Pudgie's Pizza - City of Elmira

When I arrived, I was told my food would be ready. However, my wings had been left sitting in the fryer basket, and they struggled to locate my order, even debating whether those wings were mine as if they couldn’t remember frying them. While I waited, big red hair guy and his friend were complaining about other customers and making fun of them, which showcased a shocking lack of professionalism. Is pulling a bunch of red hair back really sufficient to keep it away from the food? A visor isn’t a substitute for a hat or a hair net, and if all the hair is piled on top of the visor, it raises concerns about sanitation. I had ordered char-grilled wings since that’s something most wing places don’t offer. During my wait, I watched big red hair guy handle my wings on the grill. Flames engulfed the wings briefly, but they were only on the grill for about 30 seconds—completely pointless. Flames shouldn’t touch the food directly, and the wings didn’t even make contact with the grill bars long enough to leave any marks. I ordered both garlic parmesan wings and hot wings. The hot sauce was great, but by the time I received my wings, they were soggy from the sauce, with no additional flavor from the grill. I must admit, the garlic parm wings maintained some crispiness, but the sauce was terrible. While there was a hint of garlic, I couldn’t taste any parmesan, just an oily flavor that was oddly fishy, as if the fry oil had been used for fish or was very old. That garlic/fish combination ruined any enjoyment of the crispiness. Having waited so long for my food, I was extra hungry and decided to try a slice of pizza as well. The most intriguing option they had was "meat sauce." I requested a slice to add to my order. I want to acknowledge the woman at the register; while she was another one with her nose exposed, she was kind and approachable despite her busy schedule. She added the slice to my order without any issues. I tried the slice immediately. If I hadn’t been told it was "meat sauce" pizza, I wouldn't have guessed. The cheese was decent, and there were a few random bits of unidentifiable ground meat scattered throughout, but there was certainly no "meat sauce," and barely any sauce at all. I felt disappointed and deprived, especially since I had such high hopes for a local specialty. It’s baffling how a place like this can stay in business when I could get a chain pizza of consistent quality for nearly half the price. If a local establishment can’t produce better pizza than the national chains, I struggle to see how it can survive. I regret having to leave such a negative review when my intention was to support a local business and write a positive assessment. But this *is* a supportive review; I want to see this place succeed. To do that, they need to confront the uncomfortable truth about what they’re doing wrong. They have the potential to improve, and I’d love to witness that transformation. Refusing to recognize the issues and striving for improvement is what’s harming their business and will continue to do so. I truly hope that next time I pass through town, I’ll be able to support a great local pizza place.

It’s Mother’s Day, and we decided to grab some pizza and boneless wings. When I bit into one of the wings, I found it was undercooked, which completely ruined my appetite. I called to let them know, and the lady I spoke to asked me to return the wings, but honestly, I didn’t want to go through that hassle. She also offered to replace them, but my husband and I were too busy to deal with it. To top it off, she hung up on me in a really rude manner. From now on, I’ll stick with Southside Pudgies—I’ve never had any issues with them.

This is my favorite pizza place! Thank you so much, guys!

Friendly, polite, generous, and delicious! Pudgies on College Ave catered lunch for our His Haven Winter Day Camp on our final celebration day. Who doesn't love a pizza party? The kids were so excited, and the extra prizes and gift cards from Pudgies were an amazing touch to their already outstanding customer service! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

Always friendly