Favorite Store-brand & Restaurant Pizza Chains?

[1995hoo]

I had a very good pizza for lunch last Thursday from Square Pie Guys on Mission Street in San Francisco. It was rather pricey, but it was excellent and the service was fast. I suppose they qualify as a chain because their website said they have a second location in Oakland.

I miss Blondie's on Market.  Cheap, average pizza.

Rothman, is that in the shopping mall across from the cable car turnaround? If so, I'll try to check it out when I'm back there in July. Didn't get in there this time.

[Rothman]

I had a very good pizza for lunch last Thursday from Square Pie Guys on Mission Street in San Francisco. It was rather pricey, but it was excellent and the service was fast. I suppose they qualify as a chain because their website said they have a second location in Oakland.

I miss Blondie's on Market.  Cheap, average pizza.

Rothman, is that in the shopping mall across from the cable car turnaround? If so, I'll try to check it out when I'm back there in July. Didn't get in there this time.

Nope.  Blondie's was in this weird metal shed place near the end of the cable car line.  It was like walking into a garage. Closed down years ago, which is why I miss it.

[1995hoo]

Ah. Thanks. The map shows a "Blondie's Pizza" in the shopping mall, hence why I asked that. Square Pie Guys worked out quite well since it's right across the street from where I was working, but $23 for an individual pizza is pretty expensive (even recognizing it filled me enough that I skipped dinner that night).

[Rothman]

Ah. Thanks. The map shows a "Blondie's Pizza" in the shopping mall, hence why I asked that. Square Pie Guys worked out quite well since it's right across the street from where I was working, but $23 for an individual pizza is pretty expensive (even recognizing it filled me enough that I skipped dinner that night).

Huh.  Wonder if they reopened...being in the mall would make me lean towards them sucking now.

[abefroman329]

As I understand it, many recipes for deep dish pizza do indeed call for a layer of cheese between the crust and the sauce.  (Speculation on my part) I'm thinking it might be to inhibit the crust soaking up too much sauce as it cooks.

Correct - if you put the sauce directly on the dough, you end up with cheesy foccacia.

[webny99]

For anyone that has Domino's, Little Caesars, or Pizza Hut in their top 5...  I am very, very sorry about the pizza scene in your area.

[kevinb1994]

For anyone that has Domino's, Little Caesars, or Pizza Hut in their top 5...  I am very, very sorry about the pizza scene in your area.

I would add Marco's to that list!

[TheHighwayMan3561]

Surprised we got this far without a mention of the infamous Midwestern cult chain Pizza Ranch. But I guess that shit would have to be good to get a mention.

For anyone that has Domino's, Little Caesars, or Pizza Hut in their top 5...  I am very, very sorry about the pizza scene in your area.

In no particular order, but in this metro Carbone's, Sammy's, Davanni's, Broadway, and Pizza Luce immediately eliminate those national chains from the top 5 - and that's before the standalone pizza shops!

[webny99]

For anyone that has Domino's, Little Caesars, or Pizza Hut in their top 5...  I am very, very sorry about the pizza scene in your area.

In no particular order, but in this metro Carbone's, Sammy's, Davanni's, Broadway, and Pizza Luce immediately eliminate those national chains from the top 5 - and that's before the standalone pizza shops!

Now we're talking! 

My top-5 would be Guida's, Salvatore's, Caraglio's, Pontillo's, and Mark's in some order, and there's probably more I'm forgetting before getting to the national chains which are well below those for the most part. We also have Uno Chicago, which I will admit I've never had.

Surprised we got this far without a mention of the infamous Midwestern cult chain Pizza Ranch. But I guess that shit would have to be good to get a mention.

Pizza Ranch is kind of its own league because it's a buffet. It's not bad, and it's fun to try a bunch of different kinds, but it's kind of hard to compare. I guess I would put it above most of the national chains but below most of the local chains in terms of quality pizza.

[kphoger]

For anyone that has Domino's, Little Caesars, or Pizza Hut in their top 5...  I am very, very sorry about the pizza scene in your area.

As for Little Casear's...  Their sauce is decent, which means their pizza is pretty good when it's fresh out of the oven.  The problem is that–just as with McDonald's French fries or Chick-fil-A waffle fries–you have approximately 52 seconds before the quality drops off precipitously.  Leftover Little Caesar's is the bottom of the barrel (and might actually work well as a patch if your barrel has a hole in the bottom).

[abefroman329]

Surprised we got this far without a mention of the infamous Midwestern cult chain Pizza Ranch. But I guess that shit would have to be good to get a mention.

Pizza Ranch is kind of its own league because it's a buffet. It's not bad, and it's fun to try a bunch of different kinds, but it's kind of hard to compare. I guess I would put it above most of the national chains but below most of the local chains in terms of quality pizza.

It's definitely better than CiCi's and possibly better than Round Table - I ate there once and that was fifteen years ago.

[webny99]

... you have approximately 52 seconds before the quality drops off precipitously.  Leftover Little Caesar's is the bottom of the barrel (and might actually work well as a patch if your barrel has a hole in the bottom).

 

Speaking of leftovers, that reminds me of another chain I forgot to mention: Pudgie's, which many people around here say is as good or even better leftover!

[kphoger]

Speaking of leftovers, that reminds me of another chain I forgot to mention: Pudgie's, which many people around here say is as good or even better leftover!

Papa John's is probably the best pizza I've ever had left over, the next morning, cold straight out of the fridge.

[webny99]

Speaking of leftovers, that reminds me of another chain I forgot to mention: Pudgie's, which many people around here say is as good or even better leftover!

Papa John's is probably the best pizza I've ever had left over, the next morning, cold straight out of the fridge.

We don't have Papa John's anymore. The way I remember it, I'd probably put it in the same tier as Pizza Ranch - good, but not great.

(I also don't like cold pizza under any circumstance.)

[skluth]

Speaking of leftovers, that reminds me of another chain I forgot to mention: Pudgie's, which many people around here say is as good or even better leftover!

Papa John's is probably the best pizza I've ever had left over, the next morning, cold straight out of the fridge.

We don't have Papa John's anymore. The way I remember it, I'd probably put it in the same tier as Pizza Ranch - good, but not great.

(I also don't like cold pizza under any circumstance.)

Papa John's is the only pizza besides the aforementioned Imo's that I've thrown out without finishing. Domino's and Pizza Hut may struggle to reach mediocre, but even that is too low a bar for Papa John's.

[CoreySamson]

The pizza scene in my area is pretty lousy to be honest. There aren't many small chains, just national brands and local pizza shops. The best in the area in my opinion is Grace Pizza in Alvin. Otherwise, here are my chain rankings:
1. Pizza Hut (very tasty as leftovers)
(Huge gap)
2. Little Caesars
3. Domino's
4. Cici's

As for frozen pizza, I like Totino's the best, but DiGiorno is good too. For a period of time Walmart sold something called Wild Mike's, which was pretty darn good, but they don't sell it here anymore.

[thenetwork]

One of my faves in central Colorado is Beau Jo's.  They have several locations serving Colorado Mountain (Pizza) Pies.  If dining in, the standard practice is to dribble honey on your pizza crust (or over the whole thing).