Zing! Pizza

On Liz’s birthday, I asked her what she wanted to eat, and hands-down, she wanted gluten-free pizza.  We had already been to Stone Hearth Pizza, and for the sake of trying something new, we went to the second gluten-free pizza place in Porter Square, Zing! Pizza.

Zing! had a coffee shop in the Porter Square book store, and they were so successful that the owners opened a sister store that was a pizza place, complete with gluten-free pies.  We went in, and ordered a full gluten-free pepperoni pizza and some drinks at the counter.  The price was a little steep, with bottled artisan teas and lemonade running around four dollars, and the total bill being a little over thirty bucks.  The wait was going to be about a half an hour, so we took our drinks outside, sipped on those for a bit, and went to some stores and came back.  This pizza had better have been worth the wait and price of admission.  It was.

We sat down in the small café with two plates and the freshly baked oblong pizza on a pizza board, and we went to town on the pizza.  First of all, the pie itself was beautiful, with a unique shape and artfully cut and placed pepperonis.  Also, the dough was made at a local solely gluten-free bakery in Belmont, so we knew that there was no cross contamination in the dough.  This place used dishes that were specifically for the GF pizzas, so we knew that Liz would not get sick.  Finally, the pizza itself was awesome.  The crust was thicker than Stone Hearth’s, and full of flavors like olive oil and spices.  The sauce was very flavorful, and the toppings were generous and delicious.  I really liked the texture of the dough, as it was toothsome and substantial.  There were eight pieces from this pie, and Liz and I could not finish the pie, taking two or three pieces home with us.

In comparison, we both preferred Zing! Pizza over Stone Hearth, but both pizza places were good in their own right, and neither deserves to be the loser of a face-off competition.  Both bring unique pizza to the area, helping to feed the gluten-free needs of Somerville and Cambridge, and I wouldn’t complain if I had to go back to either restaurant.  As a matter of fact, more visits to both places are eminent.  Support your local small restaurants.  Eat good food!

- Connoisseur Jon