Peppino's: Possibly the best pizza in GR?

Yesterday, the 10th, Mel and I went to Peppino's on Kalamazoo by Celebration South. We wanted to go out and pizza sounded good. We had been meaning to go for a while, and it seemed like a perfect time to go. Originally we were thinking about going somewhere like Uccello's. But then we saw the new Grand Rapids Magazine that rated Peppino's as the best pizza in GR based on their panel of experts. We had to see if this was the case.

We started with a basket of onion rings. They were good. The batter was nice and crispy and it didn't taste like it was fried in old oil. The onion was sweet and not overpowering like can happen with a strong white onion. I wouldn't make a trip to eat them, but it was nice they were there.

We ordered two 10" pizzas. The first one here is the Chipotle Chicken pizza. It was a very "American" pizza, especially compared to the pizza reviewed below. The sauce was a chipotle mayo, with chicken, tomato, and cheddar along with mozzarella. I didn't really get much of the chipotle taste or heat. I thought it was going to be a little bit spicier. However, Mel said she could taste it. The chicken was pretty flavorful and tender. That was nice, as chicken can get dry on pizzas. The tomato was a brilliant touch. It added a nice bit of acid to an otherwise heavy pizza. Ill get to the crust with the next pizza. Overall it was a good pizza.

This is the Roma Pomodoro pizza. It features a base sauce of pesto olive oil. Basically it was a pesto with some more olive oil drizzled over top. It had a great fresh taste of basil. It also had a nice bit of garlic that was in the back ground but was noticeable. It was a nice touch in balance with the rest of the pizza. The toppings consisted of marinated tomatoes, red onion, and fresh basil and spinach. The toppings were in perfect balance with each other. The spinach and basil brought a nice fresh, green, "herbalness" that complimented the pesto, onion, and cheese. The mozzarella was gooey and when pulled apart was stringy. I don't know if it was fresh or a really good shredded, but either way it was of high quality. The tomatoes added some acid to counter the richness of the cheese and the sweetness of the onion. The crust was possibly the best crust I have had in GR. It was thin, yet the doughier parts around the edge were chewy and tender with good texture. The bottom was solid throughout, and it didn't get soggy in the middle like often happens with pizza. Ever since our trip to Italy, Mel and I have been searching for a pizza that takes us back there. This is the one that so far has been the closest to doing that. We both agree that this pizza, specifically the Roma Pomodoro, is the best we have had in GR. Much better than Rose's (which, although good, is overrated in my opinion), better than Uccello's, and better than Brick Road Pizza.