Bill's Pizzeria

Easily Newton's Worst Pizza - And Rude to Boot!

by CommAve at Citysearch

Bill's should be good. It's been in Newton, a pizza-deprived city, for over 30 years. It's frequently crowded and a few years ago expanded into the store next door & doubled in size. I can walk there from my house and I want to like it - I really do - but the pizza is just awful. In the 12 years that I have lived in Newton Centre, I have tried Bill's a dozen or so times, each time hoping that my previous experiences had been unusual. After a dozen failures, I'm convinced. If you're not in junior high or high school, overflowing the place on a weekend night while you text and Facebook with your friends, or if you're not a part of a post-game Little League pizza fest, there is just nothing here to like.

The pizza is often soggy, the crust is indefinably weird and the overwhelming taste I've experienced with every Bill's pizza variety I have tried has been . . . salt! I feel like I should do my best Buffett concert Parrothead cheer - Salt! Salt! Salt!! And I don't order pepperoni or sausage pizzas! The crust is neither crisp nor soggy, it's just sort of there. And it's neither too thin to support the cheese and sauce in that luscious, fold the slice in half and tilt your head back way nor robust enough to encourage you to pile on the toppings and know your pizza won't fail you.

And then there is the service. I don't know where the management finds its workers, but they are consistently the rudest, most flippant people working anywhere in Newton Centre. They truly just don't give a damn about their customers.

In Newton? Want really good pizza? Go somewhere you'd never think to go for pie if you weren't a local - check out O'Hara's in Newton Highlands, a short 2 minute drive from Bill's. Yup - that's right - a killer Irish pub that easily makes the best pizza in Newton (granted, that's a bit like being the tallest elf, but still, ya gotta go with what you have!)

Steer clear of Bill's. You'll be glad you did.

Great food, really nice folks

by leahbee at Citysearch

Dean is the owner, and he's expanded the place to be a real family-friendly eatery... not your "typical" pizza place. No humming fluorescent lights and sticky floor! It's great inside, they have espresso and beer and wine, what more could you want? The people are incredibly nice and seem to know everybody in the neighborhood. There are big tables for taking a whole Little League team, or small ones in the window for a cheap night out. Love this place.

• Pros: Great Boston-style pizza, fantastic sandwiches
• Cons: everything is fattening

I've given up on Bill's

by fordag at Citysearch

I used to eat sandwiches at Bill's from time to time, the Fornax was my favorite. Problem is that one day it would be a really good sandwich, the next day it was awful. The bread on one side would be be just crust with a huge hole in the middle. Meat varied from good to inedible. They didn't even have the same ingredients on them every time. Sadly to add insult to injury if you dared to mention any of these faults, the staff either barely acknowledge you or they are outright rude to you. It's just not worth the gamble for me anymore

• Pros: When sandwhichs are good they are good.
• Cons: Rude staff, quality is very spotty, staff doesn't care

Don't pay someone to stress you out!!!

by gd24 at Citysearch

Awful, awful, awful customer service, i'm sorry, the girl that answers the phone is sweet, it's the managers that are ridiculous. The descriptions of items are creative and sound very tasty, but the ingredients are gross, old and wilted, and stingily thrown together. I can't post my experiences, because citysearch wont post it (i've tried many times) but i can say don't bother dealing with them, if you've made the decision to eat out, it's because you don't feel like dealing with the stress, for that reason alone, go to sweet tomatoes, or newton highland's pizza.

• Pros: creative entrees
• Cons: terrible quality ingredients, worst customer service

YuMmY!!!

by lovinbeantown at Citysearch

I'm a fairly regular customer (2-3x month), and have yet to order anything that wasn't fresh & super tasty!

At first, I was overwhelmed with the chalkboard menus that line the walls when you walk in. NOT very friendly to the "vertically challenged", but unique. Once I found the paper menu's on the front counter, I was a much happier person!

With a HUGE menu, I haven't had the same thing twice! (ok, well, maybe I have!) I'm completely in love with the mixed greens with grilled chicken salad, with house dressing, of course!!! (SO GOOD, SO GOOD!!)

But, lets get serious . . . . you don't come to a pizza joint for salad . . . . . Bills serves a nice, thin crust, tasty pizza. Not too much dough, not too much sauce, not too much cheese . . . . . just right! HOWEVER, I have found that when ordering a whole pie, & eating it straight from the oven, the crust seems a little wimpy & flimsy. INSTEAD, I completely recommend you go for a couple slices from the "slice bar". There's something about putting the slices back into the oven to heat them that makes them nice n crunchy, and fabulous! It's like magic!!

The staff is super friendly, but sometimes hard to understand (depending on who is working). The owner is also friendly & always looking for ways to improve! On my last visit, he actually came out into the dining room to see how everything was & to chat it up with the customers!

Wait time for food is typical considering everything is made from scratch when you order it. On occasion, there is a significant wait just to place & pay for your order, but all the workers seem to hustle & get your food out to you as soon as possible. Regardless, it is well worth the wait!

All in all, great place to eat! I would have given it 5 stars . . . . but as my parents always say . . . . there is always room for improvement!

• Pros: Great food, friendly staff, decent prices
• Cons: lack of parking, hard to read menu