Johnny Goodtimes began THE GREAT PIZZA HUNT OF 2006 on Friday, getting a pie at the Pietro’s on 17th and Walnut with well respected pizza enthusiast (and roommate) Trivia Art. Let’s start with ambiance: Pietro’s looks ok inside, but it doesn’t have much of it. Lots of plastic plants and paintings that look like they were bought from Ross Dress For Less. I did, however, like the tall tin ceilings. They had televisions showing tourney games (a plus!), which seemed sort of strange with opera music providing the soundtrack. The crowd was young and attractive, including a hottie at a nearby table who was speaking a foreing language, like French or Spanish or Aramaic or something. But this wasn’t a trip to find hottest foreign honeys, this was THE GREAT PIZZA HUNT OF 2006, so let’s move to flavor: First off, Coke. There is a major Coke problem in this city. Seriously, it seems like a lot of bars and restaurants in this city put aspirin or something in their Cokes, because it tastes chalky and awful. So I was happy to discover that Pietro’s Coke was aspirin-free and tasty. The pie came out, and it looked beautiful. White mozarella cheese, thick chunks of tomato in the sauce, big thick pepperoni’s. And it tasted almost as good as it looked, especially the thick pepperoni’s. I tore through four slices in a hurry. Finally, service. It was ok. Not bad, but certainly not personable. Typical late lunch service. The Johnny Goodtimes Final Grade for Pietro’s on Walnut was the same as Trivia Art’s: 3 pepperonis out of a possible 5. A good solid selection to start THE GREAT PIZZA HUNT OF 2006.
