Because who can say no to pizza? Richard/Vancouver Foodster recently hosted his second annual Pizza Palooza – an tasting extravaganza featuring several of Vancouver’s best pizzerias.

Registration brought us to Dogwood Brewery, Vancouver’s only organic craft brewery based in South Vancouver right by the Knight St. Bridge. Here, we were treated to a beer tasting glass of our choice – below, a crisp and light Honey Lager.

Did you know? Dogwood Brewery also serves up snacks.. including pizza! Below is the first on the menu, named “You’ve Goat to be Kid’n me”, a pierogi pizza with potatoes, caramelized onions, creme fraiche, and goat cheese.

The other is “The Fun-Gi at the Party”, a more classic pizza topped with truffle (yum!), mushrooms, and arugula.

Dogwood Brewery is an awesome spot to grab a few friends, order a pizza, a beer (or two), and just hang out for a few hours – they have board games in the corner too!

Next, we visited Dosa Hut, specializing in Indo-Chinese cuisine and well-known for their dosas – fine crispy flat lentil crepes with delicious fillings .

Moving our way up to the map of Vancouver, our next pizza tasting stop was Ragazzi Pizza, a small hole-in-the-wall serving up hand-stretched and stone baked authentic Italian pizza with a light and healthy crust.

On the left: Arrabiata with salami, capicollo, onions, chilli flakes, and mozzarella. On the right: Carbonara with garlic, black pepper, pancetta, and bocconcini.

Aside from using only quality ingredients, their crust is just right – perfectly thin and crispy, without becoming too soggy or too hard. Incredible!

And just a few minutes away was Straight Outta Brooklyn Pizza, on the corner of Kingsway and Fraser. This is their second location, following their first on Robson St.

They feature – you guessed it – New York style hand-tossed pizza with a thin crust that you  can fold in half to devour the pizza in half the time. Which means you can eat double the pizza… right?

I had the chance to sample all three (the 3rd not pictured above) – their original Margherita, classic Pepperoni, and White with mozzarell, fior di latte, grana padano, garlic oregano.

A girl can’t get enough cheese!

Zero Zero Pizzeria is a bit different than the others, serving up traditional Roman pizza, with a fat, 1-inch thick crust that you won’t find anywhere else in Vancouver.

Their unique name comes from the use of the highly acclaimed cooking flour Farina 00.

Above – the Pomodoro with cherry tomatoes, san dried tomatoes, oregano, and fresh mozzarella.

The second was a unique combination I had never tried before – Chorizo and Brussel Sprouts. And yes, it was tasty!

Our last stop was Firecrust Pizzeria, on Davie St in the heart of Yaletown, a premium fast-casual pizzeria. Inspired by authentic pizzerias in Naples, Firecrust aims to bring fully customizable Neapolitan pizza to Vancouver.

Here, you get to choose your sauce (San Marzano tomato sauce, white alfredo sauce, or pesto basil sauce), and toppings (variety of meat, vegetables, and cheeses). Add proscuitto on top for that extra flavour for a nominal fee.

Once you’ve picked all your ingredients, Firecrust staff will pop it into 900 degree oven to bake your beautiful pizza. While you’re waiting, consider joining in on one of Firecrust’s pizza training workshops, available for both kids and adults!

With over 350 possible combinations, you can customize your own Neapolitan pizza to your heart’s desire, all for one fixed price.

And that’s all! I think I’m all pizza-d out for the next little while. Just kidding – I will never be sick of pizza.. hand me another slice! :)

Vancouver Foodster is celebrating their 5th Anniversary of Tasting Plates! Join in with the adventure on Wednesday March 8 – get your tickets here!