John's Pizza (2104 N Western Ave, Chicago, IL 60647)

Hype: We at Pizza Slayer know nothing of 'Chicago Deep Dish.' Would it be fair for us to judge? So we didn't. Our friend told us of Chicago's best thin, John's.

Scene: In a semi-trendy neighborhood (we could tell by the number of girls on bikes, white-T's, Jorts, etc.) this shop is family owned all the way. I think three generations were working while we were there. Remember the Chicago Bear's Super Bowl Shuffle? It was playing on the box!!!



Pie:
Crust- Nice! Crisp edges, somewhat soft underbelly. Thin.
Sauce-Impressive, but sweet and pretty good with noticeable amount of oregano.
Cheese- Too much. It had a pretty good flavor, but too much.
Pep- Consistently soft. Salty and under the cheese!!! I could hardly taste it.


Overall: A pretty good pie. I would come here if it were in Columbus AND...They didn't misplace the peps. The only reason this should be done is if you are making Pizza Casarole. Just because you are in Chicago doesn't mean you have to fuck up your pizza.
3-5 pies. 1 pie deduction for fucking up the pep-placement.

Pizza Shuttle (1827 N Farwell Ave, Milwauke, WI 414-289-9993)

Hype: Our friends in Milwaukee said it was good. They have like a 50 inch pizza or something for $50. If you and your pal can eat it all you win $500. We didn't want to dance.

Scene: In a hipster neighborhood. You walk upstairs and its like a nice-looking, well lit diner, kind of. Photo machine, indie rock jukebox, neon lights and a bum sleepsitting on a corner stool. I got an awesome T-Shirt for only 5 bucks, after we ate, naturally.


Pie:
Crust- Hand tossed. Sweet, chewy and pleasantly airy. Excellent.
Sauce- Not unanimous here, two of three said it was lacking flavor. The other liked it.
Cheese- This is WISCONSIN, man. It was awesome, no shitting here. They proudly announce on the boxes that their cheese is %100 local WI dairy. You CAN taste the difference. Plenty of it.
Pep- some a little well done, others still soft. Maybe a little salty and lacking kick, but pretty good.


Overall: Good pizza. Split decision. 4 of 5 pies!!!!!!! Do stop in if you ever visit Milwaukee.

***Partyboyz-- Cheap pitchers of draft beer. Do it.

Hungry Howies (2995 N High St, Columbus, OH - (614) 784-9999‎)

Hype: We were in a serious rush and super hungry. It is cheap. I swear we were not out to score any serious pie. Trust me. It's only a block away.

Environment: Sucks. It's a chain. Questionable from top to bottom. Unpleasent.

THE PIE:

Crust: We got the thin crust because it is edible. It makes saltine crackers look thick. Way to thin!!!!!!!! Little flavor.

Sauce: Somewhat sweet with hints of herbs and spices. Truly, not too bad!! A good amount.

Cheese: Overdone. Good flavor, but maybe a little too much and certainly burnt.

Pep: Flavorless crap. Flat.

Overall: It is pretty cheap, but here is the deal. Each of us slayed an entire pizza our selves. At $7 a pie, why invest, man? A large pep from Gatto's (across the street) is $13 and feeds two. Gatto's out of this pie's league. THINK ABOUT IT!!!!!!!!!!!!

We give this pizza 2 out of 5 pies. After all, it's still pizza!!!!

Belleria's Pizzeria (128 Graceland Bl. Columbus, OH, 43214, 435-7500)

Hype: Not much really. We were requested to review this establishment by a Pizza Slayer reader. The fact being that its origins lie in Youngstown was enough to intrigue us.

Scene: Not really scoring any points here. Located in a strip mall in the Graceland shopping center, you can't really get much lamer than that. Upon entering, the atmosphere was extremely clean and full of suburbanite families enjoying a nice weekend dinner, Italian style. No jukebox, funny signs or pinball machines here. A far cry from what we're normally accustomed to. Also, the restroom was freakishly clean. Immaculate, almost to the point of being creepy. They even had an employee checklist up on the wall of who's turn it was to clean. Nothing wrong with being a little on the cleanly side, but this was riduculous.

Pie:
Crust: Chewy and very flavorful. Not too doughy and not burnt in the least. Nice Work!
Sauce: The strongest point of this pizza was the sauce. Not your typical tomato flavor, this sauce had a mixture of green and red peppers thrown into it, giving it a very unique, tart taste. Very refreshing even. Just the right amount of it too. My only gripe with it was that it slid off the slice a little too easily, leaving me with a big pizza stain on my shirt. Oh well, at least it was a black shirt!
Cheese: Not bad at all. Greasy, but not too. It wasn't so filling as to make my stomach feel bloated like a lot of pies out there. Hearty and satisfying. It too slid off the slice too easily, sometimes leaving me with an unhappy, cheeseless slice, but ultimately one of the stronger points of the pizza.
Pep: Can't say I'm a fan of the pepperoni baked underneath the cheese. It detracts from the overall flavor of the pep, leaving you with just a hint of what you could be tasting. Kind of a pep tease if you know what I mean.

Overall: A nice tasting and extremely unique pizza. The pride of Youngstown. This is probably the least punk pizza i've ever tasted, but its a good value if you want something slightly more up- scale. We won't be seeing this one on punker Thursdays, but I would definitely revisit this place once every other month or so. 4 out of 5 pies.