One of my coworkers started the day off yesterday by telling me about how one of her favorite pizza places in Georgia, the Mellow Mushroom, had opened a franchise at the new Streets at Southglenn. The Mellow Mushroom? Pizza? My mind was not quite wrapping around that one as I could not get the vision of all the hippy shops in Manitou Springs and Boulder, Colorado out of my mind. She, in fact, described it as a restaurant with a trendy, “hippy” décor and amazing pizza. While I am not much of a hippy myself, I am a pizza lover and will go to the ends of the earth for a good pizza pie. A decision was instantly made; The Mellow Mushroom would be our dinner destination, hippy décor and all.
The Mellow Mushroom was originally established in 1974, a time when “peace and love” was the loud cry of many Americans and bright flowers clung to the backs of VW bugs and vans. So naturally, The Mellow Mushroom, took on this trend while it was in its full glory. When we entered the restaurant we were instantly greeted by a large, lighted mushroom on the ceiling that was quite mesmerizing as it changed colors every few seconds. The walls had hippy-mushrooms with funny faces and chef hats, and the booths reminded me of That 70’s Show. While it was very 70’s-esque, it did have a modern, trendy feel to it.
After waiting a bit for our table( the place had only been open for ten days and was already hopping) we were offered a seat on the patio. Being as it was a very nice night we took the opportunity to sit outside. We looked over the menu and were greeted with quite a few good-looking choices. My coworker had recommended that we try the pretzel appetizer and a pizza. After ordering two Diet Cokes, something that MUST go with pizza, we decided on the fourteen-inch House Special (which was a pizza pie with just about every topping imaginable on it) and an order of butter and Parmesan pretzels to dip in sauce.
When our ordered was delivered to our table I remember the first thought that ran through my mind…”Whoa, that is one big pizza!” All fourteen-inches were covered from crust to tip with loads of toppings, and the crust looked like French bread fresh out of the oven. Let the carb-loading commence! It was, in fact, the crust that Jim and I both kept commenting on as we made our way through half of our pizza. Words like airy, doughy, and flakey permeated our crust conversation. The pretzels were made the same as the pizza crust and melted in our mouths as we dipped it in the warm pizza sauce. So…in honor of its founding in the 1970’s I would say The Mellow Mushroom is pretty “psychedelic.”
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Great Pizza, I want to go back for some more already! =)
Oh man! Ben told me the other night that there was a Mellow Mushroom. Your coworker was right – everyone near Atlanta grew up on this stuff. As a true connoisseur, I can say that the Colorado version was just as good as the original. I love that it’s right by school – I’ll be able to pick up a pie on my way home!
I am glad to hear from another true Mellow Mushroom goer! If you are ever stopping by for some pizza, let us know. It would be fun to grab some pie with you guys.