The Pizza Stone — Restaurant in Golden

My visit to The Pizza Stone was, unfortunately, one of the worst dining experiences I've had. From the moment I walked in, things felt off. The initial atmosphere was bland and slightly strange, with no clear menu displayed. The only option was a dirty brochure near the register, which wasn't exactly appetizing.

The person working the cashier appeared unprofessional and gave the distinct impression of being under the influence, which was immediately unsettling. Hoping the food would redeem things, I ordered the Chicken Bacon Ranch Sandwich and Mozzarella Sticks.

The food was inedible. Both items were shockingly poor quality. The mozzarella sticks were saturated in oil (at least half an ounce poured on before cooking, as I witnessed), resulting in a soggy, greasy mess that was impossible to enjoy. The texture and overwhelming taste of cheap oil, combined with the knowledge they were straight from a frozen bag, made me feel physically ill after one attempt. I have photos that clearly show the unappetizing result. The sandwich was equally horrible.

The most alarming aspect was the kitchen hygiene. The open kitchen allowed me to see the food preparation. The chef initially handled food without gloves, touching various surfaces and ingredients bare-handed. He only put gloves on after preparing the food, specifically to bring it out to me. I watched him reach directly into a frozen bag of mozzarella sticks with bare hands and handle other components similarly. This blatant disregard for basic food safety protocols is a serious health code violation and completely unacceptable.

Throughout this, a person who seemed to be the owner or manager was frequently arriving and leaving via the back, out of sight, seemingly unaware or unconcerned with the operation happening in the front.

I cannot stress enough how poor this experience was. The combination of unprofessional staff, appalling food quality, and shockingly unsanitary kitchen practices made for a deeply unpleasant and concerning visit. Based on what I saw and tasted, I cannot recommend The Pizza Stone to anyone and I will absolutely not be returning. It was a complete waste of money and left me feeling genuinely concerned about their operating standards. Avoid this...

Pizza Stone is a new restaurant that has something good going and just needs to work out some start-up kinks.

First let me start with what they are doing very well! You can tell the quality of the ingredients is excellent and the pizzas are put together with care. The taste is delicious! The building interior is new and nice. The staff are super friendly and loving what they're doing. Sitting at the bar at the large store-front windows and watching the sun set over the Golden mountains is a wonderful way to enjoy a pizza. 😊

Now here are some things I wish had been better. The interior needs a lot of sound dampening. It was very echoey and loud, even though it was not crowded. We saw glasses nicely laid out on the tables for dine-in but couldn't find where to get the water. Had to ask, and was told there were free refillable glass bottles in the fridge next to the paid drinks. I like the setup, but you need signs telling people where to get the water and that it's ok to use them. Or you need to tell every single dine-in person when they put in their order, but signs seem easier. We ordered a 14" hand-tossed supreme (called The Junk on the menu) and when you pick up one of the large slices half of the toppings would slide off. I think this was because the center of the pizza was soggy (which also doesn't make for a great experience picking it up). I'm no pizza expert so I won't suggest a fix but I'm sure you will find a way and make this great! We had to go additionally ask for forks to eat at least half the pizza for reason #3 above. Maybe if you fix #3 then providing people forks by default wouldn't be necessary, but I think some people would prefer forks anyway just to keep their hands clean or because pizza can be hot when it comes out, etc. So it might be nice when you bring out the napkins to go ahead and bring out forks for people too when they dine in.

I hope you find this thorough, honest review helpful. I wrote it because I want you to succeed and I hope it will help you make things even better! I would love to come back again in a few weeks, have a five-star experience, and update...

I had the pleasure of trying this delicious place last week and loved every bit of it! I ordered the hot Italian beef sandwich, and it was hands-down the best I have ever tasted. I've been thinking about it since. I don't live close, and it had to travel with me before I could try it, it was still so delicious. The beef was tender, and the bread was a perfect combination of toasted and chewy deliciousness. I don't handle heat well and they gave me a half and half sauce which was so flavorful and the perfect heat level for me. I loved it. I also got The Junk pizza and 2 slices from their pizza counter - one sausage and one veggie. I really wanted to get a good taste of many of their offerings! My family enjoyed it so much! Their sauce is the perfect combo of sweet and tangy - toppings were fresh and the beef and sausage they use is obviously very high quality. Plus, these pizzas simply look beautiful - and don't even get me started on that crust. Absolute flaky crunchy, chewy, bubbly perfection! I highly recommend you try this wonderful, locally owned spot where it's clear their food is made with lots of care and love and the owners, Erin and Matt are invested in all of their customer's happiness and Pizza Joy. If I lived closer, this would be a weekly staple for my family. Don't wait, go and give this new business your support. You...