When you think pizza, you probably don't think 'health food'.
And don't worry, because despite offering a range of gluten free options, there's nothing healthy about Pizza House in Moortown and to be honest, I'm absolutely fine with that.
There's a bit of a myth, largely perpetuated by mustachioed, gingerbread latte swilling cyclists, that if something is 'gluten free', it must be a healthier option. Some kind of guilt-free better-for-you alternative for a trendy diet.
And while as a Coeliac (ie, a person with a lifelong disease who can't ever eat gluten again), I'm certainly indebted to the hipster crowd for so loudly making gluten free a viable option for businesses up and down the country, nothing could really be further from the truth for gluten free pizza. It's unhealthy, and that's okay.
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Pizza is supposed to be a treat and trust me, whether you go gluten free or gluten full, Pizza House is absolutely delicious. The north Leeds pizzeria offers a good range of toppings, as well as half-and-half for the indecisive types and a build-your-own option in case you want to freestyle it completely.
The sun came out this week, so I immediately felt continental and I opted for a gluten free Spanish Treat, which offered chorizo, chicken, onions and green peppers, and since Reach PLC is footing the bill I pushed to boat out and ordered extra bacon for 80p.
My better half went for a gluten full BBQ base pulled pork pizza, with red onions and green peppers. Hers was £10.20 for 10" and I paid the gluten free tax and was charged £11.60 for a 10" pizza.
The pizza itself was delicious. A gorgeous, chewy stonebaked base - even on the gluten free dish - covered with generous lashings of chewy, stringy, bendy, supple cheese. What I love about independent pizza places is that they put the toppings below the cheese, so it initially looks like they forgot some of the toppings but then you bite into a slice and discover they're baked right into the cheese itself underneath and within. It's absolutely top notch and I don't know why Pizza Hut and Dominoes don't seem to do it.
Speaking of - yes, this pizza is far superior to both of the aforementioned. And unlike the Big Two, you also get the gluten free pizza SLICED FOR YOU. The big chains refuse to slice gluten free themselves due to 'contamination risk', which is odd because Pizza House told me they came up with this amazing work-around: they bought another pizza cutter. I'm not joking, if you order Pizza Hut gluten free you literally have to slice it yourself and it's not even a round pizza, just a sort of funny little square. Not so here!
If you don't like these though Pizza House has several other options: Bolognese, Calabrian with Nduja sausage, Tandoori, meat feast, four seasons, Mexican spicy... to name just a few. And if you don't like any of them you can make a custom one from scratch.
I can't eat the gluten full pizza obviously but my girlfriend tried a bit of both and she said the two were virtually indistinguishable. She told me the base was a little softer on the gluten full one - which is understandable when you have good ol' wheat available - but otherwise they were identical and she'd happily eat either.
There's also plenty of sides on offer including nuggets, chicken strips, garlic breads, dough bites, lasagne and even a range of vegan choices including vegan pizzas, garlic bread and cheesy chips.
In all, Pizza House is pretty reasonably priced and it's a delicious indie eatery with great dietary options to boot. It's the best gluten free pizza I've ever had from a takeaway and it easily beats the 'big boys' on both taste and value.
And yes, they do offer pineapple on pizza too, but don't let that put you off.
Order at https://order.pizzahousecompany.co.uk/ or call 0113 2666666
What we ordered:
10" gluten free Spanish treat pizza £11.60
10" thin crust BBQ pulled pork pizza £10.20
+extra bacon 80p
£3 delivery charge
Total: £25.60 MINUS 20 per cent online order discount (£4.52) which brought the total to £21.08
Pizza House, 302 Harrogate Road, Moortown, Leeds LS17 6LY
