Best Playland pizza is kale and hearty

Newpizzeria good reason to go downtown

San Antonio residents love to flock downtown for the epic Christmas light displays, parades, festivals the obligatory trips to the Alamo or a cruise on the river to satiate those out-oftown guests. But with the opening of Playland in 2018 at the corner of Houston and Presa streets, we can add gourmet pizza to the list of reasons to head downtown.

Named after the former Playland Park off Broadway, it’s one of three downtown restaurant properties from the duo of Andrew Goodman and chef Stefan Bowers in a portfolio that also includes Rebelle and Battalion. All their restaurants have made regular appearances in the Express-News “Top 100 Dining & Drinks” guide.

And while Rebelle and Battalion lean toward fine dining, Playland is all about fun and experimentation. Bowers wanted to do pizza, so he’s doing pizza.

California-style sourdough crusts fired up in a wood oven that weighs as much a truck are the anchor to the menu. They won’t win any beauty contests, loaded with dough bubbles and a look that could be mistaken for intentionally burnt, but they are some of the best in the city.

Call ahead and plan for surprises. The pizza menu changes regularly and lunch service comes and goes (currently unavailable), but the toppings and sauces always taste farmers-market fresh and there’s always a full bar with craft cocktails and daily happy hour specials.

Best pizza: I didn’t expect the pizza with kale on it to be the winner, but anything is possible in 2020. Humorously named Is There A Problem Here ($20.25 for a 13-inch), the pizza’s mounds of crisped kale chips covered the blend of three cheeses like a coat of armor and absorbed the juices from the tender chunks of Italian sausage that had the right amount of salt and spice. No problem; we’re good.

Other pizzas: The Guilt Trip ($20.25 for a 13-inch) looked like the middle of a poker pot, loaded with thick slices of pepperoni all

crispy and curled up to hold in the pools of flavor. The zesty tomato sauce had subtle hints of heat, and the addition of zucchini was another Playland curve ball that makes you feel better about going in for that third slice.

Flavor And Fear ($20.25 for a 13-inch), went down a more traditional road, sticking with a formula of sliced jalapeño heat and salami. At first I thought they forgot the marinated olives, but later discovered the genius of embedding them under the threecheese blend, providing a nice, briny pop. Charcuterie meats pizza..

Anchovies can be a gamble, but here they paid off when I included them with roasted mushrooms as $2 toppings for the build-your-own pie (starting at $16.50 for a 13-inch). The fishy flavor wasn’t overpowering, and they bolstered the taste of the red sauce and cheese.

Chuck Blount / Staff Playland has creative names for the pizzas, such as this one called Is There A Problem Here, which has kale, sausage, pepperoni, honey and three cheeses.

The Guilt Trip pizza has slivers of zucchini mixed in with the pepperoni and a spicy tomato sauce.