Pizza House, Ann Arbor

 

Pizza House 

Pizza House, a rather large establishment in Ann Arbor, had an outsize role in my undergraduate days at the University of Michigan.  I think that I probably have that in common with everyone who has passed through U of M since Pizza House was founded in 1986 (good company, to be sure).  It was an important destination up until I got a car, because it was one of only two hamburger-serving establishments near campus that stayed open after 2 am.  I've had more than one 3:30 meal there over the years.

  

Note the plasma screen/fire place combination.

I could have gone at 3:30 last Friday, but instead my friend Joey and I went at a reasonable dinner hour.  They remodeled completely a few years ago.  Today, it feels a lot like a sports bar, crossed with a ski lodge.  I think it was the combination of the wood paneling on everything and the large number of sports programs framed on the walls.  Almost all of the programs were for old U of M games; 'Ann Arbor' was a strong third theme.  Joey and I were actually seated next to a huge mural that crammed more A2 references onto a single wall than I thought possible (and this was a big wall).

 

Imagine this mural bigger and less blurry, and you'll get the idea.

The service was a bit slow.  It's not really that important, but it was actually slow enough to warrant mention.

 

The burger was grilled, and served on a toasted but fairly straight white bun.  The strong plainness of the bun served to accentuate the taste of the meat.  The burger was juicy, but not overly so.  It's a 'take you out of commission' burger; once I was done eating it, all I could do for a good 15 minutes was sit.  

If the last paragraph feels like burger filler, that's because it was.  What can I say?  The burger was unremarkably good. An uninspiring, pleasant eating experience.

The fries were steak fries.  The thickness of the fries gave their interior a certain level of cookedness (or uncookedness, as the case may be), and there was a nice contrast between the consistency of the fry exterior, the interior, and the fried potato skin (which was abundant on each fry).  The fries were slightly salted, I think with seasoned salt.  I'm usually not a big fan of steak fries, but these are the exception.  My only complaint: there were not enough of them.

Thus far, I've failed to mention Pizza House's most famous quality, and I'd be remiss in my duties if I never got around to mentioning that quality.  Pizza House costs a lot.  It's not exactly an expensive restaurant, but anything you order there will cost at least a dollar more than it will anywhere else.  The food is always high quality (I haven't actually gotten a pizza there in many years, but I remember it as the best I've had), but I really don't feel that the gain in quality one gets by going to Pizza House justifies the loss funds it entails.

That said, I can say for sure I'll be back.  Aside from the terrible dorm kitchens, no place can match it for college nostalgia.  And even if that wasn't true, there's bound to be a time in the future when it's 2:01, and I'm hungry.

Joey's clearly forced smile fits right in at Pizza House.