Pieous is the Culmination of Long-Time Dream for Josh Kaner

Josh Kaner

Fast forward several years later to the former site of Cartwight’s BBQ on 290 near Nutty Brown Cafe. A sign had gone up that said, “Pieous: Coming Soon.” I did not make the connection to the young man with a legal and music background I had met at the HEB.

As Pieous recently opened it became apparent that this place had struck a chord. On my second visit, I encountered Josh (his wife works beside him) making pies on their way into the oven. I noticed that none of the pies exceeded 12 inches and that they were being baked for no longer than 90 seconds in an oven using an oak-wood fire. The recent rules of the Associazone Vera Pizza Napoletana came to mind. As did that conversation with the passionate young man who had obviously given up one passion for another.

While not a true Naples pizzeria in every exact sense, Pieous reflects a general homage to the art form. My favorite pizza on the first pass had to be the Italian sausage, olives, and peppers. The crust was damned good with a slightly charred bottom, and smooth and crispy along the outside. He also makes a killer mozzarella served with their house-made bread. And they offer a pastrami sandwich as well which I found to be a bit dry but surprisingly, possessed of nice flavor. There are dessert pies as well, I tried the Blueberry which I found impossible to not finish.

Josh boldly states that his pizza outclasses every other pie in the city. Good for him. You gotta love your own product. But I’m not quite ready to climb aboard that bandwagon. There are several more tastings to come. But so far, on balance, the place is impressive. I will tell you this, it’s worth a little extra travel time. We’ll revisit this place in a couple of months for a formal review. Till then, good luck to Josh and his wife. Far south Austin needs more places like Pieous.