A Million Huge Pieces

Bringing in fresh ingredients on the daily, Pieces Pizza by the Slice on 21st and Capital is all-around the best pizza place I’ve found in Sacramento. Huge, cheap slices, (great) beer on tap, funny staff, and amazingly convenient hours make Pieces the place to go for a good time or an after-bar slice.

Open from 11am-11pm Tuesday through Thursday, 11am-2:30pm Fridays, and 12pm-2:30am on Saturdays, this cash only hole-in-the-wall (that somehow everyone in Midtown seems to know about) offers New York style slices as big as the paper plates they’re served on for under $5. Their pesto is amazing, and if you’re not in the mood for the sun-dried tomato and feta cheese variation they offer, ask them to put some pineapple on top before throwing it in the oven. It is superb. Or if you desire a non-pesto slice, I’m willing to bet almost anything that you won’t regret the pesto sticks, which are massive and fantastic. And if you’re craving something sweet, they also serve fresh baked cake and pie.

Fat Tire and Arrogant Bastard, quite possibly my two favorite beers, as well as a few others are offered on tap, and a $13 pitcher frequently becomes an $8 pitcher if you or a member of your party know the person working, or just make a good joke.

As enticing as the food, ambiance is huge at Pieces. The person serving you is more likely to have dreadlocks than a tucked in shirt, and there’s a high likelihood that she will not be wearing a bra, but I’ve yet to encounter any staff who’s even moderately unpleasant. Show up in the afternoon in the middle of the week and you could be the only people eating in. Come back on a Friday or Saturday night at 2am and you’ll have trouble finding seating to accommodate your group. Generally, though, it’s easy to start chatting with the various other patrons (the place being highly popular among the college and alternative crowds) and to make friends or share tables even.

The walls are muraled and covered in flyers for everything from slam poetry events to concerts and shows to house parties on Second Saturday. In fact, when a certain Director of Membership for the College Democrats did not get the okay to post some..slightly controversial flyers promoting the club on campus, she took them over to Pieces, among other student-frequented places, and was promptly permitted to put them up.

While the college may not appreciate satiric and bitter slogans like "Because a bunch of rich old white men don’t know shit about my uterus;" and posted with a large picture of a marijuana leaf, "Because being a Democrat these days is basically like having a club card;" proceeded by "Just kidding. How inappropriate! Join the party with a sense of humor;" both the staff and those who frequent the by-the-slice pizzeria most certainly do.

If you’re in the mood for personality with your pizza, buzzed or sober, make it a point to stop by Pieces at least once in the course of your Midtown adventures. Second Saturday is always a great chance to head over, and there’s little better in life than art, free wine, great pizza, and great company. Don’t forget to stop at an ATM beforehand, and especially don’t forget to say YES! to the fresh garlic added to your slice.