Slice Pizza & Brew — Restaurant in Birmingham

We had a great experience at Slice.

The 1st hints of Fall are here; we sat on their side deck & welcomed in the cool evening air. Most of the tables there were moved together for a group, but for some wierd acoustical reason we didn't really notice them. I noted that "retractable plastic" was installed so the area could be used on wet or chilly days. It felt more peaceful or intimate than inside, while the tables outside in front appeared to be the rowdy action - at least on this night.

When it comes to beer, I'm a buffet kind of guy - one of everything. So I got the sampler flight with Avondale's Vanillaphant Porter, Good People's Oatmeal Stout, Cahaba Brewing's Amber, and a Sculpin IPA from San Diego's Ballast Point Brewery. All tasty, of course. Four 3oz. glasses for $10. That really isn't the smartest way to enjoy beer, but then I never claimed to be...

As our waiter was being very patient, and I was being very indecisive with my beer choices, everyone else was inside draining the kegs dry. I think he came back twice to say "well.. that keg was just emptied and we are replacing it with xyz..." My point is they are continously changing their on tap offerings - you can expect good beer, but be flexible. I liked that our waiter was able to tell me a bit about Ballast Point that I didn't know.

We chose the Basic Pesto from maybe 15 pizza options ranging from $14-22. Just one size on a thin crispy crust. The Slice takes a lot of pride in using locally grown produce on their menu. Again, the waiter spent time chatting with us when I asked questions about this. As a courtesy to other patrons, I try to not take up the waiters' time, but I really appreciate when they can focus directly on me & provide good info about the menu without being flogged. Herbs and veggies come from Camp McDowell & Jones Valley; goat cheeses are made near Sylacauga. Just plain more sensible than "fresh off the barge" from Chile.

I had hardly rewarded my tongue with the 1st beer when the pizza arrived. We pretty much inhaled it. The goat cheese and the sausage were particularly memorable. Some fresh fennel in there. The crust was just right. Flavors melted and blended perfectly. Having logged a full day at the Loft District's Artwalk, we could'a kept eating after the pan was licked clean.

Chris, one of the owners, stopped by our table and thanked us as I explored the table for stray...

My wife and I haven’t been to Slice in about two years, but prior to today’s experience, our frequent visits had always been five stars. We didn’t want to make a scene, so we kept our complaints to a minimum while we were there. As a restaurant manager myself, I’m going to be harsh, but I hope this feedback is constructive. First, the drinks. We ordered a jalapeño margarita which was overwhelmingly limey without a hint of jalapeño. There were two slices of jalapeño in the glass, but not even lightly muddled as any pepper should be in a margarita; they looked to be just tossed in. We ordered a second one, this time with an adequate amount of jalapeño slices upon request, but they still were not muddled. We also ordered two glasses of red wine. There were cloudy smudges and streaks on the first glass, indicating that it was not buffed with a clean towel. Maybe this was very obvious in the sunlight, but not in indoor lighting. The second glass took over 10 minutes to arrive. Not sure what took so long considering there were two servers to work five or six tables—the only tables occupied in the whole place. The second glass had the same smudges as the first, but now with cotton fibers on the inside and outside surfaces. I sent it back, but refused a replacement because we had waited so long that it was time for us to leave. The food. We had always ordered the Super Cheese pizza in the past with no issues at all. The pizza tasted great, as usual, but this one had several ingredients on it from cross-contamination; a few bits of tomato and mushroom. Fortunately, we don’t have allergies to either, but this indicates that the cook was not changing their gloves between orders or that the make line containers were already cross-contaminated. How the pizza made it past the server with obvious non-cheese ingredients on it is beyond me. The atmosphere and setting. The tables and chairs all looked really clean and ours was perfectly so. The suns shades should probably be dropped by 5PM, when the sun gets low and before the dinner rush. Definitely not our worst restaurant experience, but by far our worst experience at Slice. Maybe we’ll try again in a few...

Had the worst experience of my life. I was in tears. We drove down from Huntsville to take my daughter to dinner for her 21st birthday and it was a disaster. Called before we drove down and asked if they could accommodate our dog and told them we were driving from Huntsville for her birthday and they said yes that we could sit in the side patio. My daughter's godmother got there to get a table early and was told they could not accommodate the dog because they had a party in the side patio. We told them we specifically called and told them we were coming from Huntsville and they told us they could accomodate her and that we had nothing we could do with the dog and all they said was that they were sorry. I called my daughter she got stressed and upset and I ended up sitting in the car in tears with the dog while they all ate and then my husband went and sat in the car with the dog so I could talk to my daughter for a few minutes and see her open her gifts. We did not get to enjoy the evening as a family at all. I never even ate. Worst possible experience ever! Will never step foot in that place again. Didn’t even discount meal. Not that that would have made up for the ruined evening. Had someone come from Auburn ,us from Huntsville and another from Tuscaloosa and NOONE got to enjoy each other. COMPLETELY...