Veggie Pizza
Your guide to eating out from a vegetarian who doesn’t want to cook
Ah, pizza. It’s near the top of everyone’s favorite food list. Like they say, even bad pizza is still pretty good. Although, it can get a little boring for us veggies when the only available option is cheese. Thankfully, OKC has several local pizza places that offer interesting variations minus the meat.
Knucks Wheelhouse
Knucks has a great location on the canal in Bricktown, as well as a special ingredient in their crust. All of their pizza dough is made with COOP Native Amber, a beer from one of our local breweries. They have interesting vegetarian pizzas like their Mediterranean, which includes hummus and feta, as well as the more typical Herbivore, with peppers, onions and artichokes. Add some ghost pepper salt or truffle oil to make your pizza even tastier.
103 E California Ave, OKC
Empire Slice House
In the chic Plaza District on 16th street lies a fabulous pizza joint, Empire Slice House. They offer a rotating list of pizzas-by-the-slice, allowing us veggies order what we want without annoying our pals with requests for half the table’s pizza be meat-free. Their creative combinations include several vegetarian slices that even my meat-eating family members love to order. The Evil Empire is a spicy heaven for those of us who can handle the heat, while the Fungus Among Us won me over with mushrooms and truffle oil. I used to think I wasn’t a fan of white pizza, until I tried a slice of the Doug E. Fresh—now my favorite slice (if only it were on the slice list every day!). No worries, Empire always has a couple of vegetarian slices on the daily list from which you can choose.
1734 NW 16th St, OKC
Gabriella’s Italian Grill and Pizzeria
Just east of the Capitol area in a rustic 1938 building (which originally housed a speakeasy) is some of the best pizza in town. Gabriella’s offers an individual-size pizza that could be enough for two (as long as neither of the people have an appetite for pizza like mine). You can build your own individual pizza, with a multitude of sauce and cheese options, as well as all the veggies you could want. I requested pesto for my sauce with mozzarella, onions, mushrooms and spinach. Let’s just say I chose very, very wisely.
1226 NE 63rd St, OKC
Pizzeria Gusto
In the emerging Uptown area, Gusto offers Neapolitan-style pizza with ingredients imported from Italy, as well as pie cooked in an oven hand-built in Naples. With several vegetarian options that include the Butternut Squash, Cherry Tomato, and Mushroom Pizzas, the standout was the Margherita the Queen, with buffalo mozzarella, basil and EVOO. They didn’t forget you vegans either: the Marinara pizza is cheese-free.
2414 N Walker Ave, OKC
Sauced on Paseo
In the fun and funky Paseo Arts District, Sauced lets you choose between ordering just a slice or a whole pie. Even better, they let you build your own slice on their hand-tossed New York-style crust with a solid fresh veggie selection for toppings. I like a slice with mushroom, spinach and jalapenos. Their thin-yet-crispy crust is terrific, and for a serious kick, request fresh jalapenos instead of pickled. They won’t disappoint.
2912 Paseo, OKC
