I was dubious. Hesitant. Incredulous.
How could a gas station convenience store POSSIBLY make a decent pizza?
Well...they do.
Let's start at the beginning.
I made my annual trip to the Davie County Solid Waste Transfer Station (or as everyone else calls it: the dump), and on my way back I had to stop at the Crossroads Mart to tie down a misbehaving empty box. A neon sign in the window declared that inside you could find pizza, wings, subs, stramboli (sic), and calzone. In a convenience store? And not the ubiquitous Hunt Brothers pizza? My curiosity got the best of me, so I went in.
They were not cooking yet, but they had a full fledged commercial grade kitchen and a 97.5 sanitation grade. I asked the clerk about their offerings, and she proudly gave me a menu and bragged about their popularity and touted their delivery service. I took the menu, which has a great deal more than just pizza, and left.
My curiosity continued to smolder until I decided I had to give it a try. As the bank robber said to Clint "Dirty Harry" Eastwood in 1971's Dirty Harry: "I gots to know". (Yes, that is my second Dirty Harry reference in as many days.)
I called the store and a woman with a very deadpan, monotone voice answered. I told her I would like to place an order for delivery--a large pizza with pepperoni and mushrooms. I was flatly told "we're out of mushrooms". No apology. I stammered for a moment as I altered my order, changing it to pepperoni, sausage, and black olives. She asked me to hold, and then a man came on the line to give me my total and flatly said "we'll have it out there as soon as possible". What does THAT mean?
It means 45 minutes.
I'm actually fine with that. I live 13 miles/20 minutes away. The delivery driver also won no points for Mr. Congeniality--he was by no means impolite, but he betrayed no emotion whatsoever, not even when I laid a $10 tip on him!
But it's really all about the pizza, right?
The pizza itself was very respectable, and is a nice departure from the other delivery places. The toppings were tasty and of acceptable portion size. The crust had a very good taste as well. I found myself pleased and pleasantly surprised.
So if you live in the Mocksville area, don't discount this viable pizza option just because it's in a convenience store--they make a good pie! read more