As part of our "Back to School Week," we thought it pertinent to take some time and talk about the fuel of many college students: the circle-shaped combination of delicious dough, mozzarella cheese and tomato sauce otherwise known as "the pizza." In traditional Jive Five form, we've weeded through what the pizza scene in Denton has to offer and come up with five "do's" and five "do not's" that ought to help out Dentonites hungry for some high-caloric intake. Read through to find out the best and worst of pizza that Denton has to offer.
The classic cheese pizza at Last Drop Tavern.
Pepperoyay:
- When you order a “slice” of pizza at J&J’s, you actually get two! Also, there's a fun basement there that often has free shows and the roof hasn't caved in yet even though it's squeaky.
- The new Pie Five at Hickory and Fry is basically the Quizno's of pizza. You get to determine your toppings and watch your little pie roll through a hot oven very quickly. A measley $6.00 will net you a good sized pie (about 4 slices). For the vegetarians, The Mediterranean is delicious.
- Mellow Mushroom will deliver pizza to you at the Oak St. Drafthouse.
- Roman’s Pizza is tucked away on Windsor in North Denton by North Lakes park. While they’re actually the “oldest independent” pizza option in town, they don’t get much attention. That said, they’ve been serving up delicious, cheap pizza for the entire time they’ve been open. For the price, it’s hard to find better pizza in that neck of the woods. We’re partial to the canadian bacon and pineapple there.
- UPDATE: Si'z has since closed down since last year when we originally wrote this piece. So, instead we'll change this fifth rec to be "go to Luigi's." The “Red Dwarf” pizza at Si’z on Teasley in S. Denton is arguably better than the TV show from which it gains its namesake (and the skutter inside of us loves that show). While we love the pizza at Mellow Mushroom, this might be the single best “alternative toppings” pizza in you can get in town. It’s definitely worth a stop when you’re on your way back from a walk at Eureka Park.
Pepperonay
- If you're a wimp, then sometimes two slices of J&J’s pizza can just be a little too much cheese for one stomach to handle.
- Crooked Crust has some really delicious options. We happen to be obsessed with their Mean Green, which consists of chicken, artichokes, pesto and mozzarella! It's light on the wallet, too, with $6 getting you two slices and a beverage. However, if you order your pizza at the wrong time of the day, you may find yourself with a pretty stale slice of crunch bread and cheese. If you're the type who gets hungry for pizza at three in the afternoon, you're going to suffer this fate. However, if you're out late at night on Fry and get hungry for a slice, you're more than likely to get a fresh piece of one of the best pizzas in town.
The white pizza at Luigi's.
- As a general rule, don’t order pizza from anywhere on University Dr. Yes, you can very easily order a vegan, no-cheese pizza online from Pizza Hut and Papa John's and Luigi's next to Albertson's has a surprisingly delicious white pizza, but there are just so many better options in town all worth exploring.
- Getting a “take and bake” pizza from Papa Murphy’s on University and rearranging the pepperoni to spell out curse words or crude drawings may sound like a good idea when you're stuck at the light, but the pizza, itself, isn’t good enough to warrant the misadventures. If you're hungry and craving Italian flavors at that stoplight, just eat at Bagheri's.
- If you are going to Mellow Mushroom, bring a big wallet and have plenty of time. There's wonderful pie to be had, but it is neither cheap, nor fast. Call ahead and maybe get it to go
Bonus IMAVOLCANO pizza-related video from Fishboy.