all-natural and all good.. as pittsburghers become more aware of what they eat and more concerned about the quality of ingredients, spak brothers is at the forefront when it comes to offering all-natural food at low prices. appearance wise, it's all pittsburgh, a no frills, counter-only shop with a mural on it's outside wall that honors both the artistically conscious penn avenue and the blue-collar, sports fanaticism of the burgh. the menu doesn't deviate from the usual pizza, wings and hoagies fare, except that they're made with better stuff than your usual neighborhood pizza shop. made with unbleached, unbromated flour, the pies also feature red sauce that's free of high fructose corn syrup, additives and preservatives. they offer a ton of options for vegans and vegetarians, including veggie meat, seitan andveganbuffalo sauce.
i got a large pizza with veggie pepperoni, onions and mushrooms. as a thin-crust lover, i appreciated the lack of crust, and the onions were surprisingly firm and fresh. the pepperoni didn't make much of an impact (in terms of taste, it was passable at best), but it also didn't take away from my enjoyment. i love the seitan "wings" (they're more like chunks), and got two orders in mild buffalo and honey mustard. the sauce was thin, but very flavorful - the honey mustard was sweet with a spicy kick and the buffalo was everything one could hope for. the wings themselves had a chewy inside and crispy outside, but the real stand-out was the ranch dressing provided. obviously homemade, it had a thick, stick-to-anything consistency and a nice garlic taste. i didn't order it, but i'm really glad they gave it to me anyway! i hope that this little shop stays true to its mission of offering high-quality food to the city's pizza lovers for many, many years to come.