Zeeks Pizza: Seattle's Decent Mini-Chain Inspires Deep Pizza Thoughts
Posted by Daniel Zemans, September 24, 2009 at 5:15 PM
Daniel Zemans, our man in Chicago, checks in with another piece of intel from the road, this time in Seattle.—The Mgmt.
Zeeks Pizza
7900 E. Greenlake Drive N, Seattle WA 98103 (map); 206-285-8646; zeekspizza.com Pizza Style: Thin-crust Oven Type: Gas The Skinny: Local chain puts up good-but-pricey delivery-quality pies Price: 16-inch specialty pies start at $23.95 Notes: Seven additional locations
Lately I've been intrigued by the concept of soul in food. I'm not sure of the first time I heard someone complaining about a lack of soul on their plate, but it's something that seems to be more prevalent lately. A search for the word soul here on Slice will reveal many instances of Ed Levine talking about the presence or lack of soul in a pizza. I have to admit that it's a concept I've never fully embraced and I think I've figured why: If a chef's soul is a key ingredient in a great pizza, then it follows that the pie in question is not easily replicated. But I have had way too much success with local Chicago chains like Lou Malnati’s (reviewed here for Slice) and Giordano’s (reviewed here) to think that soul matters that much in pizza making.
Secure in my belief that chains are capable of producing quality pies, when I scout out pizzerias I’m happy to give places a try even if, by their muli-location nature, incapable of capturing that elusive soul. Sometimes, as was the case at LaRosa’s in Cincinnati (reviewed here), my openness betrays me. But a few bad apples (or pizzas) will not deter me. So on my recent trip to Seattle I was determined to try one of two very popular local chains, Pagliacci or Zeeks. I was open to both, but my host lived closer to Zeeks, so we swung by on our way home from Flying Squirrel Pizza Co. (reviewed here) and picked up my third and final Seattle pie.
Zeek’s offers a wide variety of specialty pies, ranging from the Tree Hugger (sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, broccoli, roma tomatoes, garlic & olives) to the John Candy (Canadian bacon, Italian sausage, pepperoni) to the Juan Candy (a John Candy with jalapenos). I opted for the Cherry Bomb, which has Italian sausage, sweet-hot roasted red peppers, Parmesan, and fresh basil along with the standard mozzarella and allegedly fresh tomato sauce.
When I called in my order, I was told my pie would be ready in fifteen minutes. We were there in eleven and the pizza was already boxed and sitting on the counter when we arrived. About five minutes later, we were eating a still hot pizza at my friend’s place. I’m sure I was a little afftected by the delicious pizza I had just eaten at Flying Squirrel, but Zeeks did not live up to the hype I’d created in my mind. That’s not to say it was bad. For a mini-chain delivery oriented pizzeria, it was very good. But the prices were not reflective of a delivery pie. At $24, I want some soul in my pizza, or at least some quality ingredients.
The red peppers on the Cherry Bomb were great. I’m not sure what kind they were, but the sweet-hot descriptor on the menu is accurate. They had, by far, the most flavor of anything on the pizza. The sausage were good enough to pass for fresh (but might not have been) and had a good amount of fatty chew and some nice fennel flavor. The shredded basil, which was pretty limp, did not have a lot of taste. My guess is they were shredded around the time the restaurant opened and left sitting around for hours after that. The sauce, advertised as fresh, was not sufficiently present to be noticeable.
The crust is what lost me on my pizza at Zeeks. I thought it was thick and a little doughy; not particularly different from a dense thick piece of processed white bread. The bottom was nicely browned, but the crispness did not extend very far into the crust. The top of the crust was not as well cooked. It wasn’t raw, but it could have used either more heat or more time in the oven.
I wouldn’t say I disliked Zeeks, but I can’t imagine going back, particularly given Seattle's other dining options. For a standard delivery pizza, it is good, but at Zeeks’ prices, I want something substantially better. Tell me Seattleites, should I try Pagliacci on my next visit to your town or are Seattle chains better left exclusively as last-minute and late night pizza options? And for everyone else, what's your take on what a chef's soul adds to a pizza? Is it necessary or are top ingredients and pizza-making execution enough?
You should have tried Pagliacci.. so much better in my opinion. As for the peppers.. they're probably Mama Lil's Pickled Hungarian Goathorn peppers. In Seattle, they love to put those on everything it seems.. not that I'm complaining!
Looks like I should have tried Pagliacci's. I was planning on getting a slice or two at DeLaurenti, which is owned by the same people, but they didn't start selling slices early enough for me before I had to leave to go to the airport.
@lunge: I had eaten Mama Lil's amazing peppers earlier that evening at Flying Squirrel, and the peppers at Zeek's were not as crisp or nearly as mouth-watering as those ones. Maybe Zeek's sells Hungarian Goathorn peppers made by someone else?
In addition to making some great looking pies, each one of their places have an oven built by the same guy who built the fire breathing beauty at Nomad in Hopewell, NJ with which I am now smitten (Did I say that right?).
I would definitely say Pagliacci's over Zeek's..and agree with arbeck on saying well-done crust :) A couple other amazing spots are Pegasus on Alki Beach in West Seattle, it has a great thick and crispy, not doughy, crust and they layer all of the toppings underneath the cheese, definitely try the Tom's Special, which has spicy pepperoni, sunflower seeds and a healthy dosage of other toppings that make it unique and delicious..and Madame K's in Ballard, they have a bbq chicken pizza which is great on their thin crust, and the traditional bad boy which is full of meat and sauce and has a very generous amount of cheese on their "deep dish" crust, and one of my all time favorites is the "Artie Parmie". They also have a specialty dessert, the "screaming orgasm" which is just that..absolutely incredible..it is a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie, slightly undercooked, still in the skillet, topped with Vanilla ice cream..cannot be beat!
I don't think many locals would score Zeek's over Pags. Pagliacci's isn't the best pizza in the country, or even in town, but I think it is probably the best delivery available city-wide. As someone said above, the key is to order the crust well-done and to get an order of the seasonal gelato for dessert.
Definitely try Pagliacci's which is remarkedly consistant and tasty - a nice proportion of sauce to cheese to crust (that latter nicely chewy). I usually get the double pepperoni. I can also recommend an iteration of the local Romio's chain, Greek pizza with a very good chewy baked crust. I like the classic pepperoni and Italian sausage, as well as the eggplant and goat cheese, but a star fave at our house is the GASP: Garlic, Artichoke, Sun-dried tomatoes and Pesto.
I felt that Tutta Bella was a bit over praised. Although tasty, I never found their pies as satisfying as a good NYC slice.
@Stushi Isn't that a bit of apples and bowling balls? How about Via Tribunali? Have yuo been to any of them? Anyone? Anyone? That one in Belltown with the roll up garage door looks very cool.
I know it's off-topic, but since you mentioned it in the 1st paragraph, I thought I'd say something about the LaRosa's pizza in Cincinnati.
LaRosa's is successful for 2 reasons:
1. There are almost no options for great pizza in the Nati (esp since there isn't much of an Italian population to begin with, mostly German) so there isnt much of a discerning eye for pizza 'round these parts.
2. People here like to back a hometown kid, so LaRosa's gets a big boost from that.
So I guess i'm not defending LaRosa's inasmuch as I'm trying to explain why it is one of the more well-known local exports.
One of the better pizzas in town does, in fact, come from a mini-chain similar to Zeke's in the form of Dewey's Pizza (locations also in St. Louis & Cleveland). It's more of a new school american pizza with gourmet and seasonal ingredients. And from looking at the pizza above, I'd bet that Dewey's rates above that. Next time you're in flyover territory give it a shot.
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The crust is what lost me on my pizza at Zeeks. I thought it was thick and a little doughy; not particularly different from a dense thick piece of processed white bread. The bottom was nicely browned, but the crispness did not extend very far into the crust. The top of the crust was not as well cooked. It wasn’t raw, but it could have used either more heat or more time in the oven.
11 Comments:
You should have tried Pagliacci.. so much better in my opinion. As for the peppers.. they're probably Mama Lil's Pickled Hungarian Goathorn peppers. In Seattle, they love to put those on everything it seems.. not that I'm complaining!
lunge at 6:07PM on 09/24/09
Living in Seattle, I have to say that Pagliacci is better than Zeek's. Especially if you order your crust well done at Pagliacci's.
arbeck at 6:11PM on 09/24/09
Pagliacci's > Zeek's, yes. Better crust, better flavor, but beware of the grease, there's a lot of it. It's /good/ pizza.
Erisian Saint at 8:34PM on 09/24/09
Looks like I should have tried Pagliacci's. I was planning on getting a slice or two at DeLaurenti, which is owned by the same people, but they didn't start selling slices early enough for me before I had to leave to go to the airport.
@lunge: I had eaten Mama Lil's amazing peppers earlier that evening at Flying Squirrel, and the peppers at Zeek's were not as crisp or nearly as mouth-watering as those ones. Maybe Zeek's sells Hungarian Goathorn peppers made by someone else?
Daniel Zemans at 9:04PM on 09/24/09
In Seattle I've only been to Tutta Bella, which I liked very much:
http://tuttabellapizza.com/story/
However, based on what I've seen on their websites and others, any of Via Tribunali's five locations look like the place to go in the Emerald City:
http://www.viatribunali.net/
In addition to making some great looking pies, each one of their places have an oven built by the same guy who built the fire breathing beauty at Nomad in Hopewell, NJ with which I am now smitten (Did I say that right?).
Ciao,
Paulie Gee
pauliegee at 9:08PM on 09/24/09
try pag's!
gretchenx5 at 4:48AM on 09/25/09
I would definitely say Pagliacci's over Zeek's..and agree with arbeck on saying well-done crust :) A couple other amazing spots are Pegasus on Alki Beach in West Seattle, it has a great thick and crispy, not doughy, crust and they layer all of the toppings underneath the cheese, definitely try the Tom's Special, which has spicy pepperoni, sunflower seeds and a healthy dosage of other toppings that make it unique and delicious..and Madame K's in Ballard, they have a bbq chicken pizza which is great on their thin crust, and the traditional bad boy which is full of meat and sauce and has a very generous amount of cheese on their "deep dish" crust, and one of my all time favorites is the "Artie Parmie". They also have a specialty dessert, the "screaming orgasm" which is just that..absolutely incredible..it is a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie, slightly undercooked, still in the skillet, topped with Vanilla ice cream..cannot be beat!
bremichele at 5:49AM on 09/25/09
I don't think many locals would score Zeek's over Pags. Pagliacci's isn't the best pizza in the country, or even in town, but I think it is probably the best delivery available city-wide. As someone said above, the key is to order the crust well-done and to get an order of the seasonal gelato for dessert.
karion at 1:42PM on 09/25/09
Definitely try Pagliacci's which is remarkedly consistant and tasty - a nice proportion of sauce to cheese to crust (that latter nicely chewy). I usually get the double pepperoni. I can also recommend an iteration of the local Romio's chain, Greek pizza with a very good chewy baked crust. I like the classic pepperoni and Italian sausage, as well as the eggplant and goat cheese, but a star fave at our house is the GASP: Garlic, Artichoke, Sun-dried tomatoes and Pesto.
I felt that Tutta Bella was a bit over praised. Although tasty, I never found their pies as satisfying as a good NYC slice.
Stushi at 5:24PM on 09/25/09
@Stushi Isn't that a bit of apples and bowling balls? How about Via Tribunali? Have yuo been to any of them? Anyone? Anyone? That one in Belltown with the roll up garage door looks very cool.
Ciao,
Paulie Gee
pauliegee at 8:55PM on 09/25/09
I know it's off-topic, but since you mentioned it in the 1st paragraph, I thought I'd say something about the LaRosa's pizza in Cincinnati.
LaRosa's is successful for 2 reasons:
1. There are almost no options for great pizza in the Nati (esp since there isn't much of an Italian population to begin with, mostly German) so there isnt much of a discerning eye for pizza 'round these parts.
2. People here like to back a hometown kid, so LaRosa's gets a big boost from that.
So I guess i'm not defending LaRosa's inasmuch as I'm trying to explain why it is one of the more well-known local exports.
One of the better pizzas in town does, in fact, come from a mini-chain similar to Zeke's in the form of Dewey's Pizza (locations also in St. Louis & Cleveland). It's more of a new school american pizza with gourmet and seasonal ingredients. And from looking at the pizza above, I'd bet that Dewey's rates above that. Next time you're in flyover territory give it a shot.
tempspaz at 11:49AM on 10/08/09