Papa Joe’s Pizza & Subs West

Great food and great service. The pasta is the best. I have been a customer of this restaurant for a few years now and I have not had any problems. I recommend this restaurant.

If you have read my other reviews regarding pizza in Central PA, you know that I am on a quest to find the areas best pizza. I have had the distinct pleasure of eating at a lot of fine pizzerias in the area, and although Papa Joe’s is decent, there was enough of a fair mix of ‘highs’ and ‘lows’ for me to recommend some other places above them.
Food: My father and I decided to go grab some pizza for dinner, and we were both in the mood for one topped with mushrooms and sausage. In addition, we also placed an order for their hot wings. As I mentioned in the intro, there were several things that I would like to applaud Papa Joe’s for. First, the wings were great. For ‘hot’ the level of heat was perfect. Additionally, they came-​off the fryer with a nice crispiness to them. That is the key to a good wing. Soggy wings? Hell no. I like it when they have a nice crisp exterior, but still a juicy and tender interior. They did a great job in this regard.
Another ‘high’ for me was the side of bleu cheese. It was really good bleu cheese. Do they make it homemade? No, probably not; but it paired perfectly with this wing. Lastly, regarding the bleu cheese, they actually gave us some! There are so many places out there that skimp to holy hell on the bleu cheese. You know what I mean! They give you this tiny little plastic cup with about 2 teaspoons of bleu cheese in it. Seriously, that may be enough for one bite, but not a whole order! Papa Joe’s gives you a fully appropriate serving of bleu — very rare.
In terms of a complaint of the wings, one wing was under-​cooked. I know, weird, right? All the others were perfect, and one was not. Must’ve been added to the fryer late, or something. Also, the hot sauce was good, but there was way too much of it. I don’t like my wings drowning in sauce. Next time, I would ask for it on the side and dress my own.
Wings: ⁴⁄₅
In terms of the pizza, it was OK. There were a lot of things wrong, and a couple of things good. First, there was not enough sauce to balance out the other flavors. The pizza was overly salty, not in an inedible way, but to the point where we were downing glasses of water an hour later. Because of the toppings, there should have been a little less cheese. I am all for cheese on my pizza, but in combination with everything else, it was just too much.
Additionally, the cheese was not cooked properly. It was a mass of white goo on top of the pizza. It needed to be cooked a little longer as to get those beautiful little golden-​brown bubbles on top — that is where the flavor is at. What is funny, is we took the rest of the pizza home and popped it under the broiler for 3 – 5 minutes to achieve that consistency. The consumer shouldn’t have to do that. Cook your pizza right!
On a high note, I love sausage like theirs. I prefer mine in thin slices instead of crumbled. It is so much better that way. Also, I love canned mushrooms on my pizza (the only thing I like canned mushrooms on). Fresh mushrooms get a strange consistency on pizza. When you use canned mushrooms though, you have to drain them really, really well, or some of the leftover moisture makes the pizza a little soggy.
Pizza: ²⁄₅
Overall Food: ³⁄₅
Service: The service was prompt and respectful, but a little forgetful. No plates?
Service ³⁄₅
Atmosphere: I really liked the clean and inviting atmosphere. There was even an employee sweeping the entryway which shows that they give a crap about appearance. Additionally, the décor and the environment was really relaxing and chill. I would love to come back here with my family, I just wish the food was a little better.
Atmosphere: ⁴⁄₅
Price: $ 27.00 for a large pizza and a dozen wings with two drinks. Ehhhh… a little pricey if you ask me. There are great pizza /​wing deals all around town for about $ 20 — maybe $ 22 after tax and such. Because of that, I do not feel like I got my money’s worth, and would come back.
Price: ²⁄₅
Final Thoughts: Pizza places in Harrisburg are like idiots in the world — plentiful. As such, there are a few other places I would recommend before Papa Joe’s. Though, don’t let that discourage you from checking them out if it’s been on your list. It is worth one visit to see if it is your type of place. For me, I am going to Boston Express, every time.

First of all no pepper relish for the Italian subs. Even Subway has that. Kid didn’t know how to work the register, scrubby guys cooking were very rude to another customer. They were scraping the dirt out of pizza oven while there was a sub roll in there toasting! I’m sure the debris was all over the roll. I high tailed it out of there! No thanks!

Ordered a chicken Caesar salad. The chicken was pre-​made and it had tomatoes and no croutons. Chicken ranch wrap fell apart and was a mess.