OT: Best Pizza Jount in P5 College Towns
From this tweet: https://twitter.com/atl_boomer1990/status/1385611588946833408?s=21
Will admit to have never been to NeoPapali’s, or any other B1G choice (other than Blaze).
Also, check out Alabama. Anyone have thoughts?
April 23rd, 2021 at 11:42 AM ^
Mods please edit to Joint. My apologies.
April 23rd, 2021 at 11:50 AM ^
No - keep it.
Jount is wayyy funnier and makes people ask themselves "What's a pizza jount"?
April 23rd, 2021 at 12:08 PM ^
Agreed. I thought it was a typo for "jaunt."
My brain read it as joint.
April 23rd, 2021 at 12:24 PM ^
Strange how autocorrect will change some words but not others. ?♂️
April 23rd, 2021 at 12:48 PM ^
Some kooky mash-up of ‘joint’ and ‘blunt’.
Isn’t that LeGarrette Blount?
April 23rd, 2021 at 11:43 AM ^
I know this might make me a heretic to some but I've always liked Cottage Inn.
April 23rd, 2021 at 12:08 PM ^
Same here. We actually have a franchise location here in Columbus (in the campus area even!), though I will say that last time I got pizza there it was much saltier than I remembered.
Wait, why were you surprised an Ann Arbor brand would be salty in Columbus??
April 23rd, 2021 at 12:39 PM ^
I always find it weird that a franchise like that can have different flavor in their product across locations. But I feel Cottage Inn Ann Arbor is far superior to the one I’ve tried twice down the road from me (in Lansing).
I’ve ran multiple cottage inns. The biggest difference is dough made in house vs commissary and how well each location actually maintains standards of said dough. Other than that all of the ingredients are exactly the same.
Worked at the cottage inn in saline when I was in high school. Got everything from commissary. Still delicious but not the same as the original restaurant. Ah, the fond memories of making 5.35 a hour.
April 24th, 2021 at 11:56 AM ^
When was that? 20 years ago? Now you could be making 7.50. Ugh.
I miss Cottage Inn like crazy, definitely my go to while in Ann Arbor
Having grown up in and around Ann Arbor, I grew up going to the original restaurant, but there actually is one right here in Romulus near Ecorse and Merriman, just north of Metro. For some reason, the franchise locations don't always do the original in Ann Arbor justice, but we did manage - several years ago - to talk the kids out of Little Caesar's (blech) and into Cottage Inn and although we wander between places to get pizza in Metro Detroit, they stopped asking for Little Caesar's anyway, which is the important part.
My favorite Little Caesar's story was recnetly when I was super hungry and walked into a Little Caesar's near Bloomfield Hills with $5 thinking I would just buy a slice or 2. Nope! You can get a whole damn pizza for $5. It was a much welcomed surprise for someone as hungry (and broke) as I was then.
My Little Caesar's story is that I've had that $5 special at Chris Ilitch's house. They buy it for their kids.
?
That's a lot more ? than the Ilitches ever spent on maintaining Tiger Stadium.
April 26th, 2021 at 12:45 PM ^
This disturbs me. Having spent 5 years in Ann Arbor I keep racking my brain trying to find something better than Cottage Inn, which is average. And I can't.
Now Metro Detroit where I live is another story. There are 50 places better than Cottage Inn, and those are just the ones I know about. There are five neighborhood joints right nearby off the top of my head. And that's without getting into the Detroit style pizzerias (gotta go with Louis in Hazel Park).
That said, when you're down to loose change in your pockets and doing bong hits in the dorm on a Friday night and someone pops in with a $4 pie from Dooleys, that stuff tastes pretty good.
For whatever reason, my entire family has always referred to that place as, “The Cottage Inn,” a la tOSU. I have no idea why.
April 24th, 2021 at 11:36 AM ^
maybe they work at Fords and shop at Meijers?
Best pizza is like asking best color. That being said, Cottage Inn deep dish is hard to beat. My roommate was from Ohio and he used to bring back Donatos which I absolutely loved as well though.
April 23rd, 2021 at 11:46 AM ^
Giorgio's in East Lansing is hot garbage.
I'd rather go to the Pizza house in EL.
Don't know what this guy is thinking.
April 23rd, 2021 at 11:51 AM ^
Payola always improves your ranking.
April 23rd, 2021 at 12:16 PM ^
Disagree.
April 23rd, 2021 at 12:40 PM ^
Never understood the Giorgio’s draw. Used to have one in GR that was a hot spot for 2AM drunk food. Even during the busy parts of their day the pizza was more gimmick than flavor
I’m not saying it’s great pizza, I’ve just been to the Pizza House in EL too and I don’t get it. I found it to be average pizza and way overpriced. Give me a slice from Giorgio’s.
is that the place a couple doors down from el ezteca? if so, it does have pretty good pizza by the slice.
Yep.
Toarmina's or DeLuca's in Lansing is the way to go. Plus, gets you out of E Lansing.
I’ve heard nothing but good things about DeLuca’s and I’ve had it twice. Both times I thought it was grossly undercooked.
I had that problem once, but it was an outlier compared to my usual experience. Sorry to hear that it hit you twice. Toarmina's is great if you're looking for a large NY-style slice.
April 23rd, 2021 at 11:07 PM ^
Had the same experience with DeLuca’s, heard it was the best in Lansing forever but honestly have no memory of it being exceptionally good or bad. My preference is Fat Boy’s in Holt.
Calling Georgio’s the best in EL is like saying Taco Bell is your favorite Mexican restaurant; absurd ranking there.
April 23rd, 2021 at 11:48 AM ^
I live in Columbus and Tommy’s is trash. I know at least 10 more better and none of them are Donatos.
April 23rd, 2021 at 11:52 AM ^
Seriously. The idea of Tommy's being better than Hounddog's is laughable. It's one of the few stops that I consistently make when visiting that wretched hive of scum and villainy.
Also, Giordano's for Chicago? No way. Gino's and Lou Malnati's are both superior, as is essentially anywhere in that city doing legit Neapolitan style pizze.
April 23rd, 2021 at 12:06 PM ^
Giordano's got my attention too. It's fine, but really? When there's a hundred thousand crazy good mom and pops in Chicago? Also, while I get that Chicago is associated with deep dish, REAL Chicago pizza is thin crust, cut into squares, so you can eat with one hand and drink beer with the other (thanks to Steve Dolinsky for that line).
April 23rd, 2021 at 12:41 PM ^
YES! Thank you both for pointing this out! May as well put Old Chicago on the list
Agreed, very much, on the thin crust Chicago note. I dislike that the city is so associated with "deep dish." I mean, I get it to some degree. I've enjoyed Pequod's, Lou Malnati's, and others. But it's far from the best pizza available in the city.
I dislike that the city is so associated with "deep dish."
That is because no other self-respecting city would...
Detroit pizza would like a word with you, sir.
giordano's is solid deep dish. i do like lou's tho for hand tossed. pequad's has the best deep dish crust. they carmelize mozzarella cheese on it.
my favorite tavern-style is michael's about a mile north of wrigley. i also like d'agastino's thin crust. it has a sweeter sauce. i like that uniqueness.
Keep in mind that Northwestern is in Evanston (not Chicago). While there is a Lou M's in Evanston, I don't think there is a Gino's. But there is a Giordano's in Evanston.
If they truly meant Chicago, then those 3 tourist pizza places should not be on top of anyone's list. Pequod's should.
Went there on a visit to Chi-town and can confirm about Pequod's
Another vote for Pequod's. On my very short list to hit any time I get to Chicago.
Would not trust any list with Giordano's on it. In Evanston, best pizza is either Union, Union Squared if you like the Detroit-style rectangles or Bob's Pizza at The Whiskey Thief if you like the conventional thin crust heavy cheese circles.
April 23rd, 2021 at 11:58 AM ^
Used to live in Columbus. The best pizza is Iacano’s and it’s not close.
April 23rd, 2021 at 12:41 PM ^
Apparently, Tommy's and Iacono's are run by rival brothers.
Iacono's is by far the best thin crust style pizza in Columbus (which dominates the pizza scene here). It's a hidden gem from some, mostly because it's tucked away in Shawnee Hills and not easily accessible unless you live near here.
April 23rd, 2021 at 12:01 PM ^
Also live in Columbus, and co-signing this. It is a surprisingly underrated food town but pizza is not its thing.
Side rant: the locals here are constantly trying to make "Columbus pizza" a thing. Which is to say, cracker-hard thin crust with toppings to the edges and cut into squares. That isn't a thing, it's an abomination. That Donato's is some kind of baseline for pizza here is a damning indictment unto itself.
There are lots of things we bemoan about Columbus, mostly ranging from their inability to use coolers for their intended purpose and the lack of branches on the family trees of OSU fans, but if you've ever lived here for an extended period, the most low-key annoying thing is that when ordering pizza you generally have to REQUEST pie-cutting round pizzas because these sociopaths are too crude to know not to cut pizza into squares