Proto’s Pizza

Love Protos in Lafayette. All of the Protos have great pizza, salads and desserts but Lafayette is one of their best locations. John the manager is fantastic and he runs a great restaurant. Highly recommend the tomato and mozzarella salad followed up by a Low Rider pizza-​delicious!

First time going to this place. I was in the mood for wood fired pizza. So it was close by. Ordered the magherita. . added sausage and mushrooms. I was expecting a thin crust, but not a cracker thin crust. And sure enough here it comes after a long wait. The coffee was luke warm, and the darn crust is just a big cracker with toppings. That’s IT.. . THAT“S NOT was what I was expecting. I’ve had neopolitan pizza and it was never a cracker with toppings. And the taste was just OK. Not what a real neopolitan pizza is. And they had only one kind of crust. Will not be back. rather lousy pizza.

I had to pick up my son at the in door soccer next Proto’s Pizza in Lafayette, CO. So, I popped into Proto’s pizza for lunch. The waitress suggested the Low Rider pizza because it was her favorite. I love a spicy Hawaiian pizza with Canadian bacon, pineapple and jalapeños. The Low Rider has chipotle red sauce with bacon, pineapple and cilantro… WOW. This the best pizza ever! I had a Left Hand Nitro Milk Stout to finish it off and I am in heaven! If your looking a meal goto Proto’s Pizza and get the Low Rider pizza!

We had a great time eating at the bar. Service was great and had a great pie. Traffic jam

Best salad and pizza ! I went regularly while assigned to a job in Boulder, CO, during September and October 2015 and loved sitting outdoors and enjoying the food. I also really liked the Italian soda. Will visit again when i return to Colorado!

This is a great little neighborhood find! If you like thin crust pizza this is the place. I love pizza but hate thick crusts and lots of bread, which is why this place is perfect. Great variety of pizzas and salads. I had the Tuscan Salad with feta which was amazing and a pizza. The flavors were incredible. They also serve half glasses of wine! Glad we tried this place. One of my new favorites.

I ate here with my kids. I had the clam pizza with red sauce (normally I’d have done white, but I wanted to try their red given it was my first time). My kids got the plain, thin crust.
First off, the food took some time to come out. Granted, it was busy, so I’ll give them a pass on that one. They brought out the wrong pizza for my order. When I brought that to the server’s attention, she quickly rectified the situation. So, the service wasn’t stellar, but they break even because of their efforts to recover.
As far as my pizza, I felt more clams could have been on top. The cheese, sauce, and crust were all meh. The sauce was especially bland IMHO. I tried the kids’ plain and had the same reaction. Meh.
Now, I’m a recent East Coast relo, so I guess I’m a bit biased. Let’s put it this way, though. If you’re going to charge East Coast prices, then don’t be offended if my standards match.

Have driven by this restaurant for years, decided to try due to lack of establishments in the area.
Fabulous pizza! I had the Caesar salad and small Ruby pie, my mate had the traffic jam pie. Both were outstanding, best crust and best sauce I’ve ever had. For dessert the Tiramisu is also excellent. Nice atmosphere although tight between tables.
This is now my go to restaurant for pizza, I highly recommend giving it a try.

Consistently great food– wonderful and surprising flavor combinations. This Foodie approves!

I have driven by this place many times so this time on a whim I thought I should give it a try. It is small little place along 287 in a mini strip mall with ample parking. They greet you with a smile and for a friday evening they weren’t too busy. The service was almost to the point of hovering which is a little annoying. We ordered the spinich salad and it was good but they forgot the bacon they promised on the salad. I ordered the traffic jam pizza which is basically a meat pizza. It was okay, really nothing special and the crust was a little burned which my date liked but not me.
We ordered beers with our food and split a dessert canoli and with a 15% tip the bill was almost sixty dollars. I can get pizza that is equal or better and spend a lot less than that so I won’t bd returning to Protos.

Very disappointing. Been to Italy several times… sorry, this is not «Napoletana!» Ordered the clam pizza expecting something like the New Haven classic — no dice! Undercooked and flavorless. Maybe we just hit the place on the wrong day. But just spent $ 45+ on I don’t know what???

We live in Erie and just tried Proto’s for the first time; man have we been missing out! This place is a true hidden gem — tucked into an unassuming strip mall, it is easy to miss. But once we arrived the place was pretty full around 6 on a Friday night. It is cozy with a full bar and a terrific Neapolitan pizza menu. (We recently traveled to Italy where we tried to real thing, and I assure you, Proto’s gets it right.) We had the Lowrider pie — delicious and unique combo of sweet and spicy BBQ, bacon, pineapple and cilantro. Crust is thin, crispy and chewy. I also love that they have a full bar. We went with Peronis. The restaurant appears to be family-​owned and is very kid friendly, without being an obnoxious chain pizza place. We’ll definitely be back!

This review is solely based on their customer service– I LOVE the proto’s in Denver — eating it 2+ times a week. Unfortunately, I don’t have the number programmed into my phone. I quickly typed in Proto’s Denver on my phone and up popped the number. After being greeted with «Proto’s, please hold», I waited several minutes before the phone was picked up with «this is Chris, what can I get you?». I placed my order, and 2 minutes later realized that the number I dialed didn’t seem right. I discovered I called the Lafayette location, and quickly called back. I informed the person on the phone, Chris, of the mistake I made. Chris, in return, have me a very snotty response explaining that is why they answer the phone with «Proto’s Lafayette». Sorry, Chris — you didn’t clarify the location whatsoever, and I was in a car full of people who could vouch for that. One star for a crappy attitude.

We went to Protos for the first time last night and the pizza and salad were horrible and definitely not worth the price we paid. Granted I had a gluten free crust which is never great, but it was cooked until blackened. We had three toppings on it and I guess they take that literally, one pepper, one mushroom, one pineapple a slice. The cheese was pretty much nonexistent. As for the salad, we paid 10 dollars for what they call a Caesar salad: basically a bunch of romaine with two thimbles of commercial dressing, a few large junks of parm and 3 whole anchovies. No croutons, nor was the parm grated. The lettuce had brown spots all through it, the type I throw out even at home. My boyfriend said after 28 years of living in the area it was hands down the worst pizza and salad he’s ever had. Very disappointing as there’s so few good pizza places as it is.

Protos is «Yuppie Pizza».
If you haven’t been to Protos, it is worth a try if you feel like something different, like clam pizza, alternative cheeses, and similar.
However, I have to say that although I live in Lafayette, I almost never go to Protos.
Once or twice per year tops, because of the value proposition.
Pizzas are thin and small (not much topping, thin crust, small diameter) — I’m not into gluttony and gigantic portions at restaurants, but if I spend $ 20 on a pizza it should feed two people without one of them (usually me) walking out hungry.
I caution you about the photos accompanying the reviews, the pizzas look misleadingly «big» in them…
The quality of ingredients is good, they seem to have a well-​stocked bar, so it seems like a good date place. You could have a fun dinner here and then go out to another bar or a movie or something.
This is not really a bring-​a-​family-​for-​pizza type of place, you would go broke. It is a bit small, as well. For some reason I always feel cramped in this restaurant, like the bar takes up too much room or something, I can’t really explain it, but it is’t cozy-​comfortable. More like concrete and glass…

This is one of family’s favorite places to have a quick dinner. My daughter loves watching the guys make the pizza behind the glass. I like that their Cesar Salad has REAL white anchovies! We can come here after picking her up from school, have a nice meal for less than $ 20 and get on with our evening, which is perfect for this working mom!

Clam pizza, stunning seasonal salads, cold white wine and a patio. Sigh… I can’t think of many pizza places that are more than great pizza and not too much of all things Italian.
I love to go here with my family, by myself or with my hubby. Worth the drive to Lafayette.
I am a lover of white pizza and I don’t care for tons of goofy red sauce. Thankfully Proto’s hits both of these marks and I can go either way and find napoleanic bliss.
I have never had a dessert here but have gone and ordered extra pizza to take home after we have eaten everything on the table.
If you want to take out pizza, ask for it to be lightly baked so you can just finish it at home. It is best eaten there.

Oh Proto’s, how I love your crispy thin crusted pizza, puffed dough, and sweet cream sodas. Your white pie with garlic and artichoke hearts is divine. It fills my stomach and leaves me begging for more but I have not the room.
I don’t think we visit you enough, let us be friends, warm me up on a cold winters night.

Its a toss up whether the service or the crust is the most amazing part of Proto’s, but it could be the unique combos on their specialty pizzas. Those are my three favorite things about Proto’s. I’ve eaten there maybe 20 times and had one complaint — one night they were out of my favorite beer. That’s a pretty solid record. Their product is consistently awesome! The servers create one of those atmospheres that makes you feel at home on the first trip! Love me some Proto’s!

With my Chicagoland roots, I was initially of the «who wants sparse toppings on a cracker» school. However, with time and prompting from my enthusiastic family members, I’ve come to love the casual, friendly attentions of the staff and the wood-​fired tastiness. Perhaps pizza doesn’t have to mean five pounds of cheese and streams of dripping grease? (I know… it’s blasphemy.)
The wait staff always have a good recommendation for a new pie, and make sure that we have everything we need for a great dinner. I’m sure we’ll be back again soon!