Do we LovePizza?: LovePizza (109 St)
Everyone loves a good love story...especially when it involves pizza! The owners of the fairly new LovePizza downtown on 109 St, went out for pizza on their first date and fell in love with both each other and pizza from there on in.
They say that food made with love tastes better. Is that the case with LovePizza?
LovePizza really comes head to head against Blaze Pizza in the funky Quick Service style pizzeria offering counter service with quick fired za's. The PizzaMonsters tend to head out on the town on Friday evenings, this was no different, and so as with most of our visits, the place was quite busy with a pretty big lineup.
The lineup wasn't moving so fast, and there were definitely some unhappy mumblings from some folks. Having been involved in the restaurant industry, I do understand what it's like during peak times. You really have to power through it. I just didn't get the sense that these guys were powering through it, it felt like more of a Tuesday 3:30pm pace, while they should have had their running shoes on.
That being said, everyone was friendly, the place was clean, and soon we were ordering away...
You can order from a list of House Specials like the Pie On The Fly (Truffle Parmesan Sauce, Quattro Formaggi, Prosciutto, Fresh Arugula) or the Old MacDonald (Spicy Tomato Sauce, Fior Di Latte, Spolumbo’s Italian Sausage, Farm Fresh Egg, Spinach, Shaved Parmesan, Chili Oil) or create your own pie from a great list of sauces, cheeses and toppings.
Blaze Pizza does the same sort of build your own idea and has a variety of toppings, but LovePizza's selection seems a little more thought out and lend themselves well to pizza. One could create an interesting new pizza every day for a year. I also have to say, Love is nowhere near as stingy on the portion sizes as Blaze was, there was plenty of toppings AND for the first time ever, the PizzaMonsters didn't feel like we needed to order extra sauce!
With the Build Your Own, you get to pick your crust, sauce, cheese and up to 4 Pre-Oven Toppings from the previously mentioned great variety. Then once your pizza is through the oven (3 minutes), you get to select some Post-Oven Finishes like fresh herbs, cheeses and oils.
The Grub
1x Kid's Cut Plain Jane (Tangy Tomato Sauce, Fior Di Latte, Fresh Basil, Olive Oil Drizzle)
*Kids Pizza includes a drink, cookie & toy
1x Build Your Own (Tangy Tomato Sauce, Shredded Chipotle BBQ Chicken, Roasted Corn, Bacon, Cheddar/Mozza topped w/Green Onions & Parmesan)
1x Grizzly Paw Orange Cream Soda
1x Steam Whistle Pilsner
The Damage
$28.74 (-tax & tip)
Kingston
The Place: 3 - I didn't really like it when I first came in, but it was ok.
The Crust: 5 - Perfect crust! Chewy and yummy.
The Sauce: 4.5 - Really good sauce AND there's lots!
The Cheese: 4.5 - The cheese is really stretchy, I really like it.
The Toppings: 4 - Well cheese is my main topping, with Basil which is good
The Drink: 4.5 - I think this was my favourite orange pop too.
PizzaMonsters Verdict: 4.5 It was pretty much perfect, i liked all of it. It's my favourite of all the pizzas we've had so far!
4.5/5 PizzaMonsters
Steve
The Place: 3.5 - Downtown stripmall setting, well presented & clean. Nice staff, could up the pace a little.
The Crust: 3.5 - Thin crust in a cool, unique shape. I mean, why should pizza be round? Slightly chewy with a crisp finish.
The Sauce: 4.5 - Very solid sauce. Tangy, bold and plenty of it.
The Cheese: 3.5 - Whilst the cheese on the Kid's pizza was plentiful and chewy, the Cheddar/Mozza blend on mine was a bit light.
The Toppings: 4.5 - Good coverage, lots of toppings. The BBQ Chicken was tasty and went well with the Bacon & Roast Corn. The different options for Finishes can really add that extra kick.
The Drink: 4 - Nice selection of local brews, I opted instead for a Steamwhistle. Delish.
The Leftovers: 4 - Very good. The crust stayed firm, and it was great cold the next day.
PizzaMonsters Verdict: 4 Cool spot, cool story. Great selection of pizzas and toppings, made fast. Definitely impressed, and definitely wins the head-to-head with Blaze. I guess food does taste better when it's made with love.
4/5 PizzaMonsters
As the weeks & months go on, the PizzaMonsters will explore YEG's pizza places and munch our way through their best pizzas to try and find the Magic Golden Super Best Pizza in Edmonton!
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