The Pie Pizzeria (phone - 801 482-0193) is by far the best
pizza joint in all of
Utah. It is located about four steps away from the old President's Circle of the
University of Utah in
Salt Lake City. "The Pie" is located below "The 'U' Pharmacy," the stairs are out front and will lead you to the finest meal you have ever had. At the bottom of the stairs make a
U-Turn to the right, the hand rail ends in a steel light post with no paint on it due to the countless students swinging themselves around the corner. Pull open the heavy wood-plank door (it looks to be made out of
railroad ties) and duck as you enter. The ceiling is very low and is made entirely of one large air-duct. Too your right is the
menu, to the left the trays showing the size of the pies. Be warned, the pies are as big as they look (no
shrinkage) and very thick. Do not order the Super Large unless you have an entire
football team or
orchestra with you. Order a local
mirco brew, or a
root beer, if not a large soda (about the size of a small swimming pool) should hold ya.
Once inside the dining area you will notice three things: the lack of light, the noise (music and people trying vainly to talk over it) and the walls. The walls are perhaps the most interesting feature of The Pie. Since the building was built this basement has been a pizza joint (formerly "Bimbo's") and all that time people have been writing and drawing on the walls. They are so thick with ink and paint they have definable strata. The ceiling is made of the same black wood as the door. I'm sure the room is well lit, the floor ceiling and walls just soak all the light out of the room. If you arrive between 5:30 PM and 11:00 expect to wait for a table. Do not call for reservations, the guys will just laugh at you.
The music will cut out from time to time as they announce the name on an order. When your name is called go get your pie, plates, forks (unless you are brave, stupid or both get forks, trust me) and lots of napkins.
My mouth is watering just thinking about sinking my teeth into a half-pound slice with all the veggies and extra cheese. Always get your pie with the fresh tomato slices, it helps control the oil from the cheese. The pies are baked in a brick and cast-iron oven that looks like the building was built around it, and I swear the oven is the key to the pizza. There is another Pie up north at Weber State, but is has no soul. The pizza up there is only average and the location is in a strip mall (yuch!). Without that old brick oven the Pie would be slightly better than average.
The Pie has so many awards for Best Pizza in Salt Lake or Utah that they only put up the ones for the last two years or so.
Eat Up.