Atlas Pizza

Occasionally, in the midst of the hustle and bustle of the high stakes world of restaurant profiling, I find I need to turn to Haiku in order to keep myself grounded, centered and all of the other groovy states that come from busting out with a good Haiku.

Mmmm, Atlas Pizza

They make a mighty fine pie

You should be there now

The only problem is that I am done with this profile now, because within the above Haiku is contained everything that needs to be said about this week’s profilee, Atlas Pizza.

I know what you are thinking: Haiku for a pizza joint? Wouldn’t something more along the Limerick lines be more appropriate? Hey, you’re the boss here:

I sat down to pizza at Atlas,

Removed my chapeau and was hatless.

The pie it arrived,

And to my surprise,

The toppings were clearly wombat-less.

Yeah … now I’m feeling centered, all right. Time to get serious. For over two years Atlas lives in El Jebel, making people smile.This was our first time in Atlas, and we went there on the recommendation of a Basalt dweller who swears it is the absolute best and the only place she will go for pizza. Owners Tracey and Michael Mishel have obviously created a loyal following as well as some fine food for the last few years, probably due at least in part because of their commitment to quality ingredients and homemade freshness.

Pizza there is fresh.

It’s the Anti-Dominoes

Homemade crust and sauce.

There’s pasta at Atlas, too, you know. Linguine and homemade meatballs, pasta primavera, chicken or eggplant parmesan over linguine, manicotti, hearty lasagna, served with their homemade garlic bread. And hot subs, as well; chicken or eggplant parm, hot meatballs. The salads are nothing to be trifled with, that is for sure. There’s the Caesar, the Greek, the Italian and the Atlas, which is a combination of all the rest and comes to your table looking like an over-topped pizza over lettuce instead of crust. Be careful if you are planning on attacking it alone.

A meal, I tell you

Possible in a salad

‘Cause it is so big

And, of course, there is pizza. As expected, you can build your own from the exhaustive list of ingredients, with your basic 12, 14 and 16 inch cheesers starting at $8.25, $10.25 and $12.25, and each ingredient you have piled on running about a dollar.

Why settle for cheese

When pizzas here come gourmet

Ask for them by name

The Cali: Pesto, marinated wild shrooms, sundried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, roasted garlic and gorgonzola. The Greek: Cheese and marinara with black and green olives, fresh spinach and oregano, red onion and feta. The Palermo: Creamy Parmesan sauce, pesto chicken and shrimp, roasted garlic, gorgonzola and basil. The All American: Cheese and marinara, ground beef, Italian sausage, Canadian bacon and pepperoni. The Wild Mushroom: Cheese and marinara with marinated portabella and crimini mushrooms, roasted garlic, fresh herbs and goat cheese. The Sinatra: Cheese and marinara with kalamata olives, capers, roasted red peppers, julienned Genoa salami and pepperoni, roasted garlic, gorgonzola and oregano. And a few others. Gourmet pies are $12.95, $14.95 and $16.95, depending on, you know, the size and all.

Beer, beer, beer, beer, beer

To wash down all that pizza

You should think of beer

A nice selection of domestic and micro-brew beers awaits you at Atlas, as well as a tidy offering of vino by the bottle or glass, plus your usual sampling of fountain drinks for the kids and designated driver. And as if hat weren’t enough, there are daily specials, slices by the slice, desserts and a lot of people around you having fun. And…

Atlas delivers

Missouri Heights to Basalt

You can stay at home

Pizza is a fine, fine thing, and it is nice to see it being done in such a soulful manner. I am working on a theory that the occasional, if not frequent, overwhelming desire for pizza is a genetic one that just needs some sort of external trigger, and Atlas Pizza has just given me a few more pizza triggers in my life, like when I feel as if the weight of the world is on my shoulders, or if I am looking at an Atlas, or, heck, even reading Ayn Rand. Thanks for holding things up, Atlas.

Give in to your fate

If pizza is in your stars

Get to Atlas quick

Next week I will attempt to do a restaurant profile entirely in sonnet form. Join me, won’t you?