The number one question I get from guests at my A Whole Lot Of Awesome Air BnB is about eating options. As I tried to explain in this post, Juneau does not rank high on any sort of walkability scale. My little nest is located in the Mendenhall Valley which is akin to the suburbs and while there are restaurants, you generally need transportation of some form to get to any of them.
Enter the Great Pizza Delivery Taste Test Experiment!
Since food delivery is an option that interests most of my guests, I, with a little help from the Thunder Mountain High School 2019-2020 Girls’ Cross Country Team, set out to discover the best pizza delivery options available in Juneau, Alaska.
We did the heavy lifting so you don’t have to.
The perameters of this experiment were simple. I set about ordering the same kind and size of pizza from four different and popular local pizza establishments, located within a 2.5 mile radius of our home. Two of these establishments were chain restaurants you find anywhere in the U.S. The other two were popular local establishments. All were located in the Mendenhall Valley, as opposed to downtown Juneau, so this is not an exhaustive list but I wanted to compare similar variables like size, price, taste and delivery time.
Juneau Pizza
The first place I called was Juneau Pizza. Obviously, this was one of the popular, local establishments. I phoned at 5:22 p.m. and ordered a 16″, BBQ chicken pizza. They have 6 different sizes ranging from a 10″ personal pizza to a 28″ crowd-pleaser. I made up those titles, they just run with the measurements. The 16″ would have fallen under the large category. Juneau Pizza doesn’t have a website but they do have a Facebook page where you can find their menu and phone number. I asked for the pizza to be cut into 16 pieces and was told it would be delivered in 30-45 minutes.
Bullwinkle’s
I next called Bullwinkle’s at 5:24 p.m. Bullwinkle’s is the second and final local establishment on our list and they have been around, according to their website, for over three decades. They also have a Facebook page but then again, who doesn’t? I ordered a large, BBQ chicken pizza which I was told was 15 inches in diameter. I also asked for it to be cut into 16 slices. I was told it would be delivered in 30-45 minutes.
Domino’s
I called Domino’s at 5:28 p.m. and ordered the Memphis BBQ pizza. Like the others, I ordered a 16″, which is their extra large, and I wanted it cut into 16 slices. I was told delivery would be in 30 minutes.
Papa John’s
The final call and order of the night was to Papa John’s at 5:30 p.m. As per the rest of the establishments, I ordered a 16″ or extra large, BBQ chicken pizza and requested it to be cut into 16 slices. I was told it would be 30 minutes for delivery.
The Results
The first pizza to arrive was from Domino’s at 5:53 p.m. This equated to a delivery time of 25 minutes, well within the 30 minute time frame given to me at the time of the order. The pizza was cut into 16 slices, as requested and it measured at 16″ in diameter as advertised. The final cost came to $27.73 with tip. Being a carb fan, I really appreciate the crust on this pizza … I love the doughy goodness. There was a substantial amount of cheese and large slices of chicken. The sauce was tasty but sparse … I would have been happy with extra.
The second pizza to arrive was from Bullwinkle’s at 5:56 p.m. which was a 32 minute delivery time, within the 30-45 minute timeframe. It came with a couple of bags of complimentary popcorn which is one of the perks of Bullwinkle’s pizza. The pizza itself was cut into 18 slices as opposed to the 16 per my request. I ordered the large which was supposed to be 15″ in diameter but when measured was actually only 14″. The crust was very thin and the bottom was very pale, like a saltine cracker and tough like cardboard and frankly, overdone. Though to be honest, I am not sure how they achieved that since the underside didn’t appear to be cooked at all. The chicken pieces were small and sparse but there was some green onion added which gave it a nice color contrast. The total cost, with tip came to a whopping $39.58.
Juneau Pizza delivered the 3rd pizza 40 minutes after the order, at 6:02 p.m. The crust was substantial … a happy medium between the very thin Bullwinkle’s crust and the dough-y Domino’s crust. I measured it at 16″ which was exactly what I ordered. It was light in color and looked like it could have baked a couple of minutes longer, but it was crispy, done and delicious and really reminded me of homemade crust. Having made LOTS of homemade pizza, I not only appreciated this but really enjoyed it. There was LOTS of chicken on this pizza and the sauce was really tasty. The total cost of this pizza came to $30.88 with tip.
Our final pizza was delivered by Papa John’s at 6:05 p.m. which was 35 minutes after our order and five minutes later than they indicated. It measured at 15″ which was smaller than the 16″ pizza I ordered. The crust fell into that happy medium category … not too thin, not too thick. It was well-baked and the BBQ sauce was delicious … the best out of the four in my opinion. However, there wasn’t a lot of chicken. It was only cut into 10 pieces as opposed to the 16 slices I requested so I ended up cutting some of the bigger slices in half. The final total cost, with tip, was $30.71.
The Final Vote
The TMHS Cross Country Girls team tried each of the four kinds of pizza and voted accordingly:
- Papa John’s: 6 votes
- Juneau Pizza: 4 votes
- Domino’s: 1 vote
- Bullwinkle’s: 0 votes
The girls were voting based on taste and didn’t consider the other criteria by which I was evaluating each pizza. These criteria were:
- Cost
- Value
- Size
- Appearance
- Delivery time
- Taste
It was a very close contest between Juneau Pizza and Papa John’s … the two were almost equal in cost with only a $.17 difference. Juneau Pizza had the better crust and was more generous with the chicken. Papa John’s also had a very good crust and a really delicious BBQ sauce. Two additional marks against Papa John’s is that the pizza we receive actually measured 15″ in diameter as opposed to the 16″ pizza that was advertised. Also, it was delivered in 35 minutes which was outside of the 30 minute time frame that I was given at the time of order.
If you’re on a super tight budget, Domino’s is the way to go and would go a long way to filling your belly. In dead last, not surprisingly from past personal experience, is Bullwinkle’s. Due to sub-standard quality, high price and meager value, Bullwinkle’s would only be my choice if I had a free coupon to order from there. The two bags of free popcorn were not worth the smaller, low-quality pizza and the almost $10 higher price.
All things considered and the fact that I am interested in supporting local businesses, my vote for overall winner of the Great Pizza Delivery Taste Test Experiment is Juneau Pizza.
Great. Now I’m hungry. I may have to order a pizza.
Thus concludes the great Pizza Delivery Experiment. I hope you had as much fun reading as we did conducting this taste test. If you are ever in Juneau and order pizza, let us know where you went and what you thought!
Cheers!
Teresa