Naked Pizza on Breckenridge in St. Matthews is doing what you folks in the biz call a "soft open" this week (there's a joke in there, but I shall resist). I just finished sampling my first pie from there.
As a frame of reference, keep in mind that we've been in Louisville for a mere six months. We haven't tried all pizzas the area has to offer, but we're working on it. What we have tried includes Impellizeri's, Wick's, Bearno's, Boombozz, Danny Mac's, Clifton's and yes, even Papa John's (AKA "work-related").
As I like to do, I started simple, to see how Naked handles the basics. This time it included pepperoni and mushrooms.
First, the concept: Nutritious pizza. I prefer the words "tasty" and "pizza" together, but if you're into reading labels on your food, this is your place.
The crust on a Naked pizza is advertised as whole grain. Again, if that's your thing, good on you, Wilford Brimley breath. Then again, the taste of the crust is actually very good. It's a thin crust, and tasted more like a bread crust. Not crispy, but still good.
One floor up was the sauce. Just so you know where I'm coming from, I like my pizza sauce to have a bit of seasoning - something I can say "now that's Italian" about and mean it. The Naked sauce tastes kind of fresh and tomato-y. Full stop. On one solitary bite of one piece I could taste basil. Otherwise, it was bordering on bland.
The toppings were telling as well. I've had better pepperoni, but this was okay, and the pizza had a good distribution. Unlike many other pies I've had in the area, the mushrooms were fresh, but skimpy. As toppings go I'd say the 'shroom to 'roni ratio was one to three.
On top of it all, the cheese was just not what I expected. I've had cheese on pizzas that was ooey gooey chewy with a nice brown color. Others have been that soft, fresh mozzarella that melts in your mouth. In my book, both are good. The Naked cheese was more of a "meh." As cheese goes, not really robust, not really light. Presenting the perception of quality, but kind of missing the mark in taste and texture.
But this pizza is reasonably priced for what you get. a 14-inch Naked (I'm wavering here, but still no joke) cheese pie is $6.99. Add other toppings at $1.89 per. Including tax, title and license the pepperoni mushroom pizza set me back $11.42.
Finally, if you're looking for ambiance, there ain't none. Naked Pizza is pick-up or delivery only. Good luck finding parking if you're going to pick it up, depending on the time of day.
Will I give them another try? Since they're close to home, probably. I just wish somebody had let me know that you don't have to be naked to pick it up. How embarrassing.
