Pizzeoli Takeaway. So-So Wood-Fired Pizza In Soulard. 6.2 / 10 pizza. The undercarriage was chewy and saggy. The crust was soggy and chewy, with no crisp. The flavor of the cheese and sauce was above average, but not by much. Reddit pumped me up, as some people call this their favorite pizza, but I came away severely disappointed.
Amazing pizza place. You walk into a giant, tiled, wood-fired pizza oven. Everything else in the space compliments it. I ordered online for pickup. The pizza was ready 18 minutes before schedule. Parking on the street in Soulard. Outside tables and three or four bar spots are available. More for pickup or delivery.
Pizzeoli Experience Summary
It's a great day in early summer. I just picked up my son from daycare on Friday night. We're both excited for the next stop on our pizza tour around St. Louis, Pizzeoli.
On the way, I give him his first Sprite. The kid love loves it. He somehow nurses the little 8-oz can the full twenty minutes it takes to get across town to Soulard.
The whole drive, I'm thinking, I hope this pizza makes me as happy as that soda makes him. The person who owns Pizzeoli also owns Pizza Head, which I had last week and was one of my favorite pizzas of all time.
My hopes are high.
I ordered the pizza for a 5:15 pickup, and we are having a good time with an ETA of 5:04. I know that's our arrival time because of what happened next. At 4:57, I got a text that our pizza was ready.
Hmm, that's way too early, but good thing we're getting there before schedule.
We pull up to Pizzeoli and park across the street. A nice couple is eating a pizza outside. My son and I walk past them to turn into the restaurant when I audibly gasp.
The pizza place is a pizza place. It's a bar, a counter, and a giant wood-fired pizza oven. Amazing.
After telling the pizza man our order, he turned to a heating rack and pulled out our pizzas. Two cute boxes that remind me of Union Loafers have our name on them.
We run across the street to the car, as there's not a moment to lose when it comes to tasting this pizza that both people on Reddit and Yelp call their favorite of all time. I buckle my son in, take a quick photo, weigh and measure the pizza, and then it's bite time.
…
Oh no.
It's a total miss. Soggy. Chewy. Right flavors, but floppy. 6.2 / 10 pizza score.
Devastated. Now I have to drive the whole 25 minutes back home through traffic. I made my wife order Pizzeoli instead of Pizza Head for this blog. She's going to be mad.
The Food At Pizzeoli
I'm trying a new story format ] for the summary. Sorry if I went overboard. It turned out my wife liked the pizza way more than I did. She gave it a 7.2 /10 pizza score, which is totally respectable. Both my sons liked it more than their favorite Dominos.
So maybe I'm being harsh, but I'm sticking to my guns and first impressions, as I do with all my reviews.
I ordered both the margarita pizza and the NY-style pizza. Those are my go-to's when comparing pizza places. I wanted to give the benefit of the doubt as to which one was better at Pizzeoli by ordering both. Most places only serve one or the other.
I had a positive first impression when opening the box. Both pizzas came in at 11" weighing 16.8 oz for $16. $.95/oz is very expensive for St. Louis. Anthonino's Taverna is the most expensive at $1/oz. Most pizza in the area is around $.50/oz. Costco is the cheapest at $.17/oz.
Then I picked up a piece that had 0 slice integrity. The whole thing flopped over on itself. No biggie, I thought.
Then I took a bite. And the whole thing seemed soggy. The flop in the undercarriage led to a chewy bite. No crisp.
But the crust will surely be crunchy. It's charred and flaky to the touch. Nope, just extra chewy. I have video proof.
I give the pizza a 6.2 / 10 on my pizza score. The cheese and sauce saved it from a lower score. The pizza had the right general flavors and ratios but couldn't make up for the mouthfeel and crust in my book. It's my 13th pizza in the last two months and the one I've been most disappointed by.
I feel bad throwing all that negativity into the world, so here are the two pluses.
- I love cold pizza in the morning. This morning's cold pizza tastes better than the hot pizza yesterday. The fridge firmed up the sogginess, letting the cheese and sauce flavor shine more.
- My sons and wife liked this pizza considerably more than I did. My wife gave it a 7.2 / 10, which is completely respectable. She likes Pie Guy a lot and gave that something in the 8's as a point of reference. Her La Pizza rating is around 7 / 10.
Pizzeoli Atmosphere And Miscellaneous
The atmosphere at Pizzeoli is all you could ever want in a pizza place. It's small, like Pizza Head, with room for a small bar, a counter to order, and a giant wood-fired pizza oven.
They complement the exposed brick interior and St. Louis ceiling with a neon pizza sign. It's like being in a throwback pizza place.
I ordered our pizzas online. In a first, for me, they actually made the pizzas too fast. I scheduled a 5:15 pick-up, but the pizzas were ready before 5. This seems like a nitpick, but I'm not sure if it would have been better fresher. We got there at 5:04, but the pizza had been sitting for 7 minutes already.
They have very limited seating. Outside were a half dozen tables if the weather permits. Inside, they had maybe four bar seats. Plan on picking up or getting delivery.
Parking At Pizzeoli
You have to find street parking. I had no issue finding it across the side street. I'm not sure where I parked totally legally, but it was close enough to run in to pick up the pizza and out.
Pizzeoli Receipt
Pizza Size And Price Comparisons
