Punch Pizza Wayzata — Restaurant in Wayzata

First time in a Punch Pizza and sadly was underwhelmed.

The location is easy enough to find, right off the main drag, Wayzata Blvd., next to the Holiday gas station. Also in the building is Chipotle and Jon Charles Hair Salon.

The parking lot is behind the building and I'm uncertain what the correct words are for how awful parking is in the lot. Once you're in the line to crawl around the lot in hopes that someone is backing out and a space will appear, you'll want to pull out your bag of patience and sit there recalling the patience is a virtue. I never was able to park in the lot and ended up driving to a larger lot and walking back about 1/2-mile each direction. I know, as a Minnesotan I should be telling you that I walked in the driving snow, carrying my companions on my back going uphill both ways! (This walk is a positive for being able to get steps in, but not an ideal way to encourage me to head back there anytime soon.)

Once inside, the store smelled terrific! The beehive shaped oven was lovely and the artwork hanging inside is entertaining. Even the cat statue high in the corner adds to the ambience. As you stand in line you get to see the pizzas being created and that was enjoyable.

We got up to the order placing spot and being new it took a moment to know what I needed to do to get the pizza I wanted. I went with the Margherita pizza (has basil) and added sausage, Mount Vesuvio tomatoes, piparras peppers and Gorgonzola. No beverage.

We found a table and sat down with our order number and gabbed about pleasantries. Our pizzas arrived and I had forgotten to grab a knife and fork. I asked for those and was told that "for future use" they are near the beverage station. Thanks for schooling me! Well, in your own lingo, "for future use," if someone asks, perhaps go grab them and when you bring them back let them know they are sitting by beverages.

Took a photo of the personal sized pizza and then pulled one piece out with great anticipation and it was completely limp, wilting down like a sad, gooey, doughy triangle. The outside edge was bubbled and good, but the entire base was moist and gross. The restaurant had gotten busy and I did not have a lot of extra time today so I scraped off the topping and made my own pizza out of toppings and crust edges.

Pros: Smells great!

Cons: Parking is awful. The sad, limp, wilty, moist, gooey,...

This Punch Pizza location has been immensely popular - and usually extremely busy - since it opened, and it's confounding that even after so many years of practice, the customer experience during a rush has really gone downhill.

We ordered a single pizza - nothing exotic - using the app and were informed it would be ready for pickup in 45 minutes. No worries - that's pretty normal for this location. I arrived on time to pick up the order, and the expediter - working under a prominent "Check In" sign - was clearly slammed...and also clearly didn't want to be interrupted with check-ins. But assuming our order was ready at the promised time, I waited for an opening and gave her our name. She searched the pile of order tickets for a while, stopped to respond to another customer, ignored me for another while, and finally told me "We're busy - 15-20 minutes more" and turned away.

I wasn't expecting a hug or a kiss on the forehead, but maybe a light apology for the delay or the offer of a water cup while I waited. Resigned to the indifference, I sat down among a large group of waiting customers...and 25 minutes later she called our name and handed me the pizza. No eye contact, no apology for the wait.

I don't think the expediter was to blame. She was completely overwhelmed. Management should have recognized the bottleneck and given her some help. Or better training to handle long delays affecting hungry customers. Or permission to give customers waiting for delayed orders a free soda or cup of water as a gesture of goodwill. Or reinforcing the concept that ignoring customers doesn't make them magically disappear.

It was a disappointing experience - not one we're eager to repeat.

(On a side note, the pizza wasn't up to the high standard this place usually delivers. Sausage only made it onto half the pizza - sure sign of a rush job - and the sun-dried tomatoes we paid extra for consisted of about 5 tiny strands. Punch usually...

Punch Pizza delivers a far superior taste compared to most pizza options in Minnesota, especially for vegetarians. I highly recommend the Margherita Pizza with Piparras Peppers (see photos)—they are absolutely delicious! While I love almost everything about Punch Pizza, I have to knock off two stars because of their tone deaf and greedy management. For example, they tend to skimp on tomato sauce AND toppings, leaving the outer crust quite dry. Unfortunately, they aren’t very receptive to feedback and every time stick to their explanation for this choice. As a workaround, I now order the "Neo Style" pizza with a bit of extra sauce, and “extra” toppings (what I consider to be normal - see pictures - they charge extra 50% on price of pizza for what is pictured); feels like they want to profit off these little add-ons! Also, overall service/CX is inconsistent (sometimes with seasonal staff, it is borderline unacceptable).

Overall, I go there for taste, not for service. I’ve been a fan of Punch Pizza for more than two decades, ever since we were among their first customers at the original Eden Prairie location. The taste and quality of ingredients truly stand out, delivering what I believe is an authentic Italian flavor (though I haven’t been to Italy myself, this is based on what others have shared over the years).

So, why am I writing this review now after two decades? Recently, I introduced a vegetarian friend to Punch Pizza, and he was a bit lost navigating the menu. That made me realize there might be others like him who could benefit from some tips.

For first-timers: Check out the condiment area! Grab some olive oil, balsamic, and black pepper etc. to garnish your pizza before eating. Many people don’t seem to know about this, but it truly elevates the experience.

Punch Pizza remains one of my favorite pizza spots, and I hope this review helps others, especially vegetarians, enjoy it as...