Barro's Pizza near Phoenix, AZ

Basic Information:

Pizza: Barro's Pizza
Number of Locations: around 40, mostly near Phoenix
Location Reviewed: 5884 W. Arizona Pavilions Drive in Tucson, AZ (across the parking lot from Walmart at I-10, exit 246)

Website: https://barrospizza.com/
Date of Review Visit: February 2024
What I Ordered: medium (12") pizza with Italian sausage and pepperoni
Price: $14.12 (includes tax but no drink or tip)

Photos:

Summary Review: 5 stars (out of 5)

Detailed Review:

Crust: Barro's Pizza has a nice thick bready crust.  The texture has just the right amount of crispiness.  I really enjoyed this crust.  Score: 10/10.

Sauce: This pizza has plenty of sauce.  The sauce is not overspiced, but it might be oversalted.  Something makes this pizza taste very salty, and while I'm not sure it is the sauce, I couldn't isolate the saltiness anywhere else.  Thus, I'll factor the saltiness in here.  Score: 8/10.

Cheese: This pizza has plenty of yummy cheese, but it produces quite a bit of grease.  Hence, a mandatory deduction applies.  Score: 8/10.

Toppings: The pepperoni is adequate: it has decent flavor with a little spiciness.  The sausage is fantastic: it comes in big chunks of pork with just the right amount of seasoning.  Both toppings appear in high quantity.  Score: 10/10.

Overall Taste: The heavy saltiness lowers the score on what is otherwise an excellent tasting pizza.  I wanted to write "this pizza is not as salty as Pizza Hut," but I'm not sure that's true.  Score: 8/10.

Pizza Appearance: Barro's Pizza looks like the yummy, robust pizza it is.

Dining Atmosphere: I ordered carryout, but their dining area looked like a nice casual dining room.

Customer Service: The service was quick and friendly.

Monetary Value: The price is a little high, but this is a 12" pizza, not the usual 10" pizza I usually order.  Thus, the value grades out well.

The Final Judgment:

Barro's is a true Phoenix success story, and I can see why.  Barro's makes a nice pizza if you can tolerate the saltiness.  Score: 90/100.

Next Door Pizza in Chino Hills, CA

Basic Information:

Pizza: Next Door Pizza
Number of Locations: 1
Location Reviewed: 15941 Pomona Rincon Road, Suite 110, in Chino Hills, CA (at California 71, exit 7)

Website: https://www.thenextdoorpizza.com/
Date of Review Visit: February 2024
What I Ordered: small (10") pizza with pepperoni and Italian sausage, fountain drink
Price: $17.78 (includes drink and tax but not tip)

Photo:

Summary Review: 4 stars (out of 5)

Detailed Review:

Crust: The crust at Next Door Pizza is fairly thin but super hard, more hard than crispy.  My pizza seemed slightly overbaked.  The crust had too hard of a texture for my liking, so I can't rate this crust too high.  Score: 6/10.

Sauce: Next Door has several sauces to choose from, but I chose the traditional red sauce.  The pizza does not have a lot of sauce, but the sauce has a fresh tomatoey flavor.  Score: 8/10.

Cheese: This pizza has a nice blend of cheese that includes mozzarella, provolone, and a couple of others.  A mandatory deduction for too much grease applies.  Score: 8/10.

Toppings: The toppings are large slices of pepperoni and smaller pieces of crumbled up sausage.  Both toppings have nice pork flavor with just a little spiciness.  The toppings appear in above average quantity.  Score: 10/10.

Overall Taste: The overall taste is rather flavorful, but the grease and the crust keep this score lower than it really should be.  Score: 8/10.

Pizza Appearance: This pizza has a nice well-balanced appearance.

Dining Atmosphere: The dining room has a bar, a few TVs, but no chairs!  All seating is bench seating with no backs, which is very hard on people with back problems such as myself.

Customer Service: The service was quick and friendly.

Monetary Value: Next Door is on the expensive side, but the quality is high.  Therefore, the value is not that bad.

The Final Judgment:

Next Door makes a pizza that is a better crust, some grease, and some better chairs away from being elite.  Whether it is next door to your house or not, it is worth coming here at least on occasion for some pretty good pizza.  Score: 81/100.

Round Table Pizza in Southern California

Basic Information:

Pizza: Round Table Pizza
Number of Locations: 8, all in southern California
Location Reviewed: 2506 E. Chapman Ave. in Fullerton, CA (in College Plaza beside Subway)

Website: https://www.roundtablepizza.com/
Date of Review Visit: February 2024
What I Ordered: small (10") pizza with pepperoni and Italian sausage
Price: $16.25 (includes tax but not drink or tip)

Photos:

Summary Review: 5 stars (out of 5)

The Macro:

Crust: The crust at Round Table Pizza is on thin side.  It has a nice crispy texture.  The pizza looks overbaked, but it's actually baked perfectly for this kind of pizza.  This is a great crust.  Score: 10/10.

Sauce: The sauce has a fresh tomatoey taste and comes in plenty of quantity.  Perfecto!  Score: 10/10.

Cheese: This pizza has plenty of cheese, which is a tasty blend of several kinds of cheese.  The cheese produces quite a bit of grease, which leads to a mandatory deduction.  Score: 8/10.

Toppings: The pepperoni appears in thin slices with just a little spice.  The Italian sausage appears in medium-sized chunks with just the right amount of spice.  Both toppings appear in high quantity.  Score: 10/10.

Overall Taste: Everything comes together well to produce a fresh taste with a crispy crust, but the sauce is what really makes the taste.  Score: 9/10.

Pizza Appearance: Round Table Pizza has a well-balanced appearance dominated by the toppings.

Dining Atmosphere: I ordered carry out, but Round Table has a nice casual dining atmosphere with retro games such as skiball and Golden Tee Golf.

Customer Service: The service was quick and friendly on my visit; I was the only customer at the time.

Monetary Value: Round Table Pizza is not cheap, but it has high quality.  Hence, the value is not as bad as you might expect.

The Final Judgment:

Round Table Pizza calls themselves pizza royalty, and they are not far off.  For royally good pizza and a royally good time, Round Table Pizza deserves a spot in your pizza rotation, and it makes a great party destination.  Score: 90/100.

Gino's Italian Restaurant in Palmdale, CA

Basic Information:

Pizza: Gino's Italian Restaurant
Number of Locations: 2, both near Palmdale, CA
Location Reviewed: 819 W. Palmdale Blvd. (in strip center at corner of Palmdale Blvd. and 10th St. West)

Website: https://www.ginosofpalmdale.com/?utm_source=gbp
Date of Review Visit: February 2024
What I Ordered: small (10") pizza with pepperoni and sausage
Price: $20.95 (includes tax but no drink or tip)

Photos:

Summary Review: 4 stars (out of 5)

Detailed Review:

Crust: The pizza at Gino's Italian Restaurant has a thick bready crust.  The crust has a fresh bready taste and is full of body.  This crust is not good if you only want a light snack, but it is great for the hearty pizza eater like me.  Score: 10/10.

Sauce: The sauce appears in sufficient quantity but tastes overspiced.  This is not my kind of sauce, but some people might like it.  Score: 6/10.

Cheese: This pizza has plenty of cheese that does not produce much grease.  Perfecto!  Score: 10/10.

Toppings: The pepperoni has a nice pork taste with just enough spices, plus the slices of pepperoni are huge.  The sausage is way too spicy for my taste palette.  Both toppings appear in very high quantity.  Score: 9/10.

Overall Taste: The overall taste has too much spiciness from the sauce and the sausage for my taste.  Get the glass of water ready if you eat here.  Score: 7.5/10.

Pizza Appearance: This pizza looks like the yummy, robust, thick-crust pizza it is.

Dining Atmosphere: I ordered carry out, but Gino's has a nice dining atmosphere with cloth napkins and glass drinkware to add a touch of class.

Customer Service: The service was quick and helpful on my visit.

Monetary Value: "Good" this pizza is, but cheap it isn't.  Hence, the value is not the best.

The Final Judgment:

Gino's is better than nearby Gezzinny's, but it is also more expensive.  The overwhelming spiciness keeps this pizza from being elite in my book.  Score: 83/100.

Gezziny's Homemade Pizza in Palmdale, CA

Basic Information:

Pizza: Gezziny's Homemade Pizza
Number of Locations: 1
Location Reviewed: 38750 Trade Center Dr. in Palmdale, CA (strip mall at corner of Trade Center Dr. and Palmdale Blvd.)
Date of Review Visit: February 2024
What I Ordered: large (14") pizza with pork pepperoni, Italian sausage, and ham
Price: $16.52 (pizza only; includes tax but not drink or tip)

Summary Review: 2.5 stars (out of 5)

Detailed Review:

Crust: Gezziny's Homemade Pizza has a not-too-thick not-too-thin crust.  The texture of the crust is a little on the hard and crispy side.  The crust is also brushed with a garlic glaze, which I don't particularly like.  Score: 6/10.

Sauce: This pizza has sufficient sauce, but it is overspiced with a heavy garlic flavor.  I don't like garlic flavor, especially in the sauce, and hence I don't like the taste of this sauce.  Score: 4/10.

Cheese: The cheese appears in sufficient quantity but produces quite a bit of grease.  Hence, the mandatory grease deduction applies.  Score: 8/10.

Toppings: None of the toppings have a lot of flavor.  The ham is especially unappetizing: it is burnt black and too crispy.  All toppings appear in average quantity.  Score: 6/10.

Overall Taste: The garlic taste dominates everything else, so the overall taste is rather unappealing, at least to my taste palette.  Score: 6.5/10.

Pizza Appearance: This pizza's appearance looks a little bare, especially for a 3 topping pizza.

Dining Atmosphere: (not applicable: no dining area)

Customer Service: The service was quick but not friendly or helpful.

Monetary Value: I got this pizza on special, but even at the regular price it is fairly inexpensive for a decent quality pizza.

The Final Judgment:

Gezziny's is the local garlic king.  I don't like the taste of garlic, so I would prefer pizza from the garlic pawn than the garlic king.  Score: 69/100.

Little Italy Pizza & Pasta in Abilene, TX

Basic Information:

Pizza: Little Italy Pizza & Pasta
Number of Locations: 1
Location Reviewed: 620 Ambler Ave. (corner of US 83 Business and Ambler Ave. on the north side of Abilene)

Website: https://www.littleitalyexpress.com/
Date of Review Visit: February 2024
What I Ordered: personal (10") pizza with pepperoni, pork sausage, and Italian sausage
Price: $10.81 (pizza only; includes tax but not drink or tip)

Photos:

Summary Review: 4 stars (out of 5)

Detailed Review:

Crust: The crust at Little Italy Pizza & Pasta has medium thickness.  The crust has a crispy texture, but some people would say it is a bit too stiff.  This crust has a nice fresh bready taste that I like quite a lot.  Score: 9/10.

Sauce: This pizza is slightly undersauced, but what sauce does appear has a nice fresh tomatoey flavor.  Score: 8/10.

Cheese: The cheese does not have much flavor, but it appears in sufficient quantity and does not produce much grease.  Thus, this cheese is better than most.  Score: 8/10.

Toppings: The pork sausage is the horrible pellet of grease that disintegrates on contact with your mouth.  The pepperoni is unremarkable.  The Italian sausage is the star of the show: it is a sliced link sausage with some pork flavor but not too much spiciness.  All toppings appear in sufficient quantity.  Score: 8/10.

Overall Taste: The overall taste would have been very bland except for the Italian sausage.  They need some other tasty toppings to go with some of the other good things on this pizza.  Score: 7.5/10.

Pizza Appearance: This pizza has a well-ordered and balanced appearance.

Dining Atmosphere: I ordered to-go, but the tiny dining area with a few tables and chairs is nothing more than functional.

Customer Service: The service was quick but not helpful when I asked about toppings, which is why I ended up with the pork sausage described above.

Monetary Value: The price is for the pizza only, but this pizza is still very inexpensive for a quality pizza.

The Final Judgment:

Little Italy Pizza & Pasta is a solid pizza option that could be elite with some better toppings.  If I lived in Abilene, maybe as a student at nearby Abilene Christian University, I would come here often.  Score: 84/100.

Pizza Buffet of Anderson, SC

Basic Information:

Pizza: Pizza Buffet of Anderson
Number of Locations: 1

Location Reviewed: 3420 Clemson Blvd. in Anderson, SC (beside the Shell and in front of Ollie's)
Website: https://pizzabuffetofanderson.com/
Date of Review Visit: January 2024
What I Ordered: adult buffet and drink
Price: $14.00 (includes drink and tax but not tip)

Photo:

 

Summary Review: 2.5 stars (out of 5)

Detailed Review:

Crust: Pizza Buffet offers 2 types of crust: regular and pan.  The regular crust is hard and crispy, and it is of the low quality you typically find on buffet pizza.  The pan crust is thicker and has a nice spongy texture.  The pan crust is better than you would expect for buffet pizza.  Score: 7/10.

Sauce: the sauce comes in sufficient quantity, but it has an almost bitter taste.  I like sweet tasting sauce, so while I can see why some people would like this sauce, it isn't for me.  Score: 5/10.

Cheese: this pizza is somewhat undercheesed, and the cheese produces quite a bit of grease.  Score: 4/10.

Toppings: of course the quality of the toppings varies by the type of pizza chosen, but the options are actually quite limited (see "Overall Taste" below).  The sausage is of the horrible pellet variety.  The pepperoni is unremarkable.  At least the toppings appear in decent quantity.  Score: 3/10.

Overall Taste: the overall taste is not the best due to the toppings and the sauce.  Bafflingly, there were basically only 3 types of pizza on the buffet: cheese, pepperoni, and sausage.  Most pizzas on the buffet were some variation/combination of those three.  Thus, there was little variety in pizza choice, and there were no "signature" pizzas (ham and cheddar, barbeque, etc.) that made me want to come back.  Score: 5.5/10.

Pizza Appearance: This pizza looks like the low to medium quality pizza it is. 

Dining Atmosphere: Pizza Buffet has a large but somewhat dated dining room.

Customer Service: The service was excellent: they refilled my Dr. Pepper regularly.

Monetary Value: pizza buffets usually shine on this metric, and this one is no exception.  In a world where $14 will barely buy you a small pizza and a drink, to get all the pizza you can eat for that price is a real bargain.

 

The Final Judgment:

Pizza buffets always seem to sacrifice quality for quantity, and this one is no exception.  That said, I like Pizza Buffet better than Pizza Inn, another pizza buffet in this area.  While I prefer higher quality pizzas for regular pizza eating, for the occasional mandatory self-gourding via pizza, Pizza Buffet gets the job done.  Score: 69/100.