Pizza is America’s favorite food, with 3 billion pies sold each year. Bastardized over the years from its Italian origins, there are dozens of different varieties of pizza depending on region, toppings and crust style. Although in recent years pizza restaurants have added such mainstays as chicken wings, pastas, salads and sandwiches to their menus, pizza is still their main draw, their forte, and said restaurants should be judged on their pizza’s merits.

It’s been said that there’s no such thing as bad pizza, that pizza is inherently good because it’s pizza. I agree with this to a point. There’s a lot of average pizza out there, and some of the biggest national chains serve a shoddy product. Pizza Hut and Domino’s are in the same category as Burger King and McDonald’s in terms of food quality. Does this mean I never eat it? No. But I also watch bad movies now and then.

My personal taste in pizza is pretty traditional. I like New York style, Chicago style and the usual tomato sauce and toppings. I don’t care for creamy alfredo sauce, chicken, bacon, barbecue sauce, steak or ranch on pizza. On the other hand, some of the “pizzas” I’ve created in fine dining restaurants have included goat cheese, grapes, figs, pears, duck confit and pistachios. Luckily, most pizza places know everyone’s taste varies, and offer many varieties to please even the most finicky eaters.

The one travesty I refuse to suffer is the lame attempt of many pizza chains to sell “dessert pizzas,” which is usually merely their regular dough sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon, icing or chocolate, and cut into the same slices and served in the same box. Just because we’re ordering pizza, it doesn’t make us saps. We deserve better.

Sahara Pizza

For about a year now, Sahara Pizza, a local franchise of an international chain (17 locations in Washington, two in Oregon, two in Idaho, and interestingly, two in Bolivia) has given locals another pizza option. But is it good? For the most part, yes. Offering fast delivery, a plethoric variety of toppings (some rather unconventional) and driven by coupons and discounts, many people have given Sahara a shot. The several times I had their pizza in the last six months or so, I found it to be a little inconsistent, but overall satisfactory. This is mainly concerning the dough. Sometimes it was soft, chewy and fresh. Other times it was tough and dried-out (this seems to be a symptom of late-night ordering). When the crust is good, it’s a light, airy type that doesn’t distract from the sauce, cheese or toppings, but it’s also unimposing enough to be a bit boring. When the crust is not so good, it’s very dense and reminiscent of the cardboard box it comes in. The breadsticks can be like french fries, in that if you don’t eat them in 15 minutes or so, forget it. But again, when Sahara is on top of their game, the stuff is more than decent.

I recommend the Four Cheese Decadence, a pesto-sauced pie with feta, gorgonzola, mozzarella and ricotta, the oft-forgotten cheese that really made it shine. The Ultimate Sahara is your standard combination pizza with sausage, pepperoni, olives, mushrooms, onions, etc. I really enjoyed it. In addition to the usual toppings available, Sahara offers mango, smoked salmon, zucchini, fennel, smoked cheddar, apples, walnuts, dijon chicken and almonds.

Fultano’s Pizza

Growing up in Astoria, Fultano’s (Mr. Fultano’s in my youth) pizza was always the standard. When I moved away after high school, I never found anything quite like it, although Round Table Pizza comes closest. Friends and family that come to visit are amazed by Fultano’s, and others hailing from here make a point to order a Fultano’s pizza when visiting town. The pizza always seemed kind of expensive compared to other pizzerias, but you get what you pay for, and a Fultano’s pizza, loaded with what seems like twice as much cheese and toppings as other restaurants, usually goes as far as two competitors’ pizzas.

There’s something unique about the Fultano’s crust. Aged for two days, its flavor is yeasty and has a slightly fermented taste that’s wonderful but hard to describe. The bottom becomes cracker-crisp on its light cornmeal dusting, the middle stays a little bit doughy, but in a good way. The dough separates on the outer edges and puffs up where not secured with toppings. I’m speaking specifically about the thin crust here, because unfortunately, their thick crust is as bad as their thin is good. Skip it. The sauce is tart, complex and not over-applied. The amazing thing about Fultano’s is that their winning formula of remarkable thin crust, liberal topping application and fresh ingredients has led me into pizza pastures I’d usually dare not step. Such fusion pizzas as Bacon Cheeseburger, Taco Pizza and Reuben Pizza, which at first glance seemed disgusting to me, were actually good. They could put pretty much anything on a pizza and I’d give it a shot.

Note: Fultano’s has six locations, each independently owned and operated. Although each restaurant is a little different, they all feature generally the same signature pizza style. However, this review only covers the Astoria location.

– The Mouth

Dough

The dough is the most important part of the pizza, quite literally the foundation great pizza is built on. The perfect crust for me is the kind you find in authentic Italian restaurants, where pizzas are personal size, toppings are slight, crusts are thin, crisp yet chewy, and wood-fired. This quality comes from working the dough until the gluten bonds are strong. This dough is elastic to the point that you can stretch it thin enough to see through. You should be able to taste yeast, olive oil, the dark brown bottom and some smoke from the oven. This superior crust transcends any toppings, which is why fresh mozzarella, basil, a little olive oil and tomato (this simple combination is known as pizza Margherita) is the best way to dress it.