Pizza Works, February 2011

It was a cold rainy night and I was spending the night alone in my childhood hometown.  What better way to cheer up, than have pizza from one of my favorites.

I have to say upfront, that I have some history with Pizza Works.  As an unruly teenager, my friends and I would go there and  create a mild ruckus just about every weekend.  Oh we would eat pizza also.  Once I got to be of driving age and needed gas money I applied for a job at Pizza Works and actually got hired.  The manager that hired me didn't normally work when we had caused trouble so didn't recognize me, hence the job.  I actually worked my way up to Assistant Manager...  Believe me when I say I have eaten a lot of Pizza Works pizza, the funny thing is I loved the pizza as a youngster and when I worked there. And I still love it today.  I could just keep going on about how Pizza Works affected my life, but I have gone on long enough, on to the pizza.

I ordered a medium BJ special on the regular crust (they also have pan pizza, thicker and more bread like).  If I'm not mistaken it was named after one of the owners, Bruce Johnson.  The BJ special has pepperoni, sausage, onions, mozzarella and a liberal shake of Parmesan cheese.  There is a method to the ingredients,  if you ordered a pizza with those toppings it would look and taste different.  It's all about the proper ratio of pepperoni and sausage.  The pizza was cooked to a light golden brown on the bottom and the edges of the pepperoni just starting to get crisp.  It also had a generous amount of cheese.  It was a most excellent pizza and brought back many good memory's.

There are 3 Pizza Works restaurants, but I have only been in the Moberly, MO location, but I'm sure the other two locations are just as good.  Back when I worked there the crew in Mexico, MO thought they were the best, but I know better.  The only thing that would have made the visit better is if I was sitting in the back booth with my friends having a ruckus good time...

Highly Recommended.
Chief Pizza Eater.
GAW

Pizza Works

Pizza Works, I have a bit of history with this pizza joint starting before I was old enough to drive. When one of my school buddy's (J.U.B.) got his license it was like getting out of prison, at least to a 15 year old living in a town of about 700-800 people with one stop sign, a gas station and a beer joint. A car load of us would go to the Pizza Works pool our money and order a pizza, typically we ate the majority of the pizza with the rest expertly applied to the wall's, table, seats, floor, and window. We were only asked to leave a few times and occasionally we were threatened by the waitress to clean up our mess or else!

I turned 16 in 1984 and became the owner of a 1973 VW Super beetle (see Pizza Files post). I soon found out that gas money didn't grow on trees, so I made the rounds to the Wal-Marts (just think how much stock I would have if I had got that job and still worked there today, I would probably still be mopping the floors, but...), IGA's, McDonald's, etc. At some point I found my self filling out a application at of all places Pizza Works. I learned quite a few lessons while working there.
1. It can be a lot of fun working in a pizza joint.
2. It can be a lot of WORK working in a pizza joint.
3. If you work at a pizza joint everybody you know wants free pizza.
4. How to mop the floor.
5. How to make a really good pizza.
6. To despise insulate teenagers that make a mess for the sake of making a mess (I think that was me).
7. To like and/or eat onions, mushrooms, olives and anchovies.
I worked at Pizza Works until Christmas Eve 1986 when I had had enough, I left the manager a note stating I wouldn't be back, EVER! Some time after that I became a customer again, a better customer this time, I didn't blow the tip money in video games and I didn't make anywhere near as big a mess.

To my knowledge Pizza Works has been around since the early 1980's with at least 5 or 6 restaurants. The first being in Mexico, MO, I don't recall the other locations out side of Moberly. They were owned by a couple of Guys named Ken and Bruce, whom I met once or twice while working there.

Pizza Works has a pizza style all their own, with their crust being what sets them apart from the rest. The crust has a uniform thickness that gives it some structure when holding it. It is cooked in a pizza pan with a small lip so that the sauce and other ingredients don't run over the edge of the crust. When done the crust is light golden brown and just a bit crispy on the bottom. The dough and pizza sauce were made fresh on site in the past and I suspect they still are. The pizza's are round but cut on the square. It must be a mental thing but I prefer their pizza square cut over pie.

At this point I would normally tell you that I ordered pepperoni, Canadian bacon, meatballs and onions, or some variation of that pie, but it's a different story at the Pizza Works. My favorite is the BJ special (named I believe after one of the owners Bruce Johnson?), it has pepperoni, sausage, onions and a dash of parmasan on top (before baking) of course there is also a thick mild red sauce and a generous helping of mozzarella cheese. One of the things that make the BJ special different is that the pepperonis and sausage are under the cheese, the other is that the sausage is used very sparingly, and for me a little sausage goes a long way. The combination works great, the sausage doesn't have a chance to overpower the other ingredeants. As stated above the crust is sturdy and can be easily handled with one hand (forks not allowed). I usually order mine to go, and this time was no exception. By the time you get home the pizza will have reached that ideal eating temperature. If I'm the only one eating I must physically restrain my self from eating the whole pizza, and you can imagine how hard that is...

My take-out expirance was excellent, and the pizza passes the "Would I pay for it?" test with a most definently Yes. Pizza Works is located at 319 N Morley St. Moberly, MO. You can reach them at (660) 263-8102.

Highly Recommended.

GAW