In Pizza We Crust, a small pizzeria featuring a variety of creative concoctions, has opened on the southeast corner of Gilbert and McKellips in northeast Mesa.
Owners Elise Lawrence and Andrew Martinez met as co-workers at an Italian restaurant and decided to open their own business. She has 18 years of experience in the industry; he has more than 20.
‘‘We figured, ‘Who doesn’t love pizza?’’’ Martinez says.
In Pizza We Crust uses a countertop Turbochef oven, which are capable of temperatures in excess of 800 degrees and can cook hearth-style pizzas in as little as 90 seconds.
The menu offers 17 specialty pizzas ($7.99 for 10-inch, $15.99 for 14-inch), including:
- Baked potato with alfredo sauce, garlic herb butter, mozzarella, cheddar, bacon, chives, and sour cream;
- Bacon cheeseburger with ground beef, bacon, cheddar, mozzarella, pickles, onions, tomatoes, and Thousand Island Dressing;
- Taco Supreme with ground beef, cheddar, tomatoes, red onions, black olives, jalapenos, taco sauce, and sour cream;
- Mac ’n’ cheese with shredded cheddar, bacon, garlic herb butter, and garlic bread crumbs.
You also can build your own pizza starting at $5.99 (plus 99 cents per ingredient) for a 10-inch or $12.99 ($1.50 per ingredient) for a 14-inch.
Cauliflower crust is available on 10-inch pizzas (pictured above with pesto chicken pizza).
Seating is limited to three small booths and four two-top tables. Delivery is available via Grubhub and DoorDash.
In Pizza We Crust started with hours of 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Saturday, but lunch hours likely will be discontinued.
‘‘We simply don’t have enough time to prep our specialty pizzas,’’ Lawrence says. ‘‘And we’d like to have more time to come up with more fun specials.’’
