Unknown Food Critic

Mo' than enough at "Mo's Pizza"

Mo's Pizza is located at 1112 Avenue H, Westwego, 341-9650

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	Perfect Performers 4 out of 4 on the belt scale
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Pizza. How's the saying go, "Even when it's bad, it's good." Like all food lovers, the bubbly-crusted, sauce-laden, cheese and meat concoction is the character actor in our culinary lives. You know that guy you see in a bunch of movies, somehow always hanging around in the background, but usually good for a laugh or two. That's pizza. It's always around, ready to satisfy, and while you may remember having eaten good pie in your life, the majority of it just kind of blends together. Well just like the character actor finally landing his first leading role, every once in a while you really get a fantastic slice that you never forget. This week's restaurant had that recipe in both size and flavor. Gather round, cause we're Westbank bound, heading to Mo's Pizza.

Atmosphere:
The latest incarnation of Mo's is a far cry from its humble beginnings. (The original restaurant was located in a mobile home and burned down last year.) The new structure is a massive warehouse (a none-too-subtle hint on the heft of the dishes) that looks somewhat like a high school gymnasium. The high school theme is further exaggerated when you walk in and discover a bevy of teenagers manning the post in a Westbank version of Lord of the Flies. (It really seemed as if there wasn't an employee over the age of 17, but you know what? They sure can make a pie.) Anyway, while there weren't too many personal touches in the somewhat cavernous dining area, Mo's design is the ideal setting for eating mass quantities of their tasty grub.

Service:
As you've probably gathered, Mo's doesn't have the traditional table service. Whereas at most joints you'd have a server toting your food out to you and waiting patiently to refill your drink, they take somewhat of a different tact at Mo's. After you place your order, you sit and wait for one of the youngsters to shout your number. It's actually kind of fun. (The best part is watching everybody's face when there's a number being called. As soon as they hear it, everyone checks there card and is either elated or crestfallen. Even though I knew my number backwards and forward, #87, I guarantee you I checked every time they yelled.) But even though it is somewhat of a serve yourself, the staff at Mo's serves you with a smile and makes you feel right at home.

Entrees:
Well with a name like Mo's Pizza I guess there's really no surprise as to what my podna and I ordered (and actually I had to bring a back-up running partner because Mo's reputation had preceded itself). So y'all know we hit the ground full-tilt boogie and ordered the large supreme pizza. Now I am known for a touch of exaggeration on occasion, especially when I get excited about something, but man the next few things I'm gonna tell you are no joke.

This is the biggest single piece of food I have ever seen.
My mouth hit the floor when it came out. Most large New-York style pizzas run about 22 inches. This thing was hanging a good 2, 2 ½ inches over the edge of the pan. It was cut into 16, 13-inch long, 5-inch wide slices of heaven. And rest assured, to go along with such massive size was an extremely tasty pie. Loaded with a slew of toppings, including mushrooms, peppers, olives, pepperoni, and Italian sausage, which by the way was cut pepperoni style, an innovation that they should patent as soon as possible.

Seriously, I really want to convey to all of you headstrong diners out there, this large supreme is not to be underestimated. It is the most gargantuan pizza you've ever seen. The only thing I would change about this would have been to cook it about 5 minutes longer, because I like my pie extra crispy

Believe it or not, we actually managed to try two other items at Mo's, the muffuletta and the lasagna. The muffuletta at Mo's hangs with any of the other Italian sandwiches served around the city. Like I said in my po-boy search, you can't underestimate the power of toasted bread. One of the main reasons their muffuletta rises above is the fact that they pass it through the pizza oven. It gives the whole sandwich a great overall crunch and lightly melts the cheese along the way. Also the homemade olive salad is full of big chunky olives and onions, giving the sandwich a personal touch.

As far as the lasagna goes, it was the only disappointing dish we had. First of all I was in a hole because of its competition. Also I thought the tomato sauce was a tad too sweet. However, the ridiculous creaminess made up for quite a bit of its shortcomings.

Price:
As far as bang for your buck, you can't beat Mo's Pizza. The pizza ran $19, so if you figure, that's less than a dollar per inch for the 24-inch pie. The lasagna and the muffuletta were also very moderately priced, and as I'm sure you gathered, both are equally filling.

Overall:
Mo's Pizza is a great example of a place you've got to take at face value. There's not a lot of personality in the cavernous building (although with time I'm sure it will become an entity in its own right), but the boisterous nature of the place does rub off on you. The pizza alone, with its amazing girth and heft, is worth the trip. Just make sure you don't go alone, because any less than four people, four very hungry people, should not tackle the large. As far as non-pizza items go, the lasagna was nothing out of this world, but the muffuletta, like many of the patrons would gladly share with you "is the Best on the 'Bank."

Mo's Pizza gets a very strong 2 out of 4 on the belt scale.

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