Say hello to a new series of themed posts!

Fact about me (and my husband): if it’s Wednesday, we’re eating pizza for dinner. We started this tradition about three years ago and it stuck – big time.  My husband was working overseas for several months last year and even then, it was a weekly ritual we never missed (he even got nearly the entire crew he was working with started on it!).

Obviously this started pre-vegan, but the transition certainly hasn’t slowed me down (Daiya, anyone?). Since I know pizza is a fave for a lot of people and something you might think isn’t well-suited to veganizing, I figured this series would be eye-opening and useful for prospective or current veg-heads!

Over the next several weeks, I’ll be publishing these posts (when else?) every Wednesday. Most of the time, we “make,” but there are several good places to “buy” as well, so some of these posts (like today’s) will also double as “Local Vegan Eats” features.

I’m kicking things off with my favorite place for vegan pizza in St. Louis: Whole Foods. When you see the other few establishments I’ll be featuring, you might be surprised to know that I think Whole Foods takes the cake in this matter. Why? Despite the fact that Whole Foods isn’t actually a restaurant, it’s the cheapest “buy” option by far. Very far. Regardless, I think they’re the hands-down winner on taste.

I think the primary reason that Whole Foods is my favorite comes down to the crust. I am not a fan of thin/crispy crust. The two other places I’ll be reviewing are in that camp. The crust here is a deliciously doughy and chewy New York style. Can’t beat that. Don’t get me wrong: I LOVE the taste of Daiya and quality of the ingredients is certainly also a factor in taste, but those things are a constant in all three options for dine-out vegan pizza in St. Louis.

You’ve probably noticed that Whole Foods sells fresh-baked pizza by the slice in their stores. What you may not have been aware of is that you can place custom orders for whole pies just like any other pizza joint! Not only are all of their ingredients of excellent quality and freshness, both of their crusts (white and wheat) are naturally vegan and you can get Daiya cheese in place of regular dairy cheese on any order.

As you can see from the picture above, they allow half and half orders on any pizza, even for cheese (my half is on the left)! If you have an allergy or are not comfortable with the possibility that you may end up with a smidge of dairy cheese on your half, this is obviously not a good solution for you. However, if you’re a bit mellow in that department and married to a non-veg, this is perfect!

The one down-side to pizza at Whole Foods: they’re only available in one size. The good news there is that the size is huge and it warms up really well for lunch the next day. As I mentioned before, the price here is super reasonable. When you consider how much pizza you’re getting, this is especially true.

So there you have it! The first of many posts proving that pizza is absolutely not off-limits to vegans. Be sure to check back next Wednesday for more ooey-gooey goodness!