"With a split lunch and dinner service operating for just five-and-a-half hours each day they’re open (Wednesday to Sunday), Mid-Wilshire’s Apollonia’s Pizza feels inaccessible, with a cash-only approach and just two slices available at the shop: cheese and pepperoni. But these slices are absolutely glorious, prime examples of the best kind of New York City pizza where the cheese and sauce become amalgamated into a magical interplay of stretchy, savory goodness. The cheese pizza is stunning, and the pepperoni, with its slightly curved cups of spicy mini-salami, might be even better. These are traditional slices that feel less artisanal but still offer a highly developed, flavorful crust. The sauce is more robust here than Bianco’s, more reduced and tinted with herbs and black pepper, giving it the aggressive seasoning of the likes of Di Fara in Brooklyn. However, with no basil-topped margherita on the menu at Apollonia’s, the slices cannot reach heights of the late Dom DeMarco’s pizza. For West Coast pizza fans, Apollonia’s is a fantastic consolation, and the whole pie menu ranges over two dozen topping combinations. Note: They do accept online orders, and one could pay with a credit card when ordered this way. Oh, and they make gluten-free pizza in whole pie form." - Matthew Kang
