The Charlotte 500, Laps 65-70: Pizza Search

After 15 months, we still haven't found a pizza place in Charlotte that rises to the level of those we've found in Chicago and New York. With all the New Yorkers who've moved to Charlotte, there is an abundance of pizzerias claiming to serve New York pizza (none have measured up) and the only place claiming to serve Chicago style is Charlotte's Pizzeria Uno (good pizza, but who are they kidding??). And, really, we haven't found any place that serves the type of thin crust pizza you can get in Chicago. Anyway...Here's a review of a few we've tried recently.

Lap 65: Taste of Buffalo Pizzeria, Huntersville - Who knew Buffalo had their own style of pizza? Wings I knew about, but pizza? I wasn't very confident about Taste of Buffalo, but it was a nice surprise. Served in a rectangular pan (or box, if you carry out), and featuring a thicker-than-thin-but-not-quite-thick, soft, chewy crust, Buffalo pizza is actually a nice treat.

Lap 66: Bullzeye Pizza, Huntersville (and Cornelius) - Bullzeye is one of the best thin-crust, non-New York style, pizzas we've found. The more ingredient you load it with (brocolli, spinach, garlic, tomato, onion, and pepperoni is very good), the better it holds up.

Lap 67: Donatos Pizza, Huntersville (and various other locations) - Donatos is a national chain, but I include it on my list because their thin crust ranks with Bullzeye as the best we've had, and because it is the only place I've ever seen that offers almonds as a topping, which add a surprisingly wonderful nutty flavor and crispy texture.

Lap 68: Pizza Peel, Myers Park/Cotswold, Charlotte - A very nice thin crust, pseudo-New York pizza restaurant, known as much for its beer menu as its pizza. Lots of kids, so if that's not your thing, then this ain't the place for you.

Lap 69: Brooklyn Boys Pizza, Mooresville - The people around here seem to love it, but, to me, the crust is way to chewy (not even close to true New York pizza), and the ingredients are laid on way too thin.

Lap 70: Fox's Den, Huntersville (and various other locations) - Not bad for a light, snack type pizza, along the lines of Dominos, Fox's Den offers a thin, cracker like crust with just the right amount of ingredients. Not really a meal, but still pretty good.