Pete’s Pizza the Calzone King

Pete’s was my favorite indie pizza place in Seattle and I thought its onion, olive, mushroom, and pepperoni calzone was pretty damn good.
RIP Pete’s

Remember video games? Not the kind on your big screen plasma, but the kind that took quarters? Remember when they took quarters? Remember begging mom for «just one more?» while you sucked down your soda, finished your crusts, and zapped your brother with a laser gun? That’s the feeling I got every time I went to Pete’s. It was just a great comfy pizza place with pretty good food and extremely friendly service.
Unfortunately Pete’s closed in January 2007 to be replaced by a Bartel’s Drugs. Moh…

Make that 3.8 stars, but I thought it better to round up this one.
This place touts the worlds greatest Calzone. I’m not a big calzone eater, but I’ve had theirs quite a few times. Very good, but I don’t know if I’m ready to say it’s the world’s best quite yet.
The pizza is yummy. Crispy crust. This place is perfect for not-​so-​fancy pizza and throwing back a few pints in a casual environment.
It’s family friendly too, so sometimes you’ll see locals bringing in kids.
It’s a big Gonzaga place, so be prepared if the Zags are playing.

Pete’s Pizza seems to be run by slacker college students with the munchies who wanted tasty pizza and calzones at their beck and call. As such, the food is tasty, but the service is lacking.
Once your server gets around to taking your order, it’s not too long until your food comes. But you’ll be waiting for him to give you your menu, waiting for him to take your order, waiting for him to bring your drinks, waiting for him to refill drinks, waiting a LONG time for him to bring you the check, waiting even longer for your card to be run or for him to get change, and waiting for a box for the leftover It’s not that they keep you waiting a loooooooooong time, it’s that they keep you waiting for EVERYTHING. It’s all very… deliberate. Okay, okay, it’s just slow.
One time I went to pick up a calzone to go, and I ordered a coke while I was waiting. I’m not sure what, exactly, is so complicated about filling a glass from the beverage gun behind the counter, but it took about eight minutes — and my calzone was done in ten. So I paid two bucks for, like, two ounces of soda. See? Slow. I’m also fairly certain I’ve seen a pot transaction take place at the side door.
Nonetheless, the food is tasty, and relatively cheap.

Pete’s has a nice little pizza parlor feel to it but what they are really know for is the calzone and you know what, they do have damn good calzones. I’m not impressed with the meat ball sub but since everything else is good its fine with me. I used to know a guy who worked here forever and he was cool, so based on that alone you should go to Pete’s.

This joint doesn’t have quite the character that the original Pete’s on Roosevelt has, but definately still the only place to go for a calzone. Moderately priced, you’ll pass the time waiting for your order by playing with the pencil, pad and Pictionary cards they have on the table. The outdoor seating looks a little ragged, but inside is a nice dimly lit area with a tv or two.