steel wheels pizzeria

so, lastnighti went to steel wheels to grab some pizza before heading home. this was my first time ever trying their pizza sober, and i can say without any exaggeration that this was the worst pizza i've ever eaten in my entire life. previous trips to steel wheels have been during the blackout phase of the night.

steel wheel's pizza is worse than little caesar's "hot 'n ready". it's worse than 7/11 pizza. it's worse than the pre-made pizzas they sell at the deli at save-on-foods. it's worse than pizza pops. this is the pizza i would expect a pair of ten-year-olds to make in a cooking class on their first try. this is the pizza i would expect to get while on vacation in a country whose food culture has no history of pizza whatsoever. it's $4 for 2 slices, but even at that price, why are you eating terrible pizza?

the place itself is a dive, but kind of cool in a "punk" way or whatever. the dude at the counter was polite, so that was a positive. people seem to like this place due to irony or nostalgia. irony stops being cool once you turn 25 and if you want nostalgia go listen to some old records or go hang with the old timers at blues on whyte or something.

anyways, there are plenty of places open 24 hours where you can get better food. mcdonalds. 7/11. that orange market place opened up on whyte recently and i think they serve pizza too. if you're so drunk that you're considering going to steel wheels, just go home and microwave some pizza pops.

such an iconic classic spot with their graffiti-covered walls. great for a latenighton whyte. love their kimchee and bulgogi pizzas, and their korean food is good too.

the dumplings are amazing! i started coming here so often for them, they now know me by name haha! pizza is great for the latenightcure, not the most amazing when sober but still tasty and really you can't beat the pricing here. family run business and they are all very friendly and nice, love coming back to support them.

this place is a whyte ave. staple!
it is the furthest thing from fine dining...and that is fine!
it's been many years since my drunken days on whyte. closer to 15 than i'd care to admit...
but as i drove up, a hazy memory of stumbling in here came to mind. steel wheels has been here for quite some time. and what a unique little anomaly it is. the fact that they are still going is testament to the sheer volume of buisness they must get on any given night. i can imagine a long line of revelers looking for a latenightsnack.
as i stopped in at 7:30 on a week might, there was no one else in the place. this was great as it gave me ample opportunity to appreciate their one of a kind decor.
graffiti...everywhere. it is litterally the patrons who have scrawled their presence onto every surface they can reach. i have heard a rumor that every few years they paint over everything and start fresh...but i can't confirm this. as for complaints i read about the cleanlines...well...it is "painted" with permanent market...so what does anyone expect!
at $4 for two slices (which many a "light eater would suffice), the value is second to none. i myself indulged in 4 slices. two of their famous bulgoki and two pepperoni . topped off with a bottle of water (which at $1...is almost unheard of), total was a mere $9.00. fantastic value!
pizza is as simple as it can be. the crust is a unique bread which was quite good, but not "crusty" at all. sauce...minimal. a few pieces of meat respectively...and i mess of cheese. that's it.
to sum it all up.
this is the perfect place to come if you are one who finds themselves hungry on whyte after...or during an evening...or even morning...of good times.

if only these walls could speak...

i'm not a huge fan of their pizza but everyone else seems to always rave about it. they do however have great green onion cakes. i also love the atmosphere, it's such a classic place that all whyte ave partiers know about, and it's the perfect way to end off a sillynighton whyte. props to their late hours and awesome interior.

everyone knows about steel wheels pizzeria – it’s a staple when you’re out late on whyte ave and want something greasy to soak up all of the alcohol that you’ve consumed during the night. i’ve been here a couple times now (never by choice, haha) and it’s simply what you’d call a grungy, hole in the wall hangout. the booths and walls are lined with graffiti and doodles. it definitely has character, i’ll give them that. this is the spot if you want to pre or post-drink and get latenighteats (open 6:00pm to 3:00am err day).

lets be honest people, the only reason anybody thinks steel wheels is good is because they are drunk when they eat here. late late hours, cheap as free prices, and a ramshackle punk-rock interior/vibe have cemented steel wheels as a runaway fave nightcap destination for the bar stars, and other such latenightdarlings of our beloved whyte avenue. the pizza though, not actually any good. really none of the food is any good. and the entire restaurant feels like it will give you dysentery. but that's not what steel wheels is about, and i would be lying if i said i didn't just love going there at the end of a longnightof getting dragged out to the bars. its not where you want to go for date night, or for after work drinks with the coworkers, but there's just something that feels right about a cheap, dirty pizza place to wind down a latenightout.

best place for latenightfood. this is the best place fornighttime food, it is open till 3am everynightand the food is great. spicy bulgogi beef on rice is amazing, simple but great. they also have some pretty unique pizza (kimchi, bulgogi beef), which is worth a try. this is definitely one of my favorite places to go at night. this is not a place to bring a girl on a first date though.

underground korean run hidden secret for younger folks. best latenightpizza, udon soup, and dumplings. i have know the owners for 12 years and they are amazing. lots of grafitti but don't mind it

yes. came across this place on a latenightand tried the stirfry which was very good!
good service, i would definitely come again

this place is still alive and kicking?!. as it should! it's gotten more downhill in terms of the interior as the years went by... but it really adds character to the pizza place. the owner lets people doodle all over the walls like kids with crayons and i think it's pretty cool... feels like you are eating in a high school bathroom stall. don't laugh. when you are super drunk having a greatnightout on whyte ave this is the place to go to and chill. why? because it is away from all the craziness on whyte ave and you have this nice place to seclude yourselves and eat some unique pizza and rejuvenate or end the night.

the bulgogi pizza is really one of a kind... and a lot of people like it. the soup noodles and dumplings are ok and reasonably priced. the owner is probably the nicest and friendliest person ever and all the drunks just love him. he really caters to his customers and provides ranch sauce or whatever sauce to make your pizza to your liking.

check it out!

best pizza in town. i just moved away from edmonton and steel wheels is one of the places i miss most! maybe even the single place i miss most.

it's by far the best place to go out with a group of friends at about 2am after a hardnighton whyte. of course, having a few beforehand will improve the flavour of the food, but phil knows how to make the best pizza around. i have no idea how they can charge so little for it; $3 for two slices (it's been that way since at least 2004), with delicious crust, and heaps of cheese. there's one review that says there wasn't much cheese... i can attest to the fact that in all the times i have been to steel wheels (at least 30) i've always had tons of cheese. bulgogi (korean bbq) and hawaiian are my favourites, although they have a huge menu and everything is delicious. oh, and i think the beers are still $3.50. so instead of funky pickle (which is one giant slice of pizza with almost nothing on it for $5) you can get two slices with more toppings plus a beer for $6.50. all prices include gst, which makes it much easier for drunk people to pay cash.
phil repainted all the graffiti a few years ago, but it's all back, and while sometimes the really drunk people can be a bit much if you visit at 2am while sober, if you're in the right state of mind it's like a little slice of urban heaven.
try it!!!

best pizza after anightof drinking. it's not the prettiest place, but load up the bulgoki with ranch sauce and you'll forget all of it.