Papa's Pizza-to-Go

The Facts:

Pizza: Papa’s Pizza-to-Go

Business Category: Regional Chain (29 locations in 4 states)

Website: http://papaspizzatogo.com/

Location: 3064 US Highway 76 in Hiawassee, GA

Date of Review Visit: June 16, 2017

What I Ordered: Small Piggystix (cheese bread with bacon topping); medium fountain drink

Price: $9.33

The Micro:

Crust: Not to be confused with the big national chain Papa John’s, the crust at Papa’s Pizza-to-Go comes in medium thickness.  This chain used to have a location near my home in Athens, GA, and I used to order the Piggystix regularly because I thought it was their best product. (Aside: I also liked their Hundred Pounder pizza: 100 slices of pepperoni and a pound of cheese on an 18” crust.  Unfortunately, I had nowhere to store the leftovers from such a pizza on this visit.)  My Piggystix were baked the perfect amount.  The crust is fresh, but it has no other real distinctive.  This crust is not offensive but not commendable either.  Score: 5/10.

Sauce: For the Piggystix, the tomato sauce comes on the side for dipping.  The sauce is not overspiced, and overall it has a nice tomatoey taste and a nice thick consistency.  Score: 7/10.

Cheese: The Piggystix are somewhat undercheesed, and what cheese there is has little flavor.  Score: 4/10.

Toppings: The bacon used to come in nice juicy chunks, but now it comes in thin too-crispy pieces that have little flavor.  The bacon appears in decent but not stellar quantity.  Score: 4/10.

The Macro:

Appearance/Atmosphere/Service: The Piggystix have a somewhat bare appearance.  Most Papa’s Pizza-to-Go locations have no frills sit-down dining areas, though the drive-up window is a nice convenient touch.  The lake view from the hillside Hiawassee location adds some scenery to the dining area.  The service is counter service, and it was fine on my visit.  Score: 7/10.

Value: Below-average quality plus below-average price equals average value.  Score: 5/10.

Taste: I used to eat the Piggystix all the time and enjoy them, but the thin crispy bacon makes the taste very pedestrian now.  Score: 10/20.

The Final Judgment:

Papa’s Pizza-to-Go’s Athens location closed almost a decade ago, and the quality this pizza exhibits today makes it easy to see why.  Most people can find better pizza elsewhere.  Score: 42/80.

Paisano’s Italian Ristorante in Lexington, KY

The Facts:

Pizza: Paisano’s Italian Ristorante

Business Category: Locally-owned

Website: http://paisanositalianrestaurantandlounge.com/40041

Location: 2417 Nicholasville Rd. in Lexington, KY (in Stone Square Plaza)

Date of Review Visit: May 22, 2017

What I Ordered: Personal pizza (10” pizza) with sausage and pepperoni

Price: $12.66

The Micro:

Crust: The crust at Paisano’s is thinner than average, but it has excellent texture: it is crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside.  Thus, this crust is kind of a thin version of a pan crust.  The crust is not unique enough to be award-winning, but it works well in my book.  Score: 9/10.

Sauce: The tomato sauce is very over spiced; I could not taste the tomatoes at all.  The sauce does appear in good quantity.  Score: 5/10.

Cheese: This pizza features a tasty cheese blend, and the cheese appears in above average quantity.  The fact that the cheese produces a decent amount of grease is the only turn-off.  Score: 9/10.

Toppings: The pepperoni is unremarkable, but the sausage is better: it comes in thick round tasty slices.  Both toppings appear in good quantity.  Score: 8/10.

The Macro:

Appearance/Atmosphere/Service: The appearance of my pizza was quite sloppy: the slices were cut very unevenly, and the pizza came in a box that was too big for the pizza.  The restaurant offers casual dining with a touch of class: metal silverware and cloth napkins.  The service consisted of one friendly but lonely server: I was her only customer at 5:30pm on a Monday.  Score: 7/10.

Value: This pizza is quite overpriced relative to what you put in your mouth.  Paisano’s makes good pizza but not good value.  Score: 3/10.

Taste: The overspiced sauce is a detraction to what otherwise comes together quite well.  Score: 16/20.

The Final Judgment:

Paisano’s is a nice choice when you want a more refined pizza dining experience.  On the south side of Lexington, I slightly prefer Smashing Tomato over Paisano’s for regular pizza consumption.  Score: 57/80.