Favorite Pizza — Restaurant in Austin

Horrible customer service and honestly subpar product. Never coming back here - and frankly side eyeing all my fave MML restaurants - after this traumatizing experience tonight.

Someone at Favorite Pizza listed the restaurant on the app TooGoodToGo which is a b-corp social impact tech-enabled company fighting a major issue in developed countries - food waste. On the app, Favorite Pizza advertises a surprise bag for $5.99 that’s supposed to be worth an $18 value.

When I approached the order window, the red-headed young cashier was helping a group of 4 before me and kindly said that I would be next. After that group ordered and paid, another man approached and quickly ordered and paid before the cashier turned her attention back to me despite saying I was next. Fine, no big deal.

Then things really went downhill from there. I explained that I was picking up a TooGoodToGo order and proceeded to show her my prepaid order on the app. She had no idea what this was so she brought over the bar manager Mike Brennan. He also had no idea what this was so I explained the app’s premise, the amount I paid, and again showed that I was well within the pickup time stated. Mike started to get unreasonably defensive and patronizing asking if I was looking for a food donation and that they don’t have items for $6. I knew this was false so I asked how much a slice of cheese was - about $4 he responded. So perplexed as to why he was trying to act like this is a fine dining establishment and didn’t have anything for $6 lol. His responses were so condescending- saying he could get me a slice with a side of ranch. Like sir, I can afford the meal but you’re not grasping the point of the app…

I wasn’t sure why Mike would rather argue with me over some cheap pizza I still did pay $6 for but he did. He ended up compromising by wrapping up 2 slices but with a sneer. Not the $18 value they advertise on the app but at this point I truly didn’t care what I was getting. It makes me sad that he thinks treating paying customers -or anyone- like a begging thief is an acceptable human response.

After this whole conundrum I suggested he try getting the restaurant off the app to avoid a repeat of this situation. Again, Mike condescendingly replied that he didn’t know how to because he doesn’t use it. Okay - I was well aware of that by this point - but escalating to the GM later would probably be a good place to start?! Ignorance/incompetence is not a good excuse and reeks of poor attitude. But I walked away not wanting to press any further.

Anyway onto the pizza - the marg slice was edible because it’s pizza, but being from NJ/NYC it just didn’t hit. I’m constantly on the hunt for the best of Austin and I’d rank Little Deli, Home Slice, and Pedrosos muchhh higher for a NY...

We’ve wanted to visit for a while now. We like this family of restaurants. Unfortunately the pizza was mediocre, service was not really a feature, and the space was much smaller and more cramped than it appears.

We ordered a Piazza pizza. The crust is crispy and chewy but we didn’t think the pizza had a lot of flavor despite having a lot of ingredients. In our opinion it doesn’t hold up to places like Love Supreme or La Volta. The ranch can usually make or break the pizza - in this case their ranch dressing is pretty bland, so it was a let down. The Caesar salad was pretty good, though.

The restaurant itself is very small. It was kind of awkward at first looking for a place to sit, since there weren’t any spots open. The restaurant is themed 70s/80s but the music was not matching the theme and there is virtually no interaction with staff. I thought it would be an old school atmosphere and fun, but it wasn’t at all.

Our bill was over $70 for the pizza, a Caesar salad and two beers. They also ask for gratuity, which is odd because you order at the counter. This seemed like a pretty steep price for the experience. We did see a deal where you can order one of their non-specialty pies and get a pitcher of beer for like $29. If we did go back, we’d do that. We didn’t know that was even an option when ordering. The person taking our order did not engage with us at all other than to simply take the order.

Overall, we would not go back. I would suggest trying somewhere in town actually known for its pizza and a...

The Caesar Salad steals the show here. “Really, at a pizza place, salad is the best thing?” Yes.

The pizza is good, with some things they need to work on to perfect it. The dough is very nice- rivaling home slice for best NY style dough in town. The sauce is also nice. They cheese is good fresh, but is less desirable after the pizza has gone cold.

The toppings are generally good, especially on their specialty pies. I recommend the Chin Music (sausage, peppers, hot honey, mozz) and the Dock Ellis (sautéed mushrooms, garlic, 4 cheeses, truffle oil). I’ve had WAY too much cheese added to both specialty and regular pies before - they’re a little inconsistent.

OK I’ve buried the lede enough. The Caesar Salad at Favorite is magical. It will make you have feelings of joy and love and regret…when it’s gone. Yes, it is worth $14 or $18 for a regular or large. The Caesar dressing is creamy, rich, umami bliss. They add a homemade chili crisp for a hint of oil and spice. Some lemon juice adds acid and freshness. And the little gem lettuce has just the right balance of crunchy and soft. You will want to order this every time. Trust me.

This is not the best pizza in Austin, but it could be close (to Home Slice) if it fixed some of its...