Review: Star Pizza in Houston

Time to start my reviews of local Houston joints across the city. My first review will be for a food that Houston may not be known for, but has plenty of choices for....Pizza.

So there are a ton of Pizza joints in Houston, but there are only a few that I was told I had to try. The first of these is going to be Star Pizza. This is a local Houston place that had very humble beginnings back in 1976 in a house-turned-restaurant. It now has two locations and a very large Houston following, along with dozens of 'Best Pizza in Houston' awards. Are these awards deserving?

First I want to say I tried the location on Washington. I know with only two restaurants there is a good chance for some inconsistency between the two. On to what I got.

The Hank Medium Deep Dish Pizza

I had to try the deep dish. There are lots of places in Houston that can do NY style, but very few even offer deep dish, if master it. There is a delicate balance with deep dish to balance the crust, sauce, cheese, and toppings. Too much of any of those things and it can turn into just a big pile of slop. Thankfully Star Pizza did not make me feel like a pig eating a big pile of slop, it made me feel like a fatty that needs to be in a John Hughes movie eating really good deep dish pizza.

The crust, a crucial part in a good deep dish pizza, was perfect. It was crunchy yet soft, thick yet light, the perfect balance for deep dish. The sauce was great as well. A hint of sweetness while still having some spice. The Hank is topped with black olives, Italian sausage, and mushrooms. The olives were thinly sliced and spread very evenly across the pie. More spicy then sweet, the sausage went really well with the sauce. The chunks were uneven which is always a good sign with sausage, normally meaning it was freshly ripped up before being put on. With mushrooms the size of pepperonis, they gave the pie some extra juiciness and girth.

The cheese was rich and thick, but unfortunately not spread very evenly. Some really cheesy patches of awesomeness were followed by some of bitter baron disappointment. Also the toppings did not make it all the way to the crust which led to lots of crust only pieces, which thankfully I did not mind with such great crust but it could definitely be seen as a drawback.

Rating- 4/5 "It's Just Swell"

Overall I think it is great deep dish, especially in Houston. I will definitely be giving it another go to try some of the other pies. Best Pizza in Houston? I don't know if I am ready to go that far.