Tony's New York Pizza in Houston, TX: A Review

Tony's New York Pizza in Houston, TX might have served New York style pizza in the past but what they serve today is anything but. I am from New York and New Jersey and know what New York style pizza should look and taste like, and unfortunately Tony's New York Pizza in Houston, TX is falsely advertising in my opinion. Perhaps the original owners no longer own or manage the pizza joint? That could be the only explanation. Don't go to Tony's New York Pizza in Houston, TX thinking you will eat New York style pizza because you'll be sorely disappointed if you do.

I spotted Tony's Pizza when I was at the strip shopping center to get sushi from Tenshi Sushi (which serves delicious and fresh sushi) because the sign said New York pizza and there was another sign for Gino's Italian ices - something I used to love growing up. So when we were craving pizza, my husband and I made the drive to the Jersey Village area for (supposedly) New York style pizza.

Tony's Pizza in Houston, TX looked like a typical New York pizzeria but that's where the similarities ended. The folks who served us were clearly not from New York and (nor Italy) but I didn't care who was behind the counter as long as the pizza was authentic in taste. My husband and I ordered a 14" pizza with half pepperoni and half mushroom. We waited an extremely long time for our pizza despite the fact Tony's Pizza in Houston, TX was not crowded. And worst of all, I made a point of asking for our pizza to be extra crispy and mine came out almost raw.

The cheese on my side of the pizza was barely melted, the mushrooms were poured from a jar and not even cooked. The dough was not authentic New York style either so overall my pizza was a huge disappointment. I thought I could at least salvage my dinner by enjoying an Italian ice for dessert but sadly that didn't go well either. The ice was just that, ice. Instead of a smooth chocolate Italian ice that had a burst of chocolate flavor, it was chunks of old ice with no flavor. Clearly the Italian ice had been sitting in the freezer for an extremely long time and had lost any essence of a New York style Italian ice.

My husband's half of the pizza was cooked (unlike mine) and looked okay but he did not like the crust nor the cheese and agreed it was not authentic New York style pizza. We took the leftover slices home and my husband ate them the next day. It's amazing how different my mushroom pizza slices looked when they were actually cooked. How could a pizza place not even cook their pizza properly? That's their main priority and they failed miserably. When I went to pay, I complained about my pizza so they knew why they lost a customer.

What I did like about Tony's Pizza in Houston, TX was the plethora of beverage choices. They had fountain drinks, bottled soda (like Boylan root beer), Snapple iced tea , and even Jamaican drinks like melon juice. In addition to pizza, Tony's Pizza serves items like mozzarella sticks, fried calamari, garlic knots, salads, subs, calzones (which looked nothing like New York calzones), pasta, soup, and buffalo wings.

Tony's Pizza is located at 10511 Jones Road, Suite B, Houston, TX, 77065. Their phone number is (281) 469-4106. Visit their website at www.tonyspizzahouston.com.

Note: Tony's Pizza has a second location at 9203 Louetta Road, Spring, TX, 77379 but my review is based on the Jones Road location; therefore, I cannot comment on the Spring location.

*Disclaimer: This review is the opinion of the writer based on her experience on Saturday, January 22, 2011. The writer encourages her readers to visit Tony's Pizza in Houston, TX and formulate their own opinion.