Mid-Michigan Dining

• 1010 E. Grand Ave.
• East Lansing, MI 48823
• (517) 351-1000
• No Known Website
• Menu

Georgio's Gourmet Pizza on Grand River Avenue in East Lansing.

Georgio’s Gourmet Pizza is the elusive pizza-by-the-slice I’ve been hoping to find.  I’ve spent a lot of time on the campus of the University of Illinois and there is more than one place to get a late night slice of pie.  I’ve checked out the other place along Grand River and wasn’t all that impressed.  Georgio’s was a totally different story.

I was in East Lansing fairly late on a Saturday night after working a volleyball game at the Breslin Center.  I was exhausted and really hungry.  J had sent me a text message asking if I wanted her to go get me something, but since I was out, I thought it’d be easier if I just took care of it myself.

I pulled into the parking lot off Grand River Avenue where Georgio’s sits.  I was a little worried they had just closed or something.  I could see lights on and people inside, but the “open” sign in the window was turned off.  I drove around so I could see the hours of operation on the door.   It said they were open until 3 AM on Friday and Saturday, so I parked the truck and gave the door a tug.  Yay!  It opened. 

Georgio’s isn’t your typical pizza place.  They do the same old boring pizzas that everyone knows and loves, but they also a do a line of gourmet pizzas.  I really didn’t realize that when I walked in.  I was looking at the pizzas in the case and none of them looked like a cheese or a pepperoni.  I asked the kid behind the counter if the one in the back was cheese.  He said no, it was chicken and bacon, but they did have cheese in a warming locker near the stoves.  I got two slices of cheese for J and two slices of the chicken and bacon for myself.  I didn’t ask a whole lot of questions and they didn’t have labels on the pizzas, so I didn’t know what was sitting there.

Georgio's Gourmet Pizza near Michigan State University

Like most by-the-slice places, the slices were tossed in the oven to reheat while the clerk rung up my order.  Unlike most by-the-slice, these slices cost more than a couple bucks.  The total for the four slices was about twelve bucks.  I was expecting it to be eight or so.  The slices are huge so you’re getting what you pay for.

I made my way home where J and I dug in.  The pizza was delicious.  It had a great crust, great sauce and the chicken and bacon pizza was like no other pizza I’ve ever had.  I’m convinced bacon is the most perfect food in the world.  Add it to some chicken and you’ve got a great pizza. 

J was a little jealous of my pizza and asked for part of my slice.  The cheese was good, but not as good as bacon and chicken.  We put a slice in the fridge so I would have breakfast the next morning. 

Georgio’s was great.  The pizza was really good and didn’t taste like it had been sitting in case for a while.  Next time we have a late night craving for pizza, we’ll know that Georgio’s is worth the trip to East Lansing.