Friday, February 17, 2017

Gusto Italian Grill (Silver Spring) Food Review

4 Little Pigs at Gusto Italian Grill

Gusto Italian Grill has two locations... Bethesda (which I warmly reviewed, last June) and Silver Spring. I finally found time to visit the latter, last night before a screening of Logan at the nearby Regal Majestic. It's not as good as Bethesda, but their hand crafted pizzas (although conspicuously missing from their website) are worth devouring/investigating.

Ambiance: Looks similar to Bethesda, only darker. Not spotless, but clean... with those same annoying stools (without footrests.) Arghh!


Food: This little piggy went to the market. This little piggy went... into our pizza hall-of-fame? Almost. Gusto's 4 Little Pigs (capicola, pepperoni, salami and Italian sausage with mozzarella, provolone and shredded parmesan cheeses) was a literal work of art. Perfect crust with visible air bubbles, and light char on the edges (but not on the base.) Four different kinds of meat, highlighted by a crispy Italian sausage, that almost brought me to tears. Tasty pepperoni too, although the salami was slightly undercooked. Piping hot, all the way through, with average to above-average cheese and sauce. Crunchy and delicious.

Service: Good enough, but my order took 14 minutes to process. Probably because they were busy preparing to-go (catering?) orders. Cashier was very friendly and polite.

Overall: Gusto really ought to add pizzas to their website: They're really, really good. Fairly priced too ($8.79) and available in traditional, whole grain and (drum roll please) cauliflower crusts. I prefer Bethesda, but one of the better fast food options in Silver Spring.