Prettyboy Pizza
Pizza restaurant · Richmond ·
Grandma pie pizza, vegan options, beer garden, patio seating
Grandma pie pizza, vegan options, beer garden, patio seating
"At the newish pizza shop housed in Little Beast Brewing, ordering by QR code feels anything but charmless thanks to friendly staff ferrying out crispy, cheese-laced pies; the style lands between the shop’s “grandmother-style” and classic Detroit, with a sharp, craggy cheese rim that crackles at first bite. Chef Justin Moore’s gluten-free crust is thin yet surprisingly airy and sturdy enough for a trio of sauces; while any pie blanketed in blistered pepperoni cups is worth ordering, the Sinful Trinity — slathered with marinara, vodka, and pesto sauces, then finished with nutty Pecorino — was the one that made my gluten-tolerant companion reflexively reach for a slice." - Eater Staff
"This pizza pop-up has landed a home in Little Beast Brewing’s beer garden. Started by Justin Moore, who has worked at notable pizzerias like Boxcar Pizza and Scottie’s Pizza Parlor, Prettyboy’s specialty is the grandma pie, which is rectangular like Detroit-style pizza but with thinner crust. It’s a durable vehicle for toppings and Moore has experimented with some wild ones but for now he’s keeping it simple with pepperoni and cheese options. Any pizza can be made vegan here, and Prettyboy plans to offer gluten-free pies soon." - Zoe Baillargeon
"Opening in the beer garden at Little Beast Brewing (3412 SE Division Street), this new pizza operation debuts on Thursday, April 4 (the article’s lead also references April 24) and is set up to pair pizza slices with pints of Little Beast beer. Pizzamaker Justin Moore — who worked at local shops such as Boxcar Pizza and Scottie’s Pizza Parlor — traces his start to Boxcar owner Odie O’Connor, who “gifted him a beginner’s pizza book” and mentored him; Moore says, “Getting to learn pizza from him, it became very clear that this is what I wanted to do.” He recalls that mentorship fondly: “There’s just something about the way Odie ran that shop, it reminded me that food can be really silly and fun. All his pizzas are named after goofy stuff, there’s always really loud music, and the wallpaper in the shop is really obnoxious and pink — it had been written in stone then and there that, yep, I gotta do pizza.” After baking pizzas out of his home kitchen starting in 2023, showing up at friends’ music shows, and shadowing Scott Rivera of Scottie’s for a year, Moore seized the Little Beast opportunity and focused on pan-style grandma pies: “With a pan pizza, you can be just so ridiculous with it, because it’s such a hearty crust under it,” he explains. “I’ve worked in some serious kitchens, and it’s not my vibe.” That approach yields wilder toppings (buffalo chicken, onions, sauce) alongside a core menu of classic cheese and pepperoni pies plus a rotating “goofball chef choice” pie. Moore highlights the Sinful Trinity, which “showcases Moore's sauces, with everything made in-house,” and comes topped with red sauce, vodka sauce, and pesto. For sides he offers cheesy garlic bread and pesto bites — described as “cinnamon roll-looking things” rolled with pesto inside — and for greens a Caesar salad and a seasonal chef salad (currently a spring salad with poppy seed vinaigrette with hazelnuts and Parmesan). He emphasizes accommodation: “all the items on the menu can be made vegan, upon request,” and he plans to offer a gluten-free dough option once settled (he has a recipe and is, he jokes, “contractually obligated,” since his wife is celiac). The name’s origin comes from an early, imperfect home experiment: “When I first met my wife, I lied and said I knew how to make pizzas,” Moore says. “I made these ridiculous-looking … I hesitate to even call them pizzas. And that was her joke: ‘Whoa, these are some pretty boys you made me.’ And so that’s where the name comes from.” For now Moore says there will eventually be a website and maybe delivery, but “It’s summertime, so you come in, enjoy some beer, or a NA beer, and sit on this cool patio.”" - Dianne de Guzman
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