Olive Oil’s Pizzeria in Richardson Serves Up Old-School Pie – and More

Because hole-in-the-wall pizza is our favorite kind, it was only natural that we stopped by Olive Oil’s Pizzeria & More – with an emphasis on “and More” – tucked away in Richardson. This takeout-only pizza spot started in Dallas in 1998 when owner Frankie Funaro began to experiment with his grandmother’s homemade pizza recipes. His passion and a solid fanbase pushed the restaurateur to open a new shop in 2006 in Richardson, where it still attracts fans 18 years later. He’s since expanded to Garland and Pennsylvania.

The Richardson shop is fairly bare-bones, with just a couple of chairs for waiting and a walk-up counter. The impressive part of the place is saved for the menu.

The menu, plastered across three walls, is big on variety. The almost two-dozen kinds of pizzas are a good place to start. While options like an Outrageous Cheese and Meat Monster are available, they take a backseat to the more creative selections like the Olive Oil’s Special topped with a simple garlic sauce, artichokes, tomatoes and olives. The sundried tomato pizza comes with a light pesto base topped with cheese, sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil before being baked to a golden crisp.

Beyond the flavors, the texture here is unique: it’s fluffier than the standard hand-tossed crust, but not too crunchy to be considered Neapolitan. A slightly crispy outer crust breaks – almost unexpectedly – to a chewy pizza dough inside. It’s a nearly perfect preface to the gooey pizza center, loaded with Olive Oil’s signature herbed ricotta cheese. We’re not too sure what to compare it to; it transcends the traditional categories of pizza crust, creating a whole new pizza category of its own.

The wait is about 15 minutes if you order your pizza in-store, but the anticipation made the time pass quickly.

Olive Oil’s also offers wings, breadsticks, pastas and hoagies. The Flying Pig is a foot-long monstrosity stuffed with eight meats and six vegetables. “No substitutions” in bold assures us that Olive Oil’s takes pride in its signature creation.

See? And more. It’s mostly “and More.” “And More” should petition for top billing.

But what makes the flavors and from-scratch pizza even better is the affordability of it all. The most expensive pasta dish is about $13, and pizzas are even cheaper. For less than $12 you can indulge in any of Olive Oil’s 10-inch pizzas, and even the extra-extra-extra large (yes, three extras) retails at just below $30.

Come hungry, bring a group of friends, or take some home for weeknight dinner for the whole family. And more.

Olive Oil’s Pizzeria & More, 581 W. Campbell Road, Richardson. Sunday – Thursday, 11 a.m. – 11 p.m.; Friday – Saturday, 11 a.m. – midnight.