Critic's Review
Blaze opened last week, and I was on my way to somewhere else when I remembered, so I hit the Cypress Creek West exit and I was here.
It's set up in a fast casual former, where you go up to the counter and you buy your goods. The big concept is little pizzas with unlimited toppings.
Upon walking in, the place was dead empty at 2:05pm. "Welcome to Blaze" someone screamed. The first thing I noticed is that there were way too many people behind the counter.
You have the choice of ordering "signature pizzas", or a build your own where you can put anything you want on it. I don't see the point of ordering a fixed pie when I can just order what I want. So I went with the "Build your own" for $7.95.
No tricks or gimmicks, you get as much stuff as you want on the pizza for one price. I went with "classic" sauce, pepperoni, meatballs, sausage, and mushrooms. The counter girls make the pizza. No skill required to make these pies.
Beverage station included soda, lemonade, sweet and unsweetened tea, but no fresh lemon. It is possible that 3 places next to each other don't have lemon for Ice Tea? I had to put some lemonade it, but it wasn't what I wanted.
After you order your pizza, you sit down and wait. They have one wall painted with a big ad that tries to convey the idea that you can be freed by getting what you want on a pizza. Can't you order what you want on a pizza just about anywhere?
They don't have a sound system or beepers here; the pizza guy just yells out your name and you have to go to fetch your pizza. With 8 people standing around and 2 people in the dining room you't think someone could bring it over. So this isn't fast-casual; this is fast food.
The pizza only took a few minutes to cook; that's part of the concept: 180 seconds to cook a pizza. The result is that some of the bigger chunked things don't get fully cooked. Meatballs, mushrooms and sausage are just warm and not browned the way a regular pizza would be.
It's not a bad tasting pizza, but it doesn't really seem like a real pizza either. Sort of like something you'd get at a bar or in the mall. Maybe a good frozen pizza.
The crust is very thin and a little burned. I'm not sure if the burn is charm or if they need to clean the oven better.
Not a cheesy, gooey slice, but I suppose you could ask for more cheese.
They have little take home boxes that are designed to fit 1/2 of a pizza. I had a little snack at night.
There you have it. Fast Food, build it yourself pizza now in Fort Lauderdale.
Conclusion
Reading other reviews, I'm baffled by people saying things like "Love the concept". Every time you order pizza you "build your own". The big difference is that they don't charge you for each item here, and it's a better price than you'd pay since most pizza places rip you off when you order multiple toppings. If you're like me and think that the crust and cheese are what makes a great pizza, you likely won't be impressed. I liked the pizza, but I'm not coming here when I want pizza. I'm getting a real pizza made by a pizza guy in a classic pizza oven. While these 11" pizzas are a better value than the 12" bar pies you get at a tavern, you're not really at the bar to eat pizza. You pay the higher price because the alternative is to buy a $15. burger. I have a lot of other choices for lunch.
