommend the lasagna. The owners are very friendly, and even come out to ask how your meal is, and to visit if they can. Enjoy both indoor and outdoor eating. They are ALWAYS packed, so try and make it when there is less of a crowd. I highly recommend this place. It’s a mandatory moral imperative to eat here if you are visiting this town.

It was okay. Disappointed they did not have a smaller than 12 inch pizza. If you dine alone there aren’t many choices. I wanted pizza. The pizza was good and so was the service. The salad was a little skimpy. 2 slices of radish a one baby carrot. Regular head iceberg lettuce. Kind of disappointing.

Don’t bother, high prices, no atmosphere, food was disappointing. Pizza had very little toppings, and that was their signature pizza. Go down the block to Starboard market, everything’s great there.

Sitting on the porch looking at the lake on a sunny afternoon with a goblet sized strawberry margarita and a Hawaiian pizza with good company– priceless. The drinks were tasty, and the pizza was cheesy deliciousness with a wonderful crust. A great lunch stop in Clear Lake.

We have been going to Ge-​Jos for many many years. Our kids claim it to be the best pizza place in the world. The only reasons we wouldnt give them five stars are the signature margaritas are made with jose cuevo gold without any option to upgrade to anything better. The beer selection is extremely limited. I guess what I am trying to say is the bar isn’t what brings us back weekend after weekend, year after year. The service can be slow when they get busy, but the pizza is always top notch. The Natemelli pizza is one of our favorites loaded up with lots of fresh veggies and a hot, crisp crust.

Pizza wasn’t any good. I expected good Italian pizza. Environment sucks. There’s not much to say about the place, it was as bland as the pizza.

So, here’s the thing… Ge-Jo’s is located in Clear Lake, which, as you know, is primarily a resort town that booms in the summer and fades in the winter months. With that said, it’s a given (before even stepping into the establishment) that prices are going to be somewhat higher than the Pizza Hut a few miles down the road in Mason City, IA.
Are you overpaying for the small, iceburg lettuce dinner salad? Absolutely. Can they accommodate every diner who wants to sit on the covered porch rather than in the steamy indoor dining room or blazing hot open patio? No. Is the service spot on with frequent refills of water and inquiries into your needs? That depends. However, what they do well is their pizza. Thin, crisp crust with just the right amount of toppings and a perfectly balanced fennel sausage that would rival any pizza in the near vicinity.
It’s a decent place to go with service expectations low, price expectations reasonable and you’ve got nowhere else to be than right in that place, in that moment.
Chill out. Grab a beer (limited beverage menu). Order a pizza with sausage and enjoy the people watching in Clear Lake.

Probably the worst Italian restaurant I’ve eaten at. Pasta sauce was SO bland tasted like tomato sauce with ground beef. Salad was iceberg lettuce, two radish slices and one baby carrot. Would never recommend.

On a rainy Saturday afternoon my husband and I got a table under the covered patio. Ordered the Canadian bacon and pineapple pizza, 12″ size and waters. The service was quick and the pizza was ahhhmazing. I thought $ 20 was a bit steep for one small pizza, but it’s a tourist area in the summer, that’s what you get. Beautiful views.

Stopped in while driving through Clear Lake. Ordered dinner salads and their special pizza. The salads were ridiculous. A small amount of iceberg lettuce, one baby carrot, 2 radish slices and croutons. Why don’t restaurants use romaine? The roll with it was tasteless. The pizza was decent and large enough that we took ½ home. $ 33.00 for a mediocre meal, with no drinks… wouldn’t go back.
On the pro side, we sat outside and it was very peaceful… no music, nice. The service was attentive but short, shorts on wait staff, yuck! Let’s look somewhat professional, please.

Terrible food and so overpriced! I can’t believe they charge this much for this quality of food. Going to Fazoli’s would have been better.

I want to like it for the location and outdoor seating but I can’t give much credit for pizza like that. It’s not awful, just not great. I understand it takes time to get pizza but all other service is slow, too. I really wish Sevens or Sips had this location so I could have good food and the small peek at the lake this patio provides.

Not what it used to be. Hadn’t been there in a while and haven’t missed anything. Servers were dressed with shorter shorts than the girls at Hooters. Took an hour to get our pizza and there was only a couple tables dinning while we were there. The table of 5 that came in long after we had ordered got their pizza before we did. When the pizza came, it was wrong. The food is very over priced now. Taking advantage of the lake location I think. Not worth the $$$.

This is the second time we have been here. The service has always been friendly, but the first time we split the spaghetti plate and felt like it was a rip off for spaghetti. The salad is just plain iceberg lettuce with two baby carrots and two radish slices. Whoopie. The second time we got here at 3pm and were only people in place. We waited til 415pm for three grinders and a fettuccine. Seriously. They said it just takes that long. Uh huh. Anyway, four pops and the meal and it was $ 70. Never again.

Made it into GE-Jo’s on a Sunday night and was seated as soon as we walked in without any prior reservations. Our sever was great at taking order, clearing the table and answering questions about the menu. The food itself was very disappointing. My girlfriend and I didn’t want to order a whole plat, so we decided to split one of their oil pasta dishes, for $ 17 it came with a salad and bread. They were able to add on a second salad for i think $ 3.50. The salads were good, yet small, very simple and served on warm plates. When we got our main course they brought out an extra plate for us to share but we were amazed at how small it was. The dish was spaghetti with what appeared to be canned black olives and canned mushrooms, with some peppers and lathered with a ton of oil. The bread we got were two dinner rolls that looked like pre-​made frozen bread and two packets of ‘whipped spread’ not even real butter!
Overall the service was kind, my girlfriend loved her margarita, the food wasn’t bad but for what we paid the quality and quantity of the food seemed like a rip-​off. We hoped that we had found a gem of a restaurant in Clear Lake, but we will not be coming back to Ge-Jo’s.

Called Saturday afternoon of the 20^th to reserve seating for that evening. We were about 15 min late but there was no problem with that. My daughter and I shared the alfredo and it was awesome. The hot bread was perfect before the meal. I also tasted the chicken parmesan. That was very good also. I would highly recommend this place for a nice evening out. We have eaten there many times and really enjoy when the weather is nice to sit out on the patio!

Great food. Period. Like mom used to make! Only downside is a simple dish like spaghetti will cost you $ 13… It’s worth it because it’s the only Italian in Clear Lake, but still. It pains me. Don’t forget to order a Margarita!

Sit on the patio or on the front porch with its commanding view of city park overlooking the lake, the band shell, and the myriad of activities that make Clear Lake a favorite destination. Wear comfortable attire and enjoy simply delicious Italian classic menu items including excellent pizzas (or call ahead and pick one up to take home). Cordial, efficient service. Dine inside if you like and observe the walls autographed by well-​known visitors to Clear Lake.