While we saw a decent amount of take-out customers come and go, Pizza Mia also has a nice, comfy sit-down section.

Pizzas here come in two sizes, the 10-inch small and the 16-inch large. You can start with the basic cheese for $8.15 for a small and $11.65 a large; adding basic toppings adds $1.65 for a small and $2.25 for the large. Chicken or steak toppings add $3.60 and $4.65.

All of the pizzas are numbered 1-20, starting with the basics of cheese (#1) and pepperoni (#2). There are some standard specialty pies, such as #18, The Heart Stopper ($13.25 for a small, $18.99 for a large), which includes pepperoni, hamburger, sausage, ham, bacon and extra cheese; and #5, The Vegetarian ($10.25, $15.45). The most interesting offering is #19, Thai Chicken ($13.25, $18.99), which includes chicken, spicy peanut sauce, mushrooms, red peppers, pepper jack and Asiago cheese.

Review: We ordered a large Chicken Parmesan pizza ($18.55) for this visit.

Deidre was immediately surprised by the cheese. For a fairly thin pizza, there was a lot of cheese weighing down each slice; looking at the slice from the side, the cheese was thicker than the bottom crust. She was, however, even more surprised that she enjoyed all of the provolone, Parmesan and mozzarella that covered each slice — the amount reminded her of what a pizza with an extra cheese topping truly should taste like. It was a little greasy — but we embraced it.

The heaviness of the cheese meant the cheese-to-sauce ratio was a bit off. The pizza could have used a tad more sauce, but the slices weren’t lacking for the taste of the sauce. The marinara was slightly sweet, and we were encouraged by all the pieces of of tomato skin we came across — something we haven’t seen in a while – leading us to believe the sauce was definitely homemade.

We also really enjoyed the crust. As we mentioned, the slices were a bit heavy, so we dined on our slices with a fork and knife. The crust was very soft and doughy, making the end crust a pleasure to get to. The bottom crust was just as easy to eat.

Deidre’s least favorite part of the pie was the chicken topping, though Andrew didn’t necessarily agree. While Deidre found the chicken a tad too dry — leaving it unmatched against all the other great flavors on the pizza — Andrew thought it was just juicy enough. Deidre also wasn’t crazy about the dried herbs that covered the pieces of poultry, but for Andrew, this was the one thing that really sold him on the chicken. We did agree on one thing here, that we appreciated that the chicken wasn’t breaded and friend, like on most chicken parm pizzas. And the amount of chicken was decent — we had a piece in about every other bite, though the pieces were a bit small and hard to spot under all that cheese.

Andrew thought the pizza tasted pretty much the same after some time in the fridge. The crust stayed nice and chewy on the ends, and the cheese was still thick and delicious. But still, he wished there was a bit more sauce.

Rating: Deidre: 4 / Andrew: 4 = 8/10 slices

Pizza Mia
460 Route 101, Bedford
472-8878, www.pizzamianh.com

Margherita pizza

Pizzas at 180 are made in small (starting at $9) and large (starting at $13). Toppings are $1 and $2, respectively; there’s a good selection of choices such as homemade meatballs, hot Italian peppers and goat cheese crumbles.

There are a dozen specialty pizzas here. A few worth looking into are The Seacoast Meat ($14/$18), with meatballs, sausage, bacon, pepperoni and ham; the Meatball Pizza ($11/$15), which also includes ricotta and basil; and the Marinated Steak Tip Pizza ($14/$18), which also has zucchini, garlic and arugula.

Thanks to @KatieJOConnor for the suggestion!

Review: We opted to each get our own small pizza. We were told by our server that these were about 10 inches, but they appeared to be much larger when they arrived at our table.

Andrew ordered the Bleeker St. Pizza ($13), which was topped with salami, mozzarella, tomatoes and basil, while Deidre chose the simple Margherita ($9), covered with mozzarella, tomato sauce and basil. Since the base pizzas were the same, we’ll talk about crust, sauce and cheese first, then move on to toppings.

Bleeker St. Pizza

Deidre was excited to bite into the crust. The wood-fired style left darker marks around the end crust, and it did not disappoint. Each piece offered the perfect amount of crispiness, and considering how thin the crust was, it was easy to bite into. The bottom crust didn’t offer the same crunch; in fact, Deidre noted how soft it was, making it almost unnoticeable.

The sauce was equally thin, and Deidre also found it to be almost undectable. If she wasn’t able to see the red sauce popping through the cheese, she may have thought it was a white pizza. The hints of sweetness she tasted with each bite proved there was some taste. Due to the thinness of the pie as a while, she thought it overall still worked.

The cheese was not greasy at all. Deidre noted the combination of shredded cheese and slices of mozzarella on her pizza, and she looked forward to the bites where she reached the fresh white cheese. Andrew liked the cheese on his pizza, too, which was creamy, and in just the right amount.

Deidre’s only topping was really the basil. Small shreds of basil were distributed evenly over the pie. There was a good amount of it, but not enough of it that the flavor was out of control.

On Andrew’s pie, he thought the tomatoes were a good addition, given the light sauce. Big slices of tomato always seem to add a bit of freshness to a pizza, especially welcome in the dead of winter.

The salami was the most interesting part of the pizza for Andrew. It had plenty of flavor, but nowhere near as much grease as its cousin, pepperoni. Andrew was pretty surprised he’d never had salami as a pizza topping before.

180′s pizza passed the cold pizza test with flying colors. The crust was just a bit dried out, which is to be expected after some time in the fridge. But the benefit of  less grease from the salami meant the top of the pizza wasn’t a big mess of congealed grease. That left plenty of room for all the flavors to still shine through.

Rating: Deidre: 4 / Andrew: 4.5 = 8.5/10 slices

180 Restaurant & Bar
180 Lafayette Road, North Hampton
379-6666, 180restaurantandbar.com

Pizzas here come in small, medium and large, starting at $5.75, $7.75 and $9.75, respectively. Toppings add between 75 cents and $1.50 each to the cost, and among the 18 topping choices are spinach, jalapenos, bacon and salami.

One interesting option here — especially for a small-town pizza joint — is the choice of flavored crusts: traditional, Parmesan cheese, and garlic and herb.

Also available are 21 specialty pies. Among them are the Asian ($9.50/$12.25/$14.75), topped with broccoli, onions, garlic and special seasoning; the Portobello ($11/$13/$14.75), with sauteed chicken strips, roasted peppers, mushrooms and onions; and the Mediterranean ($10.75/$12.50/$14.25), which is covered in garlic, artichokes, spinach and tomato.

And another idea: the Hoagie Pizza ($5), a sub roll split open and topped with sauce, cheese and one choice of topping.

Review: At C&S, we ordered a medium sausage pizza with Parmesan cheese crust ($8.95).

Deidre truly enjoyed the sausage topping. It completely covered the pizza. The pieces themselves were large and thick, and we both thought the meat packed a delayed sense of spiciness.

There wasn’t much of the very thin sauce. Deidre noted hints of zestiness in it, but Andrew thought it was really just plain.

Deidre was surprised by the cheese, which was nowhere near as greasy as it could have been with all of the sausage atop it. Andrew loved the creaminess of the cheese, and was happy there wasn’t too much.

The bottom crust was very thin, and Deidre thought the end crust had a nice crunch to it. Andrew loved the buttery flavor he got with the crust, a sign of a Greek-style pizza done right. Deidre was slightly bummed that the Parmesan cheese crust wasn’t as detectable as she had hoped; it appeared to have been just a slight sprinkle around the edges. That was enough for Andrew, though.

The cold pizza was pretty delicious, with the sausage and the Parmesan packing plenty of flavor. Since the pizza wasn’t too greasy, there wasn’t much of it congealed on top as with some Greek-style pies.

Rating: Deidre: 4 / Andrew: 4 = 8/10 slices

C&S Pizza
35 Main St., Wilton
654-2333, CandSpizza.com

Pizza at Checkmate is offered in two styles: traditional, available in 12-inch (starting at $8.99), 16-inch ($12.99) and 20-inch ($15.99), and pan pizza, available in 12-inch ($9.99) and 16-inch ($13.99).

There’s a 15-topping selection here, including ham, tomatoes and pesto. Add about $1 for each choice.

Seventeen specialties can be ordered, including the 4-Cheese Supreme (starting at $15.49), which is sprinkled with mozzarella, provolone, cheddar and parmesan; The Pawn (starting at $15.49), with ranch sauce, cheddar, grilled chicken, bacon and broccoli; and the Steak Bomb (starting at $14.49), which includes steak, mushrooms, green peppers and onion.

Calzones are also available starting at $9.99. Opt for Bacon Lovers, Veggie, Chicken Parmesan or Create Your Own.

Checkmate offers online ordering, and it now has a second location in Londonderry. Thanks to Twitter followers @ButtersFineFood and @michelelash for the suggestion!

Review: At our recent visit to Checkmate, we ordered a 12-inch Garlic and Chicken pan pizza, with the options of tomato sauce and grilled chicken over breaded ($14.49).

There’s no seating at Checkmate in Concord, so we had to eat our pie elsewhere. Even though we got a small, our first thought when looking at this pizza: it was huge. Lots of dough and lots of toppings. Definitely a fork and knife pizza.

Once in the car, the smell of the garlic was overpowering. Similarly, the taste was also a little much. The garlic — while not the most we had ever seen on a pizza — was really piled on. Deidre was taking clumps of it off to get through her slices. It also made her rethink her choice of it as a topping. Andrew agreed, and maybe we’ll really have to stop ordering it as a topping, because more often than not, it’s just laid on too much for our tastes.

The grilled chicken was an excellent choice. It was cooked and seasoned well, and the only minor complaint was that it could have been spread out slightly more.

These slices were super cheesy — no skimping here. In addition, it wasn’t greasy at all.

The tomato sauce was very thin. Deidre was glad we chose to add sauce to the pizza; it probably helped mask some of the garlic taste with its sweetness.

The pan style of pizza was most interesting — so few pizzerias seem to offer it. It was easily one of the doughiest pizzas we’ve ever had, in both the bottom and the end crusts. Each slice was seriously floppy, requiring two hands for eating. The bottom crust was at least a half-inch thick, the end crust a minimum of 2 inches tall.

The cold pizza was still really soft and chewy, but also still really garlicy. That said, there was enough chicken to cut the flavor, leaving a fairly balanced pizza, if heavy pizza.

Rating: Deidre: 3.5 / Andrew: 4 = 7.5/10 slices

Checkmate Pizza
41 Washington St., Concord
228-0555, CheckmatePizza.com

Pappy’s is a well-known spot with a wide-ranging menu on Manchester’s West Side and came highly recommended by Twitter followers @swflower and @travelbyrv.

Pizzas at Pappy’s are Greek-style and are served as 10-inch smalls ($6.40) and 14-inch larges ($9.95). They have just one specialty pie — the Deluxe ($11.50 for a small, $15.95 for a large), which includes green peppers, onions, hamburg, mushrooms and pepperoni.

Pappy’s has a fairly standard list of toppings, and, as expected, the prices go up with each addition. A 1-topping small is $8.25, and a large is $12.25. Each additional topping is about a dollar more for each.

Other pizza options here include pizza bagels (starting at $3.95), Syrian garlic bread pizza ($5.95), pizza sticks ($3.50) and calzones.

Review: Deidre had been a regular at Pappy’s for a few years when she lived around the corner from it, but she had strayed from ordering pizzas from the restaurant for quite some time. We ordered a large pepperoni pizza ($12.25) on our recent visit.

The first thing that Andrew noticed was the crust, which looked dry, and not at all like most pan-cooked Greek-style crusts. Once he picked up a slice, though, he noticed the bottom was crispy and buttery, more typical with Greek pizza. Deidre did find the crust to be just a tad dry, but she thought the end crust had a great balance of the initial crunch and softer inside. The bottom crust is sturdy enough for diners to pile on the toppings and not lose them all when they pick up their slice.

Like a lot of Greek pizzas, each slice felt kind of hefty — which makes sense since there was a good amount of cheese. Deidre noted that Pappy’s has always been heavy on the cheese; we can’t imagine anyone would ever find a need to order extra cheese as a topping, and she thinks actually asking for less cheese would be a smart idea. The pepperoni left a good amount of grease on top, but both Andrew and Deidre thought the cheese itself may have had a bit of its own grease. That said, he thought the cheese was gooey and tasty.

The pepperoni was fairly standard, Deidre thought. The amount of the topping was perfect, getting a piece in each bite.

Andrew thought the sauce was on the sweeter side, and like the cheese, it was laid on pretty thick. Deidre thought the opposite: She could have used a lot more sauce, especially considering how little of it there was as compared to the cheese. She found the sauce to be simple, in that the tomato taste was very apparent.

The cold pizza was decent, but not great. The end crust dried out and the grease on top of the pizza had hardened up a bit. But the combination of the cheese, sauce and pepperoni still put out enough flavor to make it a decent snack.

Rating: Deidre: 3.5 / Andrew: 3.5 = 7/10 slices

Pappy’s Pizza and Family Restaurant
1531 Elm St., Manchester
623-3131, PappysPizzaOnline.com

Grappelli’s bills itself as the only brick-oven pizza in town. The small eatery in a small plaza only has seven tables, and we assume they are meant for the quick eats slice business they do. (Slices start at $2.50.)

Pizzas here come in 12 inches ($7.95) and 16 inches ($11.95). A nice selection of toppings is available, ranging in price from $1.50-$3: Build your own pizza with choices such as banana peppers, gorgonzola and steak. Then pick your sauce: tomato sauce, pesto, Alfredo, ranch, BBQ, garlic and olive oil, and ricotta base.

Grappelli’s offers 16 specialty pies on its menu. A few of the options here are the Vidalia Onion ($10.95/$15.95), a white pizza with onion sauce, plum tomatoes, bacon, mozzarella and onion; Grappelli’s Maguerite ($12.95/$18.95), which has a pesto base, mozzarella and tomato slices; and the White Clam ($12.95/$18.95), which boasts of a white clam mix topped with hot cherry peppers.

As a bonus, Grappelli’s offers gluten-free crust in its small size for an extra $3. And calzones here begin at $6.95.

Review: On our recent visit to Grappelli’s, we chose to order a small pizza with hamburger ($9.45).

Deidre’s eyes immediately went to the crust. The end crust was a gorgeous buttery brown color, and she loved the first crispy bite she took into it. The bottom crust wasn’t crispy, but it held up the pizza fine. It wasn’t a heavy crust, and Andrew liked the chewiness of it. He also liked that the outer edge was pretty small, meaning the toppings went almost to the edge. Andrew’s only real complaint is with the “brick-oven” claim. He didn’t see a brick oven, and the pizza didn’t have any sort of brick oven taste.

A little less likable was the hamburger topping. The pieces were tiny, and Deidre thought it was hard to detect the taste with each bite. Andrew found a bit of zest, but thought it wasn’t anything special. Taking a piece of hamburg off, Deidre noted that the pieces were moist and not dried out, but an extra step like that shouldn’t be necessary to taste a topping.

Deidre thought the amount of cheese was perfect. It carried an acceptable amount of grease, which we attributed to the topping. Andrew liked that it was just thick enough that you could tell you were biting through it.

Less than perfect was the tomato sauce. It was very thin, and similar to how Deidre described the hamburger topping, she found it somewhat undetectable. She did take in the sweet tastes, which she didn’t mind, but she felt a little more sauce would have balanced out the pizza better. While Andrew agreed on the amount of the topping, he found the sauce more zesty than sweet.

The crust held up well on the cold pizza, staying just chewy enough to be enjoyable. The light sauce was pretty much undetectable, but the cheese was still great.

Rating: Deidre: 3.5 / Andrew: 3.5 = 7/10 slices

Grappelli’s Pizza
209 Concord St., Peterborough
924-6776, GrappellisPizza.com

We headed up over Columbus Day weekend — silly us — and we thought it was a great sign to see the restaurant packed at 2 p.m.

There are three pizza options at Elvio’s. You can go the traditional route with mozzarella and sauce (starting at $7.99 for 12 inches and $12.99 for 16 inches), a white pizza that starts off with ricotta, romano, mozzarella and garlic (starting at $7.99 for 12 inches and $13.99 for 16 inches) and the thick crust Sicilian (a 12- by 16-inch pie that starts at $14.99).

The menu lists 23 toppings, which include hot capicola, pepperoncini and pastrami, among more traditional choices.

There are only four signature pies here: the House, with pepperoni, meatball, mushrooms, peppers and onions; Veggie, with broccoli, eggplant, pepper, mushroom, onion and garlic; the Great White, a white pie with broccoli and tomatoes; and the Meat Lovers, with pepperoni, meatball, sausage, bacon, hot capicola and garlic. All signature pizzas are $11.99 for a 12-inch, $18.99 for a 16-inch and $20.99 for Sicilian.

Calzones are also available, starting at $5.99.

Review: We hadn’t had a Sicilian pizza in a while, so we ordered one with meatballs on it ($16.98).

The crust was seriously thick. Deidre noticed a sign on the wall noting Elvio’s 2006 win in the Best of New Hampshire contest for thick crust pizza — and we could quickly see why. Deidre found the thickness a little deceiving upon first glance, because once she bit into a slice, she noticed it was fairly light. Andrew thought it was a perfect rendition of a Sicilian-style pizza — light and doughy inside, with crunchy edges. That said, this pizza was still very filling. We didn’t even finish half, so we had plenty to bring home.

Andrew loved the huge chunks of meatball, which were still moist – not an easy task after a pass through a pizza oven. The meatball has a nice zest to it, which made it stand out that much more. Deidre liked the tenderness of the meatballs, which she says are the “real deal,” and she enjoyed seeing the seasoning that made the meatballs what they were.

Andrew thought the sauce was laid on fairly thick, but the amount seemed perfect. Surprisingly, Deidre thought the amount of sauce was a little on the light side, and to her, that seemed perfect. Hmmm… Andrew thought it was a neutral sauce, somewhere in between sweet and zesty.

The mozzarella cheese was also laid on fairly thick, but again, that was just fine with us. Deidre noted that it was a little on the greasy side, and the gooeyness of the cheese meant it took a couple of tries to get the full slice onto her plate.

With the thickness (and heft) of the pizza, Andrew was a bit worried it might get a bit tough in the fridge. He was surprised then, when the crust was pretty much as it was before — crunchy on the edges and light and doughy inside. Even the meatball was still super tasty the next day.

Rating: Deidre: 5 / Andrew: 5 = 10/10 slices

Elvio’s Pizzeria & Restaurant
165 Main St., Lincoln
745-8817

Margherita pizza with eggplant

Pizzas here come in one size and start at $8 for marinara and $10 to include mozzarella. The specialty pizzas include a variety of options, but if you want to build your own, toppings include items such as arugula, artichokes and buffalo mozzarella.

Specialty pies here include creative combinations such as the Americana ($11), with spiced salami, crushed tomatoes, olives, mozzarella and Parmigiano Reggiano;  the Pizza Del Rey ($17), which includes mozzarella, mushrooms, prosciutto di Parma, black truffle spread and extra virgin olive oil; and the Mediterrano ($15), with garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, rosemary, oregano, red peppers, mozzarella, grape tomatoes and the black truffle spread.

Thanks to @Vallie_E, @RussRenshaw and @AshleyHin for the recommendation!

Review: We were thankful to have been clued in that the sizes here were closer to personal size — which wasn’t obvious due to some of the pizza prices — so we were each able to order our own pie. (While we do have enormous appetites when it comes to pizza, we definitely recommend a pizza per person for people with regular appetites, as well.)

Deidre kept it simple by ordering the Roni ($11), with crushed tomatoes, pepperoni, mozzarella and Parmigiano Reggiano. Andrew opted for a Build Your Own pizza, adding eggplant to the standard Margherita ($12).

Roni pizza

Deidre was first impressed by the size of her pepperoni. They may have been the largest slices she’s seen in New Hampshire. Partially hidden by the cheese, the taste burst through. Andrew liked the big, juicy chunks of eggplant — not a typical pizza topping. And while the fruit had the consistency of tomato, it added its own distinct, slightly tangy flavor.

Deidre loved the huge chunks for fresh mozzarella on her pizza. Although the pizza was not completely covered by cheese, she did get some in each bite, which she was pleased about.

The sauce on Crush’s pizzas is very thin. Deidre thought the amount was spot on, and she liked the flavors it brought to her meal. Andrew agreed that Crush really shows that you don’t need a ton of sauce to impart lots of flavor.

A fork and knife are necessary for eating these pizzas. The bottoms are very wet, and silverware ensures not losing any part of the bite. Deidre liked the small char marks around the edge of the end crust, which Andrew thought added some fiery flavor.

We went to Crush with a good friend, who ordered the Regina ($13), another simply topped pie with crushed tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, grape tomatoes, basil, extra virgin olive oil. She was just as happy with her meal as we were with ours, and she said to quote her as saying her pizza was “quite delicious.”

There was no cold pizza for Andrew to review. The pizzas here are not the most filling, and even after splitting a hummus appetizer prior to the main course, we were still looking for a little something to nibble on.

Rating: Deidre: 4 / Andrew: 4 = 8/10 slices

Crush Pizzeria Napoletana
449 Amherst St., Nashua
521-7740, www.crushpizza.com

Shrimp Scampi Brick

Among those who have suggested La Festa? Our friend Emily, @bschwartz, @sergeant_duckie, @isnotsparta, @walterelly, @JayVallee, @KatieLeighMack, @stefaniep47, @frenis, @RienMais, @SlytherinGirl83, @JulieDiane1, @FPMarowitz, @CherryDonald plus a few others who recommended it through NH.com.

We liked what we saw when we walked in, because we could tell there were lots of pizza options. First, the slice selection is great. During the time we were there on a recent Saturday at lunchtime, people were lining up for all the slices.

At La Festa, you can go with wood-fired brick oven pizzas or New York style pies.

The wood-fired pizzas start at $6.95. There are 15 specialty pizzas to choose from, too. There’s the Chicken Cordon Bleu ($8.75), with mozzarella, chicken, ham, mushrooms, gorgonzola, mozzarella and tomato sauce; the Picante ($8.25), with jalapeno peppers, black olives, beef, mozzarella and tomato sauce; and the Primavera ($8.50), with eggplant, red peppers, mushrooms, mozzarella and tomato sauce.

Philly Cheese Steak Brick

Then there’s the New York style. You can get this in a 14-inch small (starting at $10.95), 16-inch large ($11.95) or Sicilian style (starting at $12.95). There are 15 specialties over here, too, such as Jambalaya ($16.99/$17.99/$18.45), with shrimp, sausage, red onions, jalapenos, cayenne pepper, tomato sauce and mozzarella; Veggie ($14.95/$15.95/$17.45), with mushrooms, tomato, green pepper, onion, black olives, spinach, garlic, mozzarella and tomato sauce; and the extremely popular Garlic Knot Pizza ($14.99/$15.99/no Sicilian), which has garlic knots braided into the crust, and the pizza is topped with tomato, basil, olive oil, garlic and Parmesan.

There are lots of toppings available to build your own pie, such as meatball, broccoli, ricotta, artichokes, capers and more.

Calzones are also available, starting at $6.95.

Review: We decided to each go with a wood-fired brick oven pizza, since they were pretty inexpensive. A note: While the menu says these pies are 12 inches, we’re quite sure they’re larger than that!

Deidre ordered the Shrimp Scampi Brick ($8.25) and Andrew ordered the Philly Cheese Steak Brick ($8.75).

Deidre’s choice was described as the Original Brick (mozzarella, tomato sauce, fresh basil and extra virgin olive oil) with shrimp, garlic and basil.

The shrimp smell was unavoidable — but in a good way. She was slightly disappointed by the shrimp. It tasted fine (she loves shrimp!), but it was a little on the small side and there wasn’t that much of it. Too many bites of her slices didn’t contain the shrimp; she thinks if the shrimp were cut up and spread around the pie, it would have been a quick fix.

It was also slightly lacking in basil and garlic. Each slice had a fresh basil leaf placed on after cooking — which she thought was really cute — and the small garlic pieces were few and far between.

Despite the small amount of toppings, Deidre still was greatly enjoying her pizza.

She loved the crust. The end crust was soft to the touch, and its light color was deceiving, since it definitely packed a big crisp crunch. The bottom crust was one of the thinnest we’ve seen; it probably required a fork and knife, but we kept it classy by picking up our slices, and with each bite, more toppings fell onto our plates.

Just like the bottom crust, the sauce was seriously thin. There wasn’t much of it, which worked out OK on Deidre’s slices. This sauce is more on the sweet side.

Deidre found it a little hard to form an opinion on the cheese, since it blended with all of the other toppings. The proportion of it with the sauce was good, and it was a little on the greasy side, probably due to the olive oil, which flowed over on to the end crust.

Andrew’s pizza combined Philly beef (though he wasn’t exactly clear on what made it Philly beef), American and mozzarella cheeses, green peppers, mushrooms, onions and tomato sauce.

The toppings were spread out pretty evenly in equal amounts. Andrew was a bit underwhelmed by the amount of steak, which played just a complementary role here — nothing close to the amount heaped on a Philly cheese steak sub. But he’s had pizzas that are loaded with steak, and those just lead to a bellyache, so he understood the sparing amount.

And all the toppings played well together, mixing all the flavors together like a good Philly steak. The onions and peppers were great and added a nice crunch to each bite. The mushroom was a bit anonymous among the more potent flavors, especially the sweet sauce, which was poured on top of everything. Pouring the sauce on that way is a bit unorthodox, but made it much more like one of Andrew’s Philadelphia favorites: the pizza steak.

The cheese wasn’t very heavy, but it was enough to add a bit of creaminess to the savory steak and sweet sauce.

Andrew agreed with Deidre on the crust, which was pretty much the same on both pizzas. The thin base and doughy, yet crunchy edges made it one of the best crusts he’s had.

Since the pizzas were so unexpectedly large, we had almost a whole pizza to bring home. The crust had hardened up a bit after some time in the fridge, but it wasn’t stale, more like a cracker. The toppings on the Philly pizza remained flavorful, and the veggies still packed a nice crunch. As for the shrimp pizza, some time in the fridge gave it the feel of a shrimp cocktail, which Andrew enjoyed quite a bit.

Rating: Deidre: 4.5 / Andrew: 5= 9.5/10 slices

La Festa Brick & Brew Pizzeria
300 Central Ave., Dover
743.4100, www.lafestabrickandbrew.com

As the name would suggest, Jack’s is mainly all about one thing: pizza. Sure, there are a handful of side items on the menu, and it will soon start offering subs, but really, it’s a tiny place that seems to have focused on one priority.

Sizes at Jack’s are a 12-inch medium (starting at $8.25) and 16-inch large ($10.50). Add $1.25 for each medium topping and $1.50 for large toppings. And there’s a wide variety of toppings at 22 choices: spinach, anchovies, hot peppers and feta are just a few.

Calzones are also available here. The 12-inch medium starts at $7.25 and the 16-inch large starts at $9.50.

Thanks to @TheCalendarMan for the suggestion!

Review: We ordered a large pizza with sausage and garlic and took it to go.  As we mentioned, the place is tiny, and the few places to sit aren’t incredibly inviting.

When we opened up the box, the first thing we noticed was all the sausage. It was spread on fairly heavily, giving you some in just about every bite. Deidre thought the sausage looked homemade and Andrew noted that each piece seemed to be bursting with fennel seeds. As we expected, the fennel had a huge impact on the flavor of the sausage. Andrew thought it was great and full of flavor, and Deidre loved the kick it brought to the meal.

The garlic was very evident about halfway through the cooking process. The topping was spread pretty unevenly, which led to many bites without garlic and a few with an overwhelming amount of garlic.

Jack’s bills itself as NY style, but Andrew thought the crust — chewy and doughy throughout — wasn’t exactly in that category. That’s not to say he didn’t like it, but it just wasn’t what was expecting. Deidre thought the thickness of her slices worked out really well.

Andrew thought the sauce was a bit zesty and the amount was just about right. Deidre thought the sauce was a little on the heavy side, but she didn’t mind, because she liked the taste of it. It was thin and had a hint of sweetness.

The cheese was fairly nondescript, but maybe it just didn’t shine as much as the sauce and sausage. Deidre didn’t find it too greasy, and she thought it held its own against the sausage.

The cold pizza was pretty good, with the dough remaining fairly chewy. The sausage still had a lot of flavor and really made the cold pizza.

Rating: Deidre: 4 / Andrew: 4.5 = 8.5/10 slices

Jack’s Pizza
44 W. Hollis St., Nashua
880-4637