When the stomach is growling and pizza is on the mind, quickness and taste are in high demand.

“Well, usually when I order pizza it’s a last minute decision,” said Amanda Gardner, a junior in family and consumer science education. “I want the best quality and quick service.”

In a comparison of local pizza establishments, the Iowa State Daily ordered half-sausage, half-pepperoni medium pizzas from four different delivery pizza places.

Domino’s Pizza, 620 Lincoln Way; Home Team Pizza, 2426 Lincoln Way; Pizza Hut, 2712 Lincoln Way; and Pizza Pit, 207 1/2 Welch Ave.; were all called by Daily staff members at 4:14 p.m. All four restaurants advertise for quick delivery.

A Domino’s Pizza employee said the regular-crust pizza would arrive at the Daily within 40 minutes and cost $8.72. One Home Team Pizza employee said the pizza with regular crust would be delivered in less than 30 minutes and cost $5.29. A pizza with thin crust from Pizza Hut would arrive within 30 minutes and cost $9.53. Pizza Pit’s regular-crust pizza cost $8.75, and an employee said it would be delivered in 30 to 40 minutes.

Michael Taylor, a Home Team Pizza deliverer and a senior in computer science and MIS, arrived to the Daily in exactly 15 minutes.

Taylor, who has worked at Home Team Pizza for one year, said quickness is an important aspect of his job. “We have the fastest drivers in Ames,” he said.

Home Team Pizza employees, Taylor said, drive their own cars when delivering and have a lot of fun while doing it.

“It’s fun. I get to meet people everyday,” he said.

Taylor said he was proud of Home Team Pizza for getting its pizza to the Daily quickly.

“I think it’s cool,” Taylor said. “We won!”

Both Domino’s and Pizza Pit arrived at 4:37, only 23 minutes after calling time. Pizza Hut came one minute later.

All four pizza restaurants made it under their predicted time limit.

Gardner, our student “pizza taster,” judged the pizzas first by their appearance.

“The Pizza Pit pizza is the most appealing,” Gardner said. “It doesn’t look burnt or greasy.”

Gardner said the Pizza Hut pizza was the least appealing. “It was too burnt, but it did have the most sausage and pepperoni,” she said.

She said Pizza Hut’s “chunkier meat” advertisement did hold true as it won first place for topping quantity, but the burnt pizza made it the worst of the four.

The best crust, Gardner said, was on the Domino’s pizza. “The crust wasn’t too crispy or doughy,” she said. “It was cooked just right.”

The sauce, she said, tasted the best on the Pizza Pit pizza. It was thicker than the other sauces and had a distinct taste. Pizza Pit also had the most cheese on top of its pizza.

Gardner said Domino’s pizza was the best tasting overall.

“The crust was perfect, the pizza was really hot and the toppings were really delicious,” she said. “Overall, I think Domino’s was the best.”

Gardner said if quickness is on the top of your pizza priority list, Home Team Pizza is the place to go, but if quality is most important, then Domino’s takes the cake.

P I Z Z A W A R S

BEST TIME: HOME TEAM

BEST APPEARANCE: PIZZA PIT

MOST TOPPINGS: PIZZA HUT

MOST CHEESE: PIZZA PIT

BEST TASTING: DOMINO’S

BEST SAUCE: PIZZA PIT

BEST CRUST: DOMINO’S

WORST PIZZA: PIZZA HUT