The second stop on my tour of State College’s pizzerias brought me to Margarita’s Pizzeria. It’s one of those small, no frills pizza joints that you might find in any town across the country. I had high hopes coming into this review. My Econ 102 professor had made a point to mention this place as his favorite pizza place in town. He even went as far as to use it as an example for supply and demand. He explained that since demand for pizza is lower over the summer without students around Margarita’s closes all summer long. Another interesting thing about this place is that unlike Canyon Pizza they don’t cater to the drunk student. They close at 9 p.m. every night and don’t open at all on the weekends.

Weird hours aside, I was able to stop in for a slice Thursday night at 8. The slice only cost me $1.90, a fair price in my opinion. After I ordered, the lady behind the counter heated my slice up in the oven for a few seconds and my slice came to me looking heavenly.

My initial reaction to the pizza was simple: this is very good!! The dough was nice and crispy after being reheated in the oven which is one of my weaknesses when it comes to pizza. If a slice has that distinct crispiness to it there’s a 100% chance I will like the pizza more. I was also impressed by the sauce. As I have mentioned in my past blog posts, to me the sauce is the most important part of any pizza. I really liked this sauce, didn’t love it but it was pretty good. The cheese also complemented the sauce perfectly. There was just the right amount of cheese and I’m fairly certain that it was a blend of different types of cheeses, not just mozzarella. You can see what I’m talking about in the picture below.

I really had a good time eating this pizza. I didn’t have any complaints about the pizza whatsoever until I got towards the crust. There were a few areas where the dough was a bit too crispy, almost burnt, but not quite. The crust was also not the best, but in the grand scheme of things the crust of pizza is like the opening act at a concert; it’s a nice surprise if it’s good, but some people just skip it completely.

Now, let’s get down to the nitty gritty.

Margarita’s Pizzeria Ratings:

Crust/Dough – 7/10

Cheese – 8/10

Sauce – 8/10

Overall – 8/10

I really loved this pizza. Though, I do think that my ideas might have been romanticized since my most recent pizza experience to compare this to was Canyon. Regardless, I definitely would recommend trying Margarita’s. Sadly, they’re closed on weekends, but if you’re ever hungry after class this is a great pizzeria that will not let you down.

To kick off my pizza review blog I figured I should go to a Penn State staple, Canyon Pizza. Located on Beaver Ave. Canyon is a hot spot for late night slices after a long night of partying. Unlike many students, I went to Canyon sober, at 8 pm.

Immediately upon walking in I couldn’t help but notice that a slice of cheese pizza is only $1! Canyon is off to a great start in my mind. I order my slice, the lady woman the counter takes a slice from an old looking pie on the counter and tosses it in a small oven. Thirty seconds later I have my pizza in all its greasy, cheesy glory.

First impression after one bite: it tastes like I’m eating day old pizza. As I mentioned in my little background post, I am a huge sauce guy. In this particular slice, I couldn’t really taste the sauce. The cheese was really loaded on there though. The only problem with all the cheesiness was that it was not actually good cheese. Maybe, if the pizza wasn’t reheated and more freshly baked the texture of the cheese would have been softer and less stiff. If you wanted to get a sense of what I was eating I would  compare it to eating your high school cafeteria’s leftover pizza.

After eating most of the slice I began to solidify my opinions on Canyon Pizza. Let’s run through my thought process at this point. Here’s what I’m thinking: The sauce is barely there, it kind of reminds of of pizza hut but also the crust/dough strangely made me think of Papa John’s pizza. Overall, there’s not a whole lot of flavor the the texture is like wet cardboard. Honestly, I think if you combined Pizza Hut, Papa John’s and Chuck E Cheese pizza into one pizza and let it sit out for a day this would be it. But, I’m getting what I paid for I guess?

To wrap up my reviews I’ll give each slice a rating on a scale of 1-10 on a few different factors: crust/dough, cheese, sauce and an overall rating.

Canyon Pizza Ratings:

Crust/Dough – 5/10

Cheese – 3/10

Sauce – 0/10

Overall – 2.5/10

Final thoughts: I don’t ever see myself back at Canyon Pizza unless I’m drunk and really craving pizza. The price is impossible to beat though. For a late night snack on my way back to my dorm it’s not the worst option. Otherwise, there is no reason for me to go back and I suggest that you fill any pizza cravings you may have elsewhere.

I’ve been eating pizza since I can remember. With so much experience in the field of pizza eating I figured I would take my talents and apply them into pizza reviews. I’m not too familiar with the pizza places around State College but you can witness as that changes as I explore the many pizza shops around town and post about it here.

Some relevant background information on me and my experiences with pizza: I made my very first pizza at Angelo’s Pizza on a field trip in Pre-K at age 4. I prefer my pizza either with sausage, pepperoni, or sausage and mushrooms, but you can never go wrong with just cheese. My favorite pizza of all time is the plain pizza from Franzone’s Pizzeria in Bridgeport, PA (Picture included below). Franzone’s has a bit of a cult following you either love it or you hate it, the sweet sauce isn’t for everyone, but it is for me. Also, worth noting, I don’t like deep dish pizza. I prefer thinner crusts and I am a big sauce guy. I view the sauce as the most important ingredient of any pizza.

I look forward to trying all the pizza State College has to offer and more importantly, I can’t wait to share the experience with all of you!

(Franzone’s Plain Pizza)