1) Hog island Deli. I think it’s one of the priciest slices in town, but excellent cheese slices at that. Of all the slices I’ve had so far in Austin, their cheese slice was most reminiscent of a true NY pizza. I can’t vouch for their other slices, but I’ve been here multiple times for the cheese slice and it’s been consistently a treat for my taste buds. Open during the daytime AND they’re open late til after bar close! Update 3/12/2010 – Hog Island Deli is now closed as I found out when out with a friend tonight :(

2) Home Slice. Will get MAD busy, you’ve been warned! But don’t let this shun you away from their awesome pizza – you can get it by the slice if you are impatient. They’ve just opened up a second storefront next door, appropriately named “More Home Slice”, so it may be easier to grab a quick slice than it has been in years previous.

3) Rounder’s Pizzeria – I just recently ate here and their pizza is fantastic. It’s a little far out on W 6th past Whole Foods, but it will be a good experience. Their pepperoni are those small bowl-shapes ones that curl up and hold puddles of oil. Great balance of flavor among the crust, cheese, sauce and toppings. If the nice weather keeps up for SX, you can relax out in the patio and get some beer with your pizza.

4) Hoboken Pie Co. Okay, so they have vegan pizza here with teese – which may or may not impress your vegan friend. It really doesn’t taste like pizza, and I had a vegan friend of my own tell me she didn’t like it. I’ve ordered a specialty Mediterranean pizza fresh with a friend and it didn’t amaze me. So why go here? They’re reheated slices are awesome. If the slice has been laying around for an hour or more, get them to re-heat it and enjoy that piece of delcious-ness.

These are my recommendations for downtown. But some of my faves are a little further out. Scroll down below for more places further out (including my favorite place in Austin).

Late-Night / After-bar Pizzerias

Of all the bar street pizza, most will taste good at 3am when your hungry and had a 2 to 17 beers that day (you can thank all the free noms for that). Nevertheless, a little overview on these pizzeria, in no particular order.

Stony’s mobile Pizza Kitchen has super soft crust and great mozarella if that’s your thing.

Ropollo’s – There’s a bazillion of these downtown. Okay, maybe four. And as much as it is “bar pizza”, I can’t diss their pizza. It’s always fantastic. My fave comes from West 6th, a lovely trailer between Union Park and Star Bar. They always reheat it just the right amount of time. I hang around these area a lot and have had their pizza maybe 14 times. Always good. They do run out of pizza, so get here as soon as bar close or even earlier.

Jack’s Pizza company – Taste and texture very very similar to Ropollo’s, sometimes I can’t tell the difference. Pretty good.

The Onion Pizza – The place is tiny but has good pizza. If you’re closer to Congress (Warehouse district for instance), I’d make the trip over to the Onion to grab your slice.

Pizza Paparazzi – Hit and miss sometimes. It gets super busy and you get a crazy crowd often.

Hoeks Death Metal Pizza – THE GREASIEST pizzas in town and awesome stuff inside with black lighting (they play episodes of He-Man often) AND they’re staff is super friendly. Pizza is a little salty and droopy because of all that grease.

Restaurant Pizzerias

Frank & Angie’s Pizzeria – Right on W 6th just before getting to the bar area. Tastes like Papa John’s pizza, nothing too special.

East Side Pies – Super thin crust pizza and so many specialty pizzas that get really creative. Check the map below, and you’ll see ESP the only pizzeria in that part of Austin. Fairly good pizza.

Southside Flying Pizza - On south congress, parking lot is super small. Decent pizza, they’re margherita is pretty tasty. But compared to Home Slice further up the street, I would choose the latter.

Salvation pizza – This is more on campus, but they are hosting a free(free at Indepent studio!). Nice place and decent pizza.

Whole Foods – yes it’s a grocery store. yes it’s organic this and that. But they have slanted escalators. And they have awesome pizza that come in pizza shaped cardboard boxes wrapped in gold foil. That. Is. Awesome.

Brick Oven Pizza – On 12th street in a plain looking building that doesn’t look like a restaurant until you get real close to it. Ok pizza, very similar to Southside Flying pizza.

Mangia’s – The only place near downtown serving Chicago-style deep dish. I’ve only had their pizza at the Airport so I can’t comment on the pizza. But Lake Austin Blvd is a scenic drive if you go further down.

Pie Guys Pizzeria – They’re on campus, but I mention it because they’ll be hosting a music event (with free pizza if you’re early – See below for details). I’ve never been here so can’t say anything about the pizza.

More artisan-like pizza can be found at Taverna, Vespaio, Brick Oven, zpizza. zpizza has a good variety and even has good-tasting whole-wheat options. These aren’t particularly amazing, but if you’re looking for this style of pizza, I would recommend making a drive out to House pizzeria (see below)

Finally, I don’t usually knock on pizza, but the only pizzeria that I can’t recommend is Cozzoli’s on Congress, across from the paramount theater. I gave it a a few tries, and all the time just not good pizza.

If you can make the trip…

If you have time and transportation options, make a trip further out downtown to visit these places

1) Little Deli. My absolute fave in Austin so far. If you want to escape the madness of SX, this will be your haven for at least for as long as your meal lasts. Hell, they have a Gazebo for you to dine and relax at. Owner and staff are super cool and friendly. They usually have pizza by the slice, or you can order whole pizza. Note they are closed on Sundays.

2) House Pizzeria. Neapolitan style pizza. Only have specialty pizzas on the menu, but a good variety and you can always make modifications. My recommendation is the Blue pizza + sausage (or other meat). Try their root beer and come with friends and order a bunch of pizzas to sample them all.

3) Cipollina Bistro – It’s not that far out, but you will need a car to get here if you are staying at a hotel downtown. Excellent pizza and nice place and quaint neighborhood.

SXSW pizza-inspired showcases/parties and free noms (credit to sxswfreenoms for the info!)

Music By The Slice (MXTS) March 18-20, noon-7ish

Hosted by Home Slice. Lots of great bands, no rsvp required. Check out the lineup here.

Free Salvation Pizza and Lone Star Beer at Covert Curiosity and Sonic Itch Music’s Eastside Get Down Party Thursday, March 18th from 12NOON to 6PM at The Independent (501 Studios)

Music + food. Details here

Free Pizza, Beer and Soda at ALIVE! Fundraiser Party Wednesday, March 17, 2010 from 12 NOON to 8PM at Epoch Coffee (221 W. North Loop Blvd.)

No badge required. Facebook event page

Free Pizza at The Best Damn Day of Duos Ever…Dammit Party Thursday March 18, at Pie Guys Pizza (2222 Rio Grande St.) 12 NOON to 8pm.

Pizza Map

Here’s a map of pizza places mentioned. Blue star indicates a recommended spot! (note: the locations on the map are pretty accurate, but for some reason the addresses listed on got tagged differently, apologies)

View SXSW 2010 Pizza Places in Downtown Austin + Recommendations in a larger map

Home Slice Pizza is somewhat iconic in Austin. It is at the heart of South Congress where you can find all sorts of eccentric shops and eateries. Across the street is Güero’s Taco Bar that often hosts live music at night, and Cissi’s Market and Wine Bar. They hold a pizza tossing and pizza eating contest during their Carinival ‘O Pizza. They host Music by the Slice during SXSW. The deep red over brush metal hut is home to this indie New York style pizzeria that serves pizza by the slice.

Home Slice was also the first place to welcome me to a slice of pie here in Austin two summers ago.

So I meet up with a recent friend of mine, Brad, and we each grab a couple of slices of pizza. Sunny day, awesome. Driving with the windows down on a February day – you’d never have such an opportunity back in Michigan where I’m originally from.

Here’s what I ordered: A Meatball with Green Olives, and a White Pie with spinach

Here’s what Brad ordered: A Cheese pizza and a Pizza Margherita.

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White Pie with spinach | The ricotta had a nice soft, bubbly texture. Creamy once you bite into it. I usually don’t like white pizzas because they are somewhat low on the flavor department, and this was no exception. The spinach was a little difficult to distinguish and didn’t add much punch. However, the lack of flavor aided my assesment of the dough at Home Slice. Which brings me to my next observation…

Dough/Crust | I like the dough at Home Slice. You can defintely taste it through the sauce and toppings. It is slightly tough, but folds up nicely for chomping through a slice. The crust shares a similar flavor to the rest of the dough and isn’t overwhelmingly large. It doesn’t feel like there is a sharp transition of the  crust and the rest of the pizza; rather they flow nicely as one slice of pie. You will probably not toss out the crust on these pizzas.

Meatball with Green Olives | I hadn’t seen this one before on the chalkboard. It’s not on their “Tried and True” menu, but this one I thoroughly enjoyed. It didn’t taste so much of a pizza, but a meatball sandwich atop their dough. They do have a meatball sub that I haven’t tried, so I wonder if it’s just that in pizza form. The olives were difficult to distinguish, which is interesting because I don’t like olives and can pick up the certain flavor they give.

One thing I notice consistently is that my pizza by the slice usually is served slightly on the cold side. I mention this to B, and he tells me it might just be because we’re eating at a table outside. Heat dissipation enhanced by the wind. I’ll have to pay more attention to this next time.

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Brad has reviewed some Texas BBQ with his friend at Man Up BBQ. He also reccomends some good pie up in Dallas: Louie’s and Fireside Pies. My cousin goes to school up in Arlington, I’ll defnitely check these out the next time I head up there.

I tell Brad that I plan on eating pizza at least three times a week for the sake of this blog. He suggested I track a photo log of my physique during this venture. I didn’t think about this. I may have to implement some sort of extra exercise regimen to accompany my pizza dining experiences.