Food Fight: Presto's Pizza

I do love a good food debate.  In this case, it's a classic one.  Two pizza places located on the same strip of road, churning out delicious pies.  The rivalry gets heated and it seems everyone has an opinion.  Although I'm a self-proclaimed Upper Crust kinda gal, I had to see what the fuss was all about.

First, the contenders: Presto Pizza and Pino's Pizza.  Both located on a strip of Beacon Street in Cleveland Circle, a couple doors down from each other.  To tackle this challenge, I started with Presto Pizza.  (For no other reason than the friends that I was hanging out with are devout Presto fans).  Upon entering Presto's, it's your typical run-of-the mill Mom and Pop pizza spot.  It has the type of atmosphere you'd want a great pizza place to have.  Not trendy and chic, but super casual and the type of place that makes you feel like you've been coming there for years.  Presto's offers limited seating and no frills; unless a little scattering of plants and Italian World Cup pictures count.  We ordered two pies for pick-up; Pepperoni and an pepper, onion and garlic one.

I only had the Pepperoni pie, the other one had way too many onions for my liking.  It was literally covered with what seemed to be 4 onions and the garlic level was insane (and I do love garlic!).  It was giant clumps of minced garlic that lightly covered the entire surface.  Needless to say, I wouldn't order this pie on a date.  The Pepperoni on the other hand was fantastic and had a certain unique flavor that I couldn't put my hands on.  Where was that flavor coming from?  The sauce?  A mix of cheeses? Or was it the type of pepperoni used?  Whatever it was, it was delicious.  The  crust was the way a hearty pizza crust should be; chewy but still maintaining a crunch.  It also had a great crust-to-pizza ratio.  All in all, I would certainly get pizza from here again.  Next stop: Pino's Pizza.  Let's see how you stack up!