Hard to find many positive things to write about American Pie. "What can I get for you, man?" is the greeting I usually receive from an otherwise well-meaning but shoddily trained high school kid manning the counter. The place is unkempt. It is common to see crumpled napkins and paper plates strewn about the floor. And the collection of pubescents who work there walk right past the rubbish, pretending it's either not there or that it's not their responsibility to pick it up. No one looks happy. Not the hostess, not the servers, and not the gray-haired co-owner working the oven in back. What a shame. The location is great, what with all the foot-traffic inside the Village at Gulfstream Park. Plus, the space is large and modern. At precisely $4 for one (yes, one!) plain cheese slice, American Pie certainly has temerity. In fairness, it is a very large slice. But, c'mon! No slice of pizza should be $4. This is Hallandale Beach, Fla., for godssakes, not the Upper East Side of Manhattan. The pizza is decent, at best. Sbarro's inside the Aventura Mall makes pizza about 10 times as tasty. You can even do better at Pizza Roma or Papa John's.

- Written by Jonathan Adler
February 1, 2011