Spak Brothers Pizza and More

Great pizza slices and pinball!

Excellent choice if you are in the area. Usually a quick bite, unless its First Friday, or show across the street. vegan, vegetarian options. Excellent seitan. Salad is great, especially in the summer. Pizza is delicious, the vegan ones good too. Oh & a side of vegan ranch. Yes please. Not a lot of options for GF but it’s a pizza shop. Pinball and art. Def check out Spak, it’s a staple.

This place sure is popular! Perhaps almost a little too popular.
My biggest gripe with this place is how difficult it can be to order/​pickup food. I’ve been here during the Garfield art crawl and it is PACKED, but that is to be expected. What surprised me is how long you have to wait even on a typical weekday. My husband made the mistake of popping in after work to pick up a pizza and a hoagie without calling ahead. Well, they were out of hoagies and the pizza took 45 minutes IN HOUSE. I feel like your typical greasy pizza place can get your pizza done in about 15. We learned our lesson and try to call ahead of time, but it’s pretty common to either have the phone ring and ring, or someone pick up and put you on hold for five or even ten minutes.
Despite how popular this place is, I’m not actually all that crazy about the pizza. The sauce is a little on the sweet side for me, and I typically go for a thinner crust. It is a completely acceptable pizza– I’d certainly choose this over Domino’s or something– but not the best I’ve had. Their Italian hoagies ARE killer, tho and that’s why keep going back– great quality meat, delicious bread.

Tried the seitan wings with one of every wing sauce and they were amazing! So impressed and will definitely be going back and recommending it to friends!

This pizza place has Vegan Options. Their seitan wings are amazing. They even have Vegan ranch. I would recommend to vegans and non vegans alike. The location has a very small customer area so best bet is to pick it up. Staff is very friendly.

Top-​quality pizza? Not in my book. This pie does, however, taste identical to the sludgy squares passing for pizza that you’d find at a typical public high school cafeteria. I used to live less than 6 city blocks from this place and it was open during Penn Ave. First Fridays, so I ate here on occasion. And after the first bite, I figured out why it is such a success. It takes people back to their childhoods, and such nostalgia is, for whatever reason, the barometer of «tasty» when it comes to pizza and other convenience foods in Pittsburgh.
As a former longtime resident of the Steel City, I get it. The economy is always tough, salaries are rudely low, Jeffy Romoff owns most everything (aside from whatever the banks sucked up, while you, the taxpayer, has the honor of footing the bill), and in most neighborhoods, being a homeowner entails feigning the requisite sense of deep delight at your weekly Saturday sessions spent giving the lawn a buzz cut that any military officer would salute. Those pressures can add up, kindling fond memories for the institutional government lunches you ate every weekday between September and early June before you turned 18 and were on your own. Spak’s takes you back to a simpler time, with pricing to match.
But Pittsburgh was never simple for me – living at a subsistence level ain’t fun after a while — so when my spouse and I skip home cooking for fast casual pizza, I want to TASTE the flavors. I’m afraid I just wasn’t enchanted with the offerings at Spak’s. It’s not their fault, either. They’re simply catering to the market, and they know it well. Many longtime Pittsburghers have learned to expect very little (o hai!), so when a restaurant serves anything vegetarian at all, it instantly becomes a hit. But I want more. Specifically, I want food that is marginally better than what you’ll find at a typical Rust Belt high school. If you do too, this is not the pizza parlor you want to visit in your scarce free time.

As far as neighborhood pizza joints go, this one kills. Best in town. I grew up with Philly pizza, so, I am picky. There’s lots of just bad pizza in Pgh, but not here. Here, they get that the triumvirate of pizza is a balance of crust, cheese, and a good sauce that blends with all the other flavors. If all really you want a giant pile of rubbery provolone, put on your mullet wig, hop in your IROC, and drive to Mineo’s. Me? I need a slice I can fold.
I like the punk rock vibe, and they are all business. Got a vegan/​vegetarian friend? Bring ‘em along. I am not a vegetarian, but I will sometimes get the seitan wings just because they’re so tasty.
They also have ginger beer, and pinball machines? What more do you want? Whack-​a-​mole?

Thrilled whenever I journey to Pittsburgh on business because I get to pick up an Italian Hoagie from Spak Brothers. Absolutely delicious!

I’ve been wanting to try Spak forever, so when a friend and I wanted to get takeout yesterday night, I decided to finally try it. Calling ahead at 5:30pm, we were given an estimate of 20 min., which wasn’t too bad and worked out perfectly for us, given the location of my apt. We showed up at 6pm, and our order was ready for us upon arrival, so after paying, we headed back to my place to consume the goods.
Our order consisted of a medium (14″) pepperoni and ricotta pizza and an order of honey mustard seitan wings ($ 20 together). The seitan wings were quite good – the best I’ve had, though I’ve only had them at one other place in PGH – and the honey mustard sauce was delicious. The pizza was delicious – in fact, I’d say it was some of the best pizza I’ve had in PGH, and I’ve tried many pizza places to date, as can be seen from my pizza list. While the crust wasn’t perfectly crispy the way I like it, it did have some crispness, and I particularly liked the flavor and consistency of the dough once I bit into it. The toppings were flavorful and well proportioned, and worked well together, despite my doubts that they might be odd together. My friend was impressed with the wings and pizza, as well, confirming my impressions.
Overall, I’d say that Spak Bros. lived up to its reputation. A couple of friends of mine who enjoyed Spak and recommended it commented that they don’t feel hipster enough when they walk in to pick up their order, and I saw what they mean, since my friend and I definitely looked square compared to all of the employees and other customers. Even if you’re as un-​hipster as us, I’d recommend stopping by, since Spak undoubtedly has some of the best pizza in PGH.

Delicious thin-​crust pizza, solid wings, and great hoagies… what more could you want? Less popularity! I love that PGH loves this place, but I will attach some serious caveats if you’re trying to order at peak demand hours – order well ahead by phone, and keep calling back until you get someone. I once drove the 15 minutes to the shop before I got through via phone, and then I was warned off wings due to the time involved (understandable – freshly cooked is always nice). So be VERY prepared to wait, or call at least 90 minutes before you want your food!
Spak is also a short walk from Friendship Parklet if you are here during better weather and want some sunshine with your meal.

Ohhh Spakky Spak Spak. I heart you. You know my comfort food needs, especially as an eater of vegetarian foods.
These guys are Masters of Seitan; in particular, the seitan wings and seitan cheesesteak are my absolute favorites. I am assured the meat and vegan options are awesome too. All the sandwiches are on a delicious, crusty bread, and I personally am more blown away by their sandwiches than pizza, which is tasty and has lots of fun topping choices but is not the absolute best in the city (that honor, in my estimation, is owned by Mineo’s). Expect to wait on the phone for awhile on hold at peak times.

THE place to get pizza in Pittsburgh. Brick oven ZA with super fresh ingredients! Something for everyone, vegan and vegetarian options. Plus there’s pinball!! Super nice staff. Seriously, just go here. It’s a game changer.

I love this place.
The veg options are so good
I love the seitan phittsburgh «stake»
It’s crunchy, toasty, and has so many yummy ingredients, what is not to love.
It’s always packed but I feel like wait time has gotten better from 4 months ago.
It’s also so cheap :)
Almost gave it 4 stars because I’ve had to wait an hour to pickup a sub, limited seating and sometimes the cashier (only once) has had an attitude.

Spak is my JAM. I cannot believe the years that have passed without me enjoying all the vegan deliciousness that Spak offers.
My first foray into the various vegan options was the seitan buffalo wings with vegan ranch. I’m telling you, these cruelty-​free wings will satisfy plant-​based dieters and carnivores alike. And the serving size is very generous — I typically stuff myself silly and then have extras for leftovers. That vegan ranch… so good I feel like I could drink it (I haven’t…yet).
I also enjoy the seitan shaved «meat» melt hoagies. Again, filling and delicious. You can make your sandwich fully vegan by substituting vegan cheese instead of dairy cheese.
And if the wings and hoagies aren’t enough, Spak also has pizza with vegan cheese, sausage, & pepperoni. My fav is the sausage.
Keep in mind, Spak can get SUPER busy. Best to call ahead and place your order for pick-​up. Sometimes if they are REALLY busy, they can’t answer the phone. Wait 5 minutes and call back, believe me, it’s worth it. They don’t deliver unfortunately :(

The food and pizza are very good. Most of all the salads. I really love the bread they use for the sandwiches. It’s that big soft bun that just soaks up the sauce or what ever you have on it. The salads are never skimpy and full of flavor. I really love the ranch they use.
It’s a place you always have to order way ahead of time because it’s almost never ready when they say it is. Now you could say it’s because they are busy and yes most of the time they are but when they say 20min they mean 35 or 40. But you don’t want to show up late because if your food is ready you don’t want it getting cold. I would give this place a 5 or 4 and of ordered more from them if they did not have that issue. It’s just this issue. But the food is so good I went back so its worth a shot. Just remember the times issue when you order.

We really enjoyed our experience. There is not much seating inside but people come and go quickly so we had no trouble sitting for a couple slices.
It took about 25 minutes for a small pizza on a busy Friday night. Half pineapple half pepperoni.
Plenty of parking. Glass soda bottles. Tons of topping options. Hipster atmosphere. They recycle.
We went because we heard they were robbed recently and wanted to support the business while they recover. Best of luck! Thanks for the great pizza.

Gimme that sweet seitan!
On my epic quest in search of Pittsburgh’s best pizza, much like The Legend of Kung-​Fu before me, my path has brought me to Spak Brothers.
In the midst of construction alley in Garfield, you’ll find Spak in all its pinball glory. I’ve tried the pizza twice at this location, and it is undoubtedly better with a topping. The plain cheese seemed a little dry, but not a bad pie. Overall, the pizza gives a good deal amount of cheese and a crisp crust that would satisfy most’s pizza cravings.
But what’s really great about Spak is their sandwich and vegetarian (specifically seitan) creations! My boyfriend is a strict carnivore and buffalo wing connoisseur, but for him to enjoy seitan wings and then ask for seconds definitely means that Spak is on to something. We’ve tried both buffalo and garlic parmesan, but they come in just about every flavor you could ask for.
Make sure you put your order in before stopping by to avoid the hectic wait.

I’ve been wanting to try Spak Brother for awhile now. From co-​workers raving about it to the artistic exterior to the building, I wanted to see what the hoopla was all about. I was in Bloomfield for work so I decided to stop by and grab a sandwich.
The inside is nothing to brag about. It’s not somewhere I’d be comfortable eating inside at, but I don’t think they market it that way so I can’t really take points off because of that. There are a few places to sit and a pinball table, but nothing substantial.
The menu is decent sized. All the basics and nothing too too fancy. I went with the grilled chicken breast hoagie with lettuce, tomato, cheese and ranch dressing. It took about 15 – 20 minutes to make, but it was well worth the wait! Everything was so fresh and tasty. It practically melted in my mouth. The best part was the ranch dressing. It was so creamy and full of flavor. I am obsessed with homemade ranch sauces and this was one of the best I’ve ever tasted. The sandwich (half) was $ 6 including tax and I think it was reasonably priced. Most full sandwiches went between $ 8-​$ 9.
I’m excited to go back and try some more options on the menu! Nothing better than supporting local business, especially those on Penn Avenue during all of this messy construction!

My roommate and I were starving and needed to go grocery shopping. I really wanted a sub, but the Jimmy Johns in Bakery Square has the worst delivery area ever. I had seen Spak Brothers on Unilocal and was a bit skeptical of the location. Thank goodness we braved the cold and Garfield.
The Italian hoagie was amazing. For $ 8.88, I ended up with three meals out of the hoagie. The meat was delicious with no fat pieces, and there was the perfect balance and combination of toppings. I also ordered a slice of cheese pizza for $ 1.87, and that was delicious as well. The amount of food you get for the price is amazing.
And to top it all off, they have a thousand vegan options? I can’t wait to come back and try the vegan options too!
The service was efficent, and there are 2 pinball tables at $.75/​game to play while you wait for food. This is definitley a take-​out establishment.
Credit cards accepted!

Oh yeah! Nice yeasty blistery crust with chewy cheese and sauced perfectly… Perfection!
This is an Absolute MUST if you are in the area-​or lucky enough to live nearby.