Papa Johns Pizza — Restaurant in Lakewood

UPDATED Review on 4/14/21. Well, I've ordered my Pizza (The Works on a Thin Crust) from this same Papa John's Location 3 more times since I last posted my original review in December of 2019 (Being a Professional Chef, I don't order out very often). The 1st time (in 2021), the Pizza arrived Hot and prepared properly. The 2nd time I ordered my Pizza (I get the same kind every time with slight changes. The Works on a Thin Crust) I ordered Extra Mushrooms. Not only did it not come with Extra Mushrooms, it came with no Mushrooms at all!! It was to late to complain and get a replacement so I ate it anyway. Still good, but I missed the flavor of the Mushrooms. The 3rd time I ordered my Pizza, I ordered Extra Mushrooms, Bell Peppers & Olives with Extra Sauce. Since I had a problem with ordering Extra Toppings the last time I ordered, I called the store location and made sure they saw that I had ordered the Extra Toppings. The person that answered the phone apologized for the previous mistake, looked at my order to confirm my additions and said they would make sure it was made properly. The Pizza arrived within the time frame quoted online (30 minutes) and was prepared properly. Since I've worked in the Restaurant business for over 40 years, (25 of which I was the Executive Chef), I can understand that sometimes even the best places/people can make mistakes. So all in all I'm very satisfied with this Locations consistency in the quality of the food and timeliness of delivery, even during their rush hour times (5pm-9pm). I will definitely be ordering Pizza and the Cinnamon Pull Aparts again from this location in the future.

Original review written on 12/25/19.... I just finished a Thin Crust, Works Pizza that I got from this Papa John's location on Christmas Eve 2019 at 630pm! Not only did it come quickly, (under 30 min) it was also nice and hot, also not sticking to the top of the box!! The driver was very personable and courteous and managed to find my location (Unit) without any trouble, even though other delivery drivers from other restaurants have had problems. This location gave me the best Papa John's pizza I have ever had. The thin crust was nice and crispy and the toppings were loaded but not so overloaded that it fell apart. I am definitely going to be ordering another pizza from this papa John's location in the future. BTW, I'm a Professional Chef with 40 yrs in the business and even we get guilty cravings!! ...

Papa John's is always a guilty pleasure of mine and I order it pretty rarely so I keep forgetting that their delivery time takes at least an hour and a half. I saw my pizza had been in the process of being boxed for 20 min so I called and spoke with someone named Zack about me just picking it up. He was very apologetic, offered to warm it up in the oven and said that if I was willing to wait, it would be delivered within 30 min (instead of the hour or so). I agreed because fine. I'd rather not leave my house anyway. The pizza finally gets here within the time frame as promised, I go to open the box and sadly discover that instead of the meatball pizza that I ordered, it's a mushroom pizza (gross). I call back again and speak with a woman this time who apologies, stating it was probably her fault because she's new, and she offers to give me a credit. We briefly talk about sending a new one out but then she says it'll be another hour and a half wait. Nope. I requested a reimbursement instead of a credit which I feel bad about considering everyone had been so polite. After spending 15 min picking out the mushrooms, I'm finally eating dinner but it's not nearly as enjoyable as it could have been and...

Workers had their front doors locked during business hours. Went in for a pick-up, forgot my ID in the car, and front doors were locked both times I tied to go in. Got an upset reaction because I knocked hard to get someone's attention inside to know I was outside after knocking softly over and over without being noticed.

I understand if staff is under a break/lunch or something. But their employee's response was that they feel the neighborhood is "dangerous" during daylight hours.

This isn't some crazy crime-ridden neighborhood inside some inner downtown hood, or ghetto compared to some other parts of CO.

Any pizza joint won't have their doors locked during daylight hours in any neighborhood, unless the employees brought something/someone in after them. No offense to pizza joint owners, but it's not exactly a big score like robbing cash from a bank. Buyer beware of coming to this place, if crazy stuff happening, it's what they're excpecting to happen anytime soon. In this normal neighborhood for...