09 - Zachery's Pizza - Oakland

Zachery's Pizza - 5801 College Ave., Oakland, CA 94618, (510) 655-6385

Last Visit - July, 2008

Zachery's Pizza website

“There’s something different about Zachery’s Pizza.” That’s what people usually say to describe Oakland’s favorite deep dish pizza. I can’t say it’s the best pizza out there, but there’s something about it that keeps people coming back to their little corner on College Ave. I mean, one step into their door and you see that they have more awards than types of pizzas. For the residents around there, there’s even a bit of emotional attachment to the hot pies. It’s usually bright eyes and smiles when you say, “Zachery’s for dinner” in Oakland.

In fact, the first time I had Zachery’s pizza, I was in High School. It made me realize that there are pizzas above and beyond the take-out giants. The deep dish feels like they made a gourmet sauce and just poured it onto dough. I recommend the Zachery’s Special, Pepperoni and sausage, and Spinach and Mushroom for vegetarians. There's something for every pizza lover.

I went there last weekend and it was packed as usual. The wait can get up to an hour or more. This was the caveat of Zachery’s, and any great restaurant for that matter; the wait was very long. Never go to Zachery’s when you’re truly starving. You’ll have to settle for the ready-made slices (which is still not bad).

Stores and eateries come and go on College avenue, but Zachery’s will always be there. They also have two branches at Berkeley and San Ramon. They don’t deliver, but you can order it for pick-up. I wish I can say more, but it's just one of those places that people love. They've just celebrated their 25th anniversary, I hope they'll be there for another 25 more.

Yelp's two cents