Maldonado's Pizzeria

I've been a fan of this place since the mid 70s. Back then it was under the name of Pontillos. I compare every pizza I try to date to this place and few have come close. I moved away from the bay area some years ago and had the opportunity to frequent it again recently and was pleased they kept the original recipes and ingrediants. Even the menu board looked the same. There is a reason they have been in business for so long. Love the stromboli, it's my favorite. Don't plan on eating in though as it's mostly takeout aside with a single row of bench seating.

Whenever I am in the Mountain View area I usually plan on picking up a calzone or pizza at Maldonado's. I used to have something from there once ortwice a week when it was under a different name but run by Tony who now owns it. Though my diet really doesn't allow I also get their great pastrami sandwich. It comes with mozzarella and the fixings but I get mine with just mustard, tomato, and onion.



My experience has been that the food is consistently very good and they use fresh ingredients. They make my calzone to order which is simply mozzarella, ricotta, tomato sauce, and pesto. I would rate them 4.5 stars and the only reason not 5 stars because any pizza lover knows it is impossible to make great pizza every time. Dough consistency changes with the humidity and tomato saucec depends on the sweetness and acidity of the tomatoes.



They are located in small shopping plaza that is not the most appealing and most people would probably not think of trying Maldonado's if they were driving by. They have a very small sit down counter, 3 or 4 chairs. They do deliver and years ago when I lived in the area their delivery service was excellent. I get mine to go and have to have a slice or two on the way back to San Jose or sometimes pullover to eat or go over to Rengstorff Park nearby. Unless you have a pizza stone and a hot oven at home pizza isn't the same reheated. (Never, Never, microwave a pizza to reheat it.)



I am a 2nd generation Italian-American from New Jersey. I've had East Coast Pizza, and continually try out pizza places in the Bay Area and on any trip or vacation. Maldonado's uses a great pizza oven, the same kind that Frankie & Johnny's and Georgio uses. Thickness is about the same. Giovanni's on Lawrence Expwy. in Sunnyvale has very good pizza and is more New York style thin crust. I think their best pizza is the plain cheese. The only way to know if pizza is really good is to order it plain. The best pizza I ever had was during my old trip to Germany when I ate in an Italian restaurant that used a very old, hundreds of years old, wood fired brick oven. Then again, wood fired pizza is another story.