Gluten-free Pizza

Since dropping 80+% of the wheat I used to eat out of my diet, pizza has become a rare treat.  So rare that I never bother with bad pizza any more. Which, until recently meant saving up all my 'wheat points' for the occasional splurge at a really good local spot, like Rainbow Pizza (semi-deep dish) or Applewood (not deep, but not thin crust, either).

Then I stumbled into an Amici's Pizza, a nice local chain. All I wanted was a sense of whether their 'East Coast style' translated to a pie good enough to indulge in. To my amazement, the first item I spied in the heavenly smelling pizzeria was a gluten-free menu.  The real deal - ingredients and prep space kept separate, so that folks with celiac (or otherwise more strict than I) have more assurance of their safety.

But the real test came this weekend, when I returned as a party of three (OK, with 2 guests, not with a giant appetite).  We ordered drinks (soft drinks and gluten-free beer available), no salad or other sides, and two pizzas.  All the gluten-frees are 12-inch, which may help the kitchen keep them segregated from the 4 sizes available on the standard menu.  Were they pricey? Yes. Were they worth it? Oh, yes.

I still won't be eating pizza as casually as I used to, but now I can really enjoy it without worrying about the  side effects.  And I will, soon.  There's a whole menu to work through.