Neighborhood Place Peppers delivers on pizza, other specialties

Pizza in America comes in many forms with each camp holding true that their style pizza is the only way to make the creation. There is thin pizza in New York area that is lightly sauced with ingredients and cheese that is cooked in a wood or coal oven to lightly char the crust a keep it chewy.

The large slice is eaten sometimes folded like a sandwich.

Then you have the deep-dish Chicago style that is pizza dough pressed into a giant cake pan with lots of ingredients and cheese. When completed, the pizza “cake” renders huge heavy slices that are eaten with a fork and knife. California uses the pizza crust as a delivery vehicle for unusual combinations of locally grown products that are available like avocado and goat cheese. With all these variations and personal preferences, I think there is one thing each group would agree. Pizza is delicious and is here to stay!

I was looking for a place to take the family out for a meal and we chose Peppers Pizzeria. It is a cozy little place in downtown Thibodaux. It is a corner building that just feels like a neighborhood or borough spot to dine.

Peppers also has two locations in Houma. One is behind Martin Luther King Boulevard that offers nighttime music and bands in the lounge and the other is a small spot on Grand Caillou Road on the east side of Houma.

We started out the meal with the red hot pepper poppers ($5.95) served with a raspberry chipotle sauce. The poppers are a red pepper stuffed with cream cheese then battered, breaded and fried. They arrived piping hot and crisp so I plunged one into the cool sweet sauce.

My taste buds came alive and I was happy as I experienced a nice crunch from the toasted coating and a warm creamy center. I felt a little heat from the pepper as the sweet sauce completed the sensation going on in my mouth.

I also ordered some honey-baked wings ($5.99/8 pieces).

The wings were delicious. They had been glazed with a sweet, sticky sauce that had almost caramelized the chicken drummettes. I thoroughly enjoyed this dish.

For the main meal, we ordered two 12-inch round pizza pies. The first was the Triple Pepperoni ($13.99/12-inch). It was just pepperoni, sauce and cheese – but lots of it. I tasted pepperoni flavor in every bite.

The second was a Greek pizza ($14.79/12-inch) that combined pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, spinach, black olives, feta and house cheese. All the flavors worked well together and without one flavor overpowering the others.

I don’t usually get to stray too far from the traditional pepperoni when dining with my wife but she stretched her boundaries and was pleasantly surprised with the Greek pizza. We would certainly order this one again.

What I noticed first about both pizzas was the golden and glistening crust. It seemed like oil had been brushed over the crust to perfectly color it evenly and appear shine when delivered to the table. This is something that seems unique to Peppers and lends to a great presentation. Most of the pizzas come with a hand-tossed type crust that has a nice rim of risen dough.

Other unique pizza selections are Jambalaya, Taco Fiesta, Hawaiian Special and Bacon Double Cheeseburger. Peppers also offers a pizza called the Kitchen Sink in 16 inches ($29.99) that is square cut, reminiscent of Johnny’s pizza from north Louisiana, and that has most all ingredients in the kitchen except the sink.

Another dish I have had on a past trip was a Combo Calzone ($9.99). These are basically pizza dough filled with sauce, meat and cheese then folded over into what resembles a giant meat pie and served with a little marinara for dipping.

The Combo comes with house cheese, sauce, pepperoni, Italian sausage and Genoa salami. I find them delicious. They also have pasta dishes and even sandwiches.

I noticed on the menu a good selection of beers on tap and most all the Abita beers that are locally produced in Louisiana.

Overall Peppers is a nice place to take the family or get together with friends in a relaxed atmosphere and eat some good food. They offer a unique and diverse menu and execute the food well, which is some of the necessary criteria for a restaurant to be a success. Do yourself a favor and give one of their locations near you a try.

Peppers Pizzeria 600 W. 3rd St., Thibodaux – 541 Corporate Drive, Houma – 831 Grand Caillou Road, Houma Restaurant Hours: Thibodaux Location: M-W 11 a-10p • Th-Sa 11a-2:45a • Sun 4-9p Houma Locations: M-Sa 11a-10p • Sun 4-9pm