Pitfire Pizza: Please Don't Go Back to Big Sur...Stay in LA

I’ve been so self-imposedly poor lately that it’s been absolutely ridiculous. But who can blame me? I want to spend like no tomorrow when I’m in Manhattan ♥ ! And if that means eating canned tuna with Trader Joe’s hummus, so be it.

The sad thing is, of course, I haven’t been eating canned tuna with hummus and, if my past reviews are anything to go by, I’ve actually been spending way too much eating out. Not good. It’s just so difficult though because some things just are a MUST. i.e. Tuesday-night-Dinner-extravaganza with Alyssa.

Well, thank God she’s currently in the poor house too. Poverty loves company, especially when it comes to dining out. But, not really wanting to grab, say, In-n-Out (after all, they don’t have meatless choices), we mosied out to Pitfire Pizza on Westwood Blvd. PP is one of those restaurants which will never make it to your “Favorites” list but will still have you coming back all the time: the food’s not stellar but it’s still pretty damn good; the price isn’t cheap but it won’t leave a dent in your wallet.

Last time I was there, I got the Italian tuna panini ($8.95). Decent size and came with a side salad. I was tempted to get that again and bump up my daily intake of protein and veggies but, after having the absolutely kickass tuna melt at the Hungry Cat not too long ago, I decided to go for something else this time. Well, one thing did catch my eye on the menu – the Big Sur pizza ($9.95). According to the menu description, the toppings were garlic scampi, a four cheese blend, tomatoes, basil, lemon zest and roasted garlic. Mmmmm. I was very excited.

The pizza itself was HUGE! It’s supposed to be a one-person portion but I definitely had a hard time finishing it (HA – OF COURSE I finished it. I have no shame). I forgot to take my camera along so, no photos – sorry – you’ll just have to take my word for it about the size. I was a little ambivalent about the crust at first. Given that I’ve sold my soul to the thin crusts of New York pizza, I didn’t know what to make of the somewhat balloon-esque, pillowy looking crust. Well, I was wrong with my ambivalence – the crust was great. It was chewy without being overly doughy in taste. I felt as if I was eating less carbs that I really was (warning: that could be a VERY dangerous illusion).

The pizza was a little scant on the scampi but it didn’t bother me much – the star of the show was the lemon zest, tomato and garlic flavor combo. It’s absolutely genius! I’ve never had lemon on pizza before and I know it can sound disconcerting but really, when I think about it, it makes sense. The citrus-y flavor cut right through the strong garlicy-ness of the toppings and balanced out the greasiness from the cheese and brought out the sweetness in the tomatoes. Or maybe that’s just a very long-winded way of saying that my hormones have been going crazy and I’ve been craving citrus-y foods. Either way, the pizza was awesome. I also saw that they had a pumpkin pizza offered on the seasonal menu. That sounds A-M-A-ZING! I definitely want to try that the next time I’m there.

PP is a cute and clean and the staff are always friendly. $9.95 is by no means super cheap but then again, it’s no shack of a place and the food is worth it. And it’s still a cheaper alternative to, say, Pizzeria Mozza (which I still have to try before I leave).

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

PITFIRE PIZZA ($)
2018 Westwood Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310) 481-9860
http://www.pitfirepizza.com