This was previously a Bay Goodman Pizza location, and it's adjacent to the Boot Room Pub, which is on the site of a previous bar, which was on the site of a previous bar, ... it's fair to say the building has seen a number of tenants over the years.
I arrived in the early afternoon. I was hoping to get a slice or two, but they don't offer slices. So I ordered a small cheese pie, which took about 15 minutes. That was fine, as it gave me some time to chat with a couple of the people working there.
I won't endeavor to lay out their background, which has been well set out here. But as my pizza was baking, I spoke with Griff, who explained that he learned the craft of pizzamaking in a 20-plus year stint at Menezes on Chili Ave., which has since closed but was a fixture on Chili Ave. for many years (read my last blog post about it here). I have fond memories of Meneze's, and it would surely have been a fine place for the education of a pizzaiolo.
As I have said many times, to me with pizza, balance is key, and the crust, cheese and sauce were in good balance here. The cheese was nicely stretchy, the crust had a bready flavor, and the sauce was neither too sweet nor too salty, and complemented the other components well. To nitpick, the crust seemed a tad dry, and the cheese was a bit too browned for my taste, but I had no trouble finishing off the entire pie.
Griff told me that the oven temp is 475, which strikes me as a bit low, unless you're talking about a thick pizza. I'm sure he knows far more than I do about baking pizza, but I wonder if a higher temp and faster bake would be worth a try.
Overall, I enjoyed this pizza. At the risk of being presumptuous, I think a tweak or two might bump it from good to great. But Iverson's is off to a good start, and I plan to revisit.
Iverson's Pizza, Subs & Wings
198 N. Winton Rd.
(585) 287-6054
Open daily 11 a.m. to midnight
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