Pizza Chains History/Review

We decided to review 5 pizza chains in Menomonie. They consist of Domino’s, Pizza Hut, Little Caesars, Papa Murphy’s, and Toppers. They all do pizza very differently and we tried our best to grade them fairly.

Lets start with Domino’s Pizza,

Domino’s has been on the rise ever since their recession in 2008 and are now number one in pizza sales at $3.2 billion internationally. So, we wanted to see if they hold up to their name. Spoiler alert, yeah of course they did. Domino’s is cheap and half decent. Biggest problem for me was how greasy and dirty the pizza gets, and that its better delivered or carried out. Domino’s is also walking distance from campus, so it’s very convenient for the number of students without cars. Spencer and I walked over and split a large 3 topping pizza with pepperoni, green peppers, and sausage for $7.99 plus tax.

The crust in my opinion felt too wet, but still had that garlic and buttery taste 7/10. The sauce was also a 7 because it tasted alright but mostly went unnoticed. The cheese was also a 8 but it doesn’t really stand out. The toppings were a 9 because they where crunchy and flavorful. The service was an 8 and the atmosphere was a 8. Not really meant to eat inside but had tables and plates. The affordability was a 10 because its fast food pizza.

Pizza Hut Is known for fast pizza and fast delivery. Not so much for dinning in. My fellow taste testers and I found Pizza Hut very pleasing. They sat us down, grabbed us water and took our order efficiently. I was taken back by how good the service was. Ten minutes later, our pizza was served on a ceramic peel, or you could call it a tray or paddle. We got a large 3 topping pizza for $9.99 with bacon, pepperoni, and greed peppers. For the people who like to wipe off extra grease and sauce, fear not, Pizza Huts ratio of cheese, sauce and toppings wasn’t off-putting at all.

The crust was a 9/10 in my opinion. It was somewhat floppy, had a good thickness for hand tossed, and a satisfying crunchy at the end. The sauce was an 8 because it wasn’t drenched and tasted alright. The cheese and toppings were both a 9 because the cheese was stringy and the toppings were crunchy. The service and atmosphere where an 9/10. Everything was nice, clean, and comfortable. The waitress took our order efficiently and took well care of us. The affordability was 7 because the 3 topping deal.

I’m gonna say right off the bat that Little Caesars was not a favorite. The pizza is very cheap and very average. It’s like the sayings goes, “You get what you paid for” and “You are what you eat.” You can probably guess what I mean, the pizza sparks minimum joy. Neither of these things are a great way to describe your product. Some good things are how secure your pizza is. You got to log into your email to scan a bar code to free your pizza from the hot case. Other nice things about this chain would be that it could feed large hungry crowds for relatively cheap. Spencer and I bought large pizza split with pineapple and sausage on one half and pepperoni and green pepper on the other for $8.18. Other pizzas were large one or two toppings for $6. So, in the end it’s a good deal for two people to split.

The crust was a 5, its just there to hold everything. The sauce had alright taste, plentiful in some spots. The cheese was a 6, not very flavorful. The toppings was a 7, every other restaurant did them better in every way. The service was nice though, minimum communication. Atmosphere was an 8 because it just feels stuffy and claustrophobic. The price was a 9, you get what you pay for and was in line with Domino’s.

Papa Murphy’s was an interesting one, the place is completely take ‘n’ bake. The store was clean and had that fresh pizza ingredients smell. Papa Murphy’s is defiantly up there with the bests. Again, Spencer and I ordered a medium pepperoni and green pepper pizza. There’re certain days to order and their website has multiple deals. They have Tuesday specials and other coupon opportunities. Overall I’d say that Papa Murphy’s is the best pizza when having a casual family friends’ dinner or watching a football game with your grandpa.

The crust was thick with a good crunch and the cheese was stringy with flavor 9/10. The sauce and topping tasted great but almost too much in amount, still an 8 and 9. The total was a little unsettling at $12.67, the affordability was 5. The atmosphere was 9 because the cleanliness and smell.

I’ve never been to Toppers before this, and I can say for sure that it was worth it. For some reason I thought it was a Menomonie classic, but there are 65 stores in 12 states. Other cool things that this chain really does well with accommodating late-night business by being open till 3:00 am, and they do all three delivery methods. They have 10+ special pizzas, and because this was our last review, Spencer and I ordered a Nacho pizza. This pizza was very impressive. It had nacho cheese sauce, salsa, mozzarella, cheddar, ground beef, green onions, jalapenos, tortilla chips and tomatoes. We opted out of the black olives and the pizza was fine without it. Overall it was a little spicy and a little pricey. So next time you have family visit, have them take you out to eat at toppers.

The price for that large hand tossed was $17.99 plus tip and delivery charge. Not so college friendly now, 4/10 affordability. Another downside was the 15-minute late delivery. I’m hoping this was a fluke or something because I really want to order it again and not skip class waiting, 5/10 service. Otherwise the crust had no flop and you could taste every ingredient. It really felt like a master piece with the crunchy and soft toppings. Cheese and toppings where a 9/10 and the crust was 8. The nacho sauce was a 8 because the I almost didn’t notice it in some spots. The atmosphere was an 8 because its not completely made for dine in.

Final conclusion:

https://ripevol1.design.blog/2020/03/13/the-best-pizza-place-in-menomonie/

Written by Luke

Reviewed by Spencer