Week 1: Pizza by Marco

The 2011 New Year’s Resolution: To eat at a different pizza restaurant in the DFW area each week for the next 52 weeks.

Seems easy enough, so why not start our exploration on January 1st?

The oldest “pizzeria” in Dallas was the first stop on our list.  Pizza by Marco has been serving Dallas it’s family owned, award winning Sicilian recipe since 1956.  Their website (www.pizzabymarco.com) states that no other pizza in the State of Texas has won as many pizza awards.  We packed up the pizza bus, and headed to the original location on the corner of Preston Rd./Royal Ln.  Since opening over 50 years ago, four other locations have opened in the Dallas area, and one north of Houston in The Woodlands.  

First of all, if you didn’t know what you were looking for, you pass Pizza by Marco 10 times out of 10.  It is hidden away in the far back corner of a strip mall with a store front of less than 10 feet.  But, with the words “Voted Best Pizzeria in Dallas by D Magazine” over the door, we knew we had found the place!  Simply put, this is a take-out pizza spot.  Don’t expect to bring the family of four and relax in a restaurant atmosphere.  There are 6 small tables lined up against the wall, and a walk up “window” where you place your order.  Once inside, you are greeted with a wall of appropriately framed newspaper/magazine articles boasting the greatest pizza awards, a collection of old Italian art prints, and Judge Judy playing on the flat screen TV above the seating area.    However, after being inside for less than five minutes, we noticed the phone never stopped ringing, and there was a steady flow of take out customers that continued for the remainder of the visit.  If you live nearby, this is the place you pick up pizza on the way home from work, or take out for a Monday Night Football game, but is NOT the restaurant to go expecting a corner booth and a nice family night out.  You get the point, but the pizza is a different story...   

1/2 Special & 1/2 Greek

The hand written board above the register was extensive - that included the list of specialty pies (Augustus, Bruschetta, Full Moon, Meathead), to vegan soy toppings and healthy whole wheat crust, to almost 30 additional toppings.  I humbly approached the cashier and ordered a small half pepperoni and half cheese.  I then proceeded to ask what was their most popular pizza to which he responded that everything was good, but it was probably the “Special.”  It was at this point in my order that I froze up trying to decide, and began to sweat knowing that I could only choose one.  I honestly would have preferred a straightforward answer from the guy, but the line started to back up behind me.  Without much additional thought, I chose a second small pie, half “special,” and half “greek.”  The total for the 2 small pizzas, a can of Diet Coke, and a bottle of water was just over $21.  Not a bad deal, considering we were 10-15 minutes from sinking our teeth into what was allegedly the “Best Pizza in Dallas.”

Extra Thin Crust

Our 15 minute wait was up, and our pies emerged from behind a white door in the back of the restaurant.  The first impression was, “WOW those are small.”  We had brought our appetites, and two 10” pizzas won’t be enough to feed our two year old.  Needless to say we weren’t having leftover pizza for lunch on Sunday.  First things first, the pizza is THIN crust, almost cracker thin.  When you bite into the outer edge it is crispy.  This wasn’t necessarily a problem, and the dough was actually quite tasty, but definitely one of the thinner crusts I have had in a while.  The “special” included your standard slew of toppings, but did not overtake the essence of the final product.  The “greek” was a basic cheese pizza dressed up with olives, roma tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, feta cheese, and peas.  This was in fact the first time I had eaten a pizza with peas on it, and the combination was enjoyable.  It was time to dig in to the cheese pizza.  For what it’s worth, the sign on the wall stated that all of their pizzas were made with 100% Italian Grande Cheese.  When all of the toppings were stripped away, you were able to see what really separates Pizza by Marco.  I thought that the red sauce was fantastic, especially by itself on the edge towards the crust.  There were two other sauce options, alfredo sauce and olive oil glaze, but the red sauce had a sweetness that was top notch.  During the meal I had overheard the cashier explaining that the sauce was made daily with 13 different spices, and sometimes the surviving wife of “Marco” comes by the restaurant to make it!  Before we knew it all 16 slices had vanished.  So, we licked our styrofoam plates clean and piled back into our pizza bus for the pilgrimage home.

The Final Report: 7 out of 10

If you love thin crust pizza and are close to one of their locations, I would absolutely recommend it!  However, if you are planning to eat in the "restaurant", Pizza by Marco would not be worth a long drive.

Was this the best pizza in Dallas?  So far, yes.  But then again it is only our first stop for the year with 51 pizzerias left to go!