As one of America’s most popular foods, it is no wonder that different variations of pizza have popped up, including restaurants that allow you to build your own.
Blaze Pizza
Before even entering the building, Blaze Pizza has a classic and chill environment, with its classy logo and exterior design. On the inside, it is similar to that of a retro-styled bakery, complete with a cracked brick background and silimar looking oven.
Ordering food is easy, due to Blaze displaying its wide variety of choices for customers to see before buying. Just line up and decide on what bread, sauce, cheese and toppings you want. After building the pizza, chefs bring it to the oven to bake for around five to ten minutes.
While waiting, my eyes were mesmerized by the nimble and precise motions of the chef who carefully watches the pizza cook, shifting it every now and then in order to achieve a perfect balance of flavors.
Even after the pizza is served, there is still some room for more customization. On the tables are salt, pepper and chillis serving as both condiments and decorations.
At $6 to $8 for pizza, it was well worth it. The thin dough and crispy crust allows for the rich marinara sauce to fully envelop the tongue in saucy goodness, while the toppings help add on a new flavor, whether it be salty or sweet.
Overall, Blaze Pizza is definitely recommended both for the design of the building and taste of the pizza.
Pieology
Another great build-it-yourself pizza place is Pieology, with the nearest one located on Huntington Drive in Arcadia. Pieology has a much different outside look, appearing far more modern and almost even space-like with its overall silver and chrome color scheme.
In a similar fashion to Blaze, all of Pieology’s ingredients are displayed before they are put on a pizza so customers can see what they want before they order.
Instead of a brick furnace like Blaze, Pieology has a metal furnace with a chrome finish, again adding on to its futuristic look.
The pizza itself was great, and is comparable to Blaze’s. The sauce was very thick and creamy, and the Italian sausage that they offered was superb.
However, I did have issues with the crust of the pizza, which was not as crispy as Blaze’s, and the sauce, which may be too overpowering for some people. Also, the environment itself is much different from Blaze’s, where it feels more like a modern cafeteria rather than a cozy diner like Blaze.
Pieology’s prices range from $6 to $7, and although Blaze’s pizzas were slightly more pricey, I found that it was definitely worth the extra dollars.