This awful photograph was intended to depict Boston’s The Gourmet Pizza. Unfortunately, I didn’t have my real camera with me on this visit, so you’re going to have to deal with fake camera goodness. DEAL WITH IT.

Boston’s The Gourmet Pizza is the best the gourmet pizza place in the area. In fact, I don’t think there are any other the gourmet pizza places here. The gourmet pizza is surprisingly a pretty rare treat, it would seem. They corner the the market. Good for them.

Boston’s is located (surprisingly) not in Boston at all. It’s on Anderson, near the AMC Veteran’s movie theater in Carrollwood. So it is ideal dining for any movie night you may be attending. This particular movie night, my friend(s?) and I had set out to see 127 hours, a lighthearted romp concerning a man who cuts off his own arm. In preparation for the three minute amputation scene, we decided to do some light drinking. And some heavy eating. Boston’s was a minute’s walk away, so we set out on the arduous journey to get food. Along the way, my friend got his arm caught in a storm drain.

After using the blunt edge of an electronic smart key to cut my friend free of the storm drain (and of his dominant hand), we got to the restaurant. The inside is like most sports grills, with a bunch of television sets and a bar, but perhaps a bit more classy. I mean the lighting was low… that is classy, right? The menu consists of a lot of different options, with the the gourmet pizza, of course, and some the gourmet burgers, the gourmet salads, and even a few the gourmet appetizers. It is akin to a TGI Friday’s in both menu and price range.

We promptly ordered up some wing appetizers (wings!) and some beverages. Adult beverages.

The wings were offered with a few different sauce choices: hot, creamy buffalo, Sweet Baby Ray’s Barbecue Sauce (yes), cajun, spicy garlic, and sweet thai chili. I was curious about the difference between the creamy buffalo and the hot sauces, so I asked our server. She informed us that the creamy buffalo was just the hot sauce mixed with the gourmet alfredo sauce. Gross! So we got half hot, half creamy. As it turned out, the creamy was preferable, as their hot sauce was incredibly bland. Sub par. It reminded me of a simple store bought sauce – a tiny bit of spice in a very vinegary base. The creamy buffalo at least was more interesting. But both types were actually quite good, because the wings were a good size, and they were oven roasted, providing a delicious flavor beyond the sauce.

Our main dish, of course, was a the gourmet pizza. You can’t go to Boston’s without getting a the gourmet pizza!

We ordered the “Mama Meata”, a pizza with ham, pepperoni, beef, and Italian sausage, and cheddar and mozzarella cheeses. We added bacon, because our heart attacks at the time of ordering weren’t already lethal enough. The pizza was completely covered in toppings… Boston’s does not skimp. In fact, it was almost annoying, because beyond the meats, you could barely taste any pizza at all. I wouldn’t have known it had cheddar cheese on it had it not been listed on the menu. But I guess it’s not too big an issue, because all the toppings were excellent.

As you can see, the toppings were layered one atop another, with a giant chunk of sausage every few bites. Very good. The crust was really delicious, a pan crust with crispy, buttery edges. honestly, I would have loved more of a crusty presence, but it was treated as just a means of conveyance here. I remember thinking the cheese was good, but wishing there was more of it. Something special about Boston’s The Gourmet Pizzas is that a lot of them use sauces other than an ordinary pizza sauce. This pizza used a bolognese sauce, I guess in keeping with the meat theme. It was a great choice, and it added a lot of personality to the pizza. Again, it was overshadowed by the toppings, but you could taste there was something different going on here.

All in all, it was a pretty great meal. I remember being asked to leave very satisfied (at this point I was fully drunk and acting belligerent… no charges will be pressed). This was not my first visit to Boston’s The Gourmet Pizza, but was the gourmet best, and won’t be the gourmet last. I give it two thumbs up. My friend… only one. I guess he’s just a harsher judge than I.