Madeleine Coles
Life Editor
There are few universally known truths in this world. What goes up must come down. An object at rest stays at rest, and an object in motion stays in motion. College students love pizza.
To that end, I embarked on a long and challenging endeavor to find the best pizza Pocatello has to offer. I tried five pizza place in Pocatello (that weren’t chains) and ranked them based on cost, ambiance and, of course, tastiness of the pizza. Here are my results.
Bigfoot Pizza
Cost- 7/10. Bigfoot definitely has the most to offer if you’re looking for quantity. You can buy fairly huge pizzas here for a fairly low price. Unfortunately they don’t offer individual pizzas. But for the size of the pizza and the amount of toppings they pile on it, Bigfoot is a good bang for your buck.
Ambiance- 8/10. Bigfoot is a delivery and carry-out pizza service, so it’s hard to judge the ambiance. But the staff there is incredible. They are friendly, fun and patient. Honestly, I would order Bigfoot again just to see the staff again.
Overall tastiness of pizza- 6/10. I was honestly slightly disappointed in the taste of Bigfoot’s pizza. The crust is good, but not fantastic. The sauce and toppings are all okay. The biggest thing Bigfoot has going for them is the sheer amount of topping options they offer and how much they put on your pizza. But, while it was better than any chain pizza, it didn’t live up to its hype.
Portneuf Valley Brewery
Cost- 6/10. PVB does offer individual pizzas, as well as larger pizzas. And while the cost isn’t outrageous, it’s not exactly cheap.
Ambiance- 8/10. This place is hipster in the best kind of way. It’s a truly original hipster brewery that hasn’t been tainted by the over exaggeration of many newer “hipster” places. It’s got live music on the weekends, and all the bands that play get to sign a brick on the wall. It’s cozy but not cramped and, at the risk of sounding pretentious, I have to say it has a great vibe.
Overall tastiness of pizza- 6/10. PVB gets creative with its pizza; I’ll give it that. I ordered the barbecue shrimp pizza and, against all odds, it really worked. But the crust is overly doughy, the sauces aren’t amazing, and overall I just wasn’t wowed.
Goody’s
Cost- 8/10. No doubt about it, Goody’s is the most budget-friendly pizza joint in Pocatello. They offer pizza sizes ranging from individual to large, and they’re all fairly priced.
Ambiance- 6/10. Goody’s is the type of small town, regulars bar that seems to only exist in sitcoms. But although these bars seem charming in the sitcoms, the real thing just isn’t as much fun.
Overall tastiness of pizza- 2/10. Sorry, Goody’s. But this is some of the worst pizza I have ever had. The problem lies with the crust. It’s like eating crunchy cardboard. And while the toppings and sauce weren’t bad, I just couldn’t get past the awful crust.
Buddy’s
Cost- 5/10. Buddy’s pizza isn’t outrageously expensive. But it’s not exactly cheap, either. It’s definitely a bit of a splurge, but it could be worse.
Ambiance- 8/10. Buddy’s is a kind of hole-in-the-wall from the outside, but the inside is the picture of a classic Italian restaurant. It makes you feel like you’re in little Italy.
Overall tastiness of pizza- 9/10. Buddy’s was hands-down the best tasting pizza. The crust and sauce were both superb, and it was pure, cheesy goodness.
Villano’s
Cost- 6/10. If you get pizza by the slice at Villano’s, it’s not super expensive. But if you’re looking to buy a whole pie, it can get pricey.
Ambiance- 6/10. Like Buddy’s, Villano’s has a classic Italian feel, but it wasn’t anything special.
Overall tastiness of pizza- 6/10. Villano’s was pretty average in every respect, and the pizza was no different. It was good, but it definitely wasn’t mind-blowing.
Total
• Bigfoot: 21/30
• PVB: 20/30
• Goody’s: 16/30
• Buddy’s: 22/30
• Villano’s: 18/30
Although each pizza place has its own pros and cons, Buddy’s emerged victorious to claim the title of the Best Pizza in Pocatello.
I think your take on Goody’s pizza should be reconsidered greatly. I am an ex employee and understand the business/quality fluctuation that occurs. For instance, what day, time, and side of the establishment did you reside on? Given the short staffing that local businesses have to deal with, as well as the overwhelming lunch rush at a college focused food establishment, perhaps more than one trip to a restaurant is imperative to giving accurate judgements. Otherwise, I’d say that the evaluation is rather short sighted, and being so, perhaps the harshness of your analysis could be softer around the edges. I now work for a contesting local establishment, but even reading what should be good news for our small kitchen crew, made me cringe and feel sorry that any of us were analyzed at all.