Some of my greatest memories as a kid are going for pizza. Granted it was mostly going to Pizza Hut, but we always got the deep dish pizza so for me that was always what pizza was supposed to be like. (To be fair, I also ate all the toppings off the pizza then added a bunch of cheap grated Parmesan and then ate the crust, which in itself is also incredibly weird.) As I got older, I really grew to appreciate the thinner crusts. Crispy, thin crusts with a small amount of toppings really just added a nice amount of texture to the mouth. Or the thinner chewy crust, as the pizza I had when I was in Naples. But somewhere, deep inside, I still have the guilty pleasure of a really thick, almost fried, pizza crust like we always had growing up.
Now I had been to Square Pie Guys for with my burger club looking for the best burger in the city (Spoiler alert: It wasn’t), but the pizza looked amazing. I had never really heard of Detroit-style pizza, but it looked like a square version of the pizza I loved growing up with the added addition of cheese brought to the edge to give a really crunchy exterior. Basically I kind of wanted to skip the burger and go immediately for pizza. But I knew that really wasn’t an option so the amazing looking pizza would have to wait for another time. However, the other half is not the biggest fan of thick crust pizza, so I didn’t know when it was going to happen.
Due to circumstances beyond our control, I had several evenings where I was on my own for dinner, so I knew it was going to be the perfect time to give it a try. There isn’t a lot of options on their website, which is probably good as is means they work hard to make sure the toppings they have are excellent. I really wanted to try the pepperoni, but I also knew that I was going to need to add a few veggies, so I made my own pizza with pepperoni, mushrooms and olives. There are also side dishes including fries and salad, but I figured since it was just me, the pizza was probably sufficient.
And how was it? It was pretty damn good! Basically everything I wanted from reminiscing about my childhood and then some. The cheese to the edge was a revelation. The toppings were much nicer than the ones you’d get at Pizza Hut, and the crust there was always just slightly raw in the middle, so it was nice having something completely baked through. The pizza is pretty good for two people with maybe a salad to accompany, so $20-25 for a pie is a reasonable deal considering how good it is! I’ll definitely be ordering again when I’m on my own and enjoying some of the other pizzas that they have on offer. And just so you know, according to their website, they are not currently open for indoor or outdoor dining during the pandemic, but they are definitely open for takeout and delivery!
Score: 4.5/5
Recommendation: Pizza? (I’m not gonna lie, the burger and fries didn’t wow me when I had them before, but if you’re at a pizza place, it should be about the pizza, right?) And the pepperoni they have is pretty fantastic!
Square Pie Guys
1077 Mission St
San Francisco, CA 94103
