Tacoma can be somewhat of a pizza desert depending on where you are, but there are still lots of local restaurants working hard to make a pie worth your while — whether it’s a classic, greasy cheese pizza or a wood-fired innovation with toppings that intrigue.
The News Tribune asked readers last week to vote for their favorite pizza spots in each neighborhood. Here are the results.
North End
Salamone’s Pizza
- 24 N. Tacoma Ave., Tacoma, WA 98403
- 253-444-2646
- https://salamonespizzeria.com/
- Open 11 a.m. – 9 p.m. every day
This small pizza shop in the Stadium District serves New York-style 18-inch pies and slices. A cheese pizza goes for $28, but it bumps up to $31 for pesto pizza, pepperoni pizza and white pizza. House pies range from $32 to $37, including the Bronx Bomber with a tomato base, mozzarella, capicola ham, prosciutto, salami and house-made sausage, and the Wall Street with pesto sauce, mozzarella, salami, mushrooms and pepperoncini. A plain cheese slice goes for $3.75, while a pepperoni slice goes for $4.25.
New Tacoma/downtown
E9 Brewing Co.
- 2506 Fawcett Ave., Tacoma
- 253-383-7707
- https://e9brewingco.com/
- Open 3-9 p.m. Tuesday to Thursday, noon-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, noon-9 p.m. Sunday, closed Monday
This 21+ craft brewery has some of the most uniquely-curated pizzas in town. The pies are around 14 inches, and the dough is made with yeast from E9 Brewing’s wild beer yeast strain and is fermented for three days, before getting cooked in a custom apple wood-burning pizza oven. Pizzas range from $17 to $24, and include the Winter Vegetarian pizza with carrot and parsnip curry, mozzarella cheese, cucumber, red onion, mushrooms, cilantro and herbed yogurt drizzle, and The Pizza That Has No Name with red sauce, mozzarella, goat cheese, roasted shishito peppers, chopped bacon, and lavender-infused Calabrian chili honey drizzle.
Along with the other downtown Tacoma pizza places mentioned in our original poll (The Crafty Beaver Bar and Wooden City), readers also voted for Camp Colvos Brewing + Pizza, Puget Sound Pizza and Sig Brewing Company.
Northeast Tacoma
Jet’s Pizza
- 4125 49th Ave. NE, Tacoma
- 253-660-5387
- https://www.jetspizza.com/stores/washington/tacoma/4125-b-49th-ave-ne/
- Open 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. every day
This national chain serves up Detroit-style pizza, which means square-shaped pies, thick crust and crispy, cheesy edges. Jet’s Pizza has one other Washington location in Lynwood. Pizzas come in multiple sizes — a small, build-your-own pizza starts at $15, while an extra large will run you $24.78. Specialty pizzas are available in a range of sizes and start at $20.76 for a small. The specialty pies include the Eugene Supreme with pizza sauce, mozzarella, Italian sausage, onions, green peppers and mild peppers, and the Aloha BBQ Chicken with BBQ sauce, mozzarella, grilled chicken, pineapple and bacon. Along with the thick, Detroit-style crust, Jet’s also offers hand-tossed round crust, thin crust, gluten-free crust and cauliflower crust.
Eastside Tacoma
Parky’s Pizza Bar
- 3551 McKinley Ave., Tacoma
- 253-212-2367
- https://www.parkyspizzabar.com/
- Open 4 p.m. – 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 4 p.m. – 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday
This laid-back bar ferments its dough for five days to make its Neapolitan-inspired pizzas. Parky’s offers a range of pizzas between $13 and $14, including the Italian with pepperoni, prosciutto, Italian sausage, black olives, onions and red sauce, and the Taco with taco meat, a three-cheese blend, jalapeño, pickled onion, lettuce, tomato, Parky’s salsa sour cream and El Pato hot sauce. Most pizzas are available as a calzone for $2 less. Parky’s also has do-it-yourself pizzas starting at $11.
South End
Round Table Pizza
- 7921 S. Hosmer St., Tacoma
- 253-473-6121
- https://ordering.roundtablepizza.com/site/rtstacoma
- Open 11 a.m. – 9 p.m. every day
The South End is mostly full of chain pizzerias, including Round Table. The chain has locations throughout the West Coast, including another Tacoma location on North Pearl Street. All pizzas come in a range of sizes, from personal to X-Large. Build-your-own pizzas start at $9.75, while most specialty pizzas start at $13.50. These include the King Arthur’s Supreme with pepperoni, Italian sausage, salami, linguica, mushroom, green peppers, onions and black olives, and the Chicken and Garlic Gourmet with grilled white meat chicken, creamy garlic sauce, three cheese blend, mushrooms, tomatoes and red and green onions with Italian herb seasoning. Round Table also offers stuffed crust for large pizzas…