Proto's Pizza

First the good; the pizza is mouth-watering, the atmosphere hip, the employees exceptional. Protos isn?t trying to cater to the chain pizza patron, so if your idea of a great pie is an XL-processed-meatzza, wax cheese, Velveeta-filled-crust-bomb, then go back to domino hut. Protos specializes in handmade, never processed, specialty pies made fresh to order. The Denver employees are friendly, knowledgeable and down to earth. If you?re looking for great Neapolitan handmade pies with a stylish atmosphere and courteous employees that know their wines, than Protos is for you. There is also a tiki torch lit patio that is great for summer afternoons/evenings.
Now the bad; Pam Proto (owner/proprietor) has publicly built her reputation into a caring, charitable, community supporter but unfortunately does NOT extend these traits to her employees. The bussers are working for below minimum wage. She is presently threatening employee?s jobs and/or wages with relocation. Ms. Proto is cutting server?s shifts that aren?t meeting what she calls ?sales goals?. I personally know two long-term, hard working employees that Ms. Proto threatened with the ultimatum, ?transfer to a new location, or lose your job?. Ms. Proto?s newest employee regulation (threat) was directed towards the servers. Apparently the servers that don?t meet ?Pam?s sales goals? for the week, lose one-week worth of shifts. Seriously? You suspend someone?s wages for a week and expect him or her to work harder and respect you and your restaurant?
The employees at Protos are hard working young people. The Majority are students, and for them losing one-week of shifts is a large fraction of their income. All the servers are well-trained, polite, intelligent people, so if they aren?t pulling in ?Pam?s projected earnings? I find it hard to believe it?s strictly by fault of their own. Way to give your employees incentive, greedy Ms. Proto. Punishment and threat as motivation, does the definition of terrorism ring a bell? Is this how you?ve achieved success by threatening and bullying your way through the industry? You practice a poor business model Ms. Proto; you may want to think about encouragement rather than threats. Encouragement equals employee loyalty, equals long-term success, equals respect. Pam Proto is a deceiving, greedy-bully that cares nothing for her employees, her only concern is seeing the numbers in her own bank account grow.
So if you decide to visit the Denver Protos and you see Ms. Pam and she flashes that ?I?m sweet little Pam Proto and I give contributions to third-world children- smile?, remember that all the employees are under a constant threat of losing their jobs and wages. Also remember to tip your server well too; it may be the last tip they see for a week. Beside the name Proto, the restaurant is worth checking out, at least for the employees, the wine and the pie.

Pros: employees, pie

Cons: owner

Posted 05/25/09

Despite the crowded chaos and above the din, there is pizza euphoria to experience at Proto's. This place is seriously simple, offering only pizzas, salads and desserts on its menu, in addition to a full bar with a rotating wine list. The pizza is very authentic and flavorful and the open kitchen, with its imported Italian wood oven, can be viewed from any perch in the place. My mother, who is from Europe, proclaimed the pizza the best she'd had since our trip to Rome together. And if you like clams, every Friday night is clam pizza night! The owners fly them in for the occasion.

Pros: Great pizza, energetic environment, interesting wines

Cons: Parking, loud crowds, not enough space

Posted 12/18/08

I went here when I was pregnant, so I don't know how valid my opinion is:) But...this pizza is absolutely amazing. I read so many reviews about the "bad" service, and yes, it is a small place so seating can be troublesome, but it is a PIZZA JOINT!!! I suppose I don't expect the same kind of service here as I would at a fine dining restaurant. It is a more casual atmosphere with a nice touch of Chic Italian culture and I just LOVED it. In this kind of restaurant, I don't WANT to have waiters breathing down my neck. I want to spend the time with the person I came with and enjoy the wonderful atmosphere and great food. I recommend every person in Denver to come here and I guarantee you everyone would love the food...and the "hard to please" people might find fault in the service.

Pros: Best Pizza I know in Denver

Cons: Small restaurant, therefore takes a while to be seated...get there early!

Posted 10/23/08

best restaurant in the area!! their thin crust pizzas are always made with fresh ingredients. my husband and i have been there several times and love it. i highly recommend that you give this place a try. the staff is always friendly and we've never had a problem with seating although it has a tendency to fill up so come early otherwise you may be stuck waiting for a table. they also have a bar inside although some drinks are on the pricey end. give it a try, you won't be disappointed!

Pros: fresh ingredients, friendly staff, fun atmosphere, tv in bar area

Cons: parking, pricey drinks, limited seating as its a small space

Posted 09/12/08

The Pizzas are good. The ingredients are flavorful. The crust was thin and crispy but did not have any of the blisters which I loved in Italy.

The wine list is brief with many Italian varietals. Included for whites were a Vernachia, Inama Soave.

The comments regarding delays in seating are true. I saw large groups of people clogging the entry area. Its a popular place and the restaurant is small.

The Pizza oven was gas burning in the back. I watched them roll and toss the thin crusts.

Pros: crisp pizza, nice wines

Cons: poor service

Posted 11/12/07

Proto serves one of the better thin crust pizzas in Denver. They offer a good array of fresh ingredients, small salads and a decent little bar. The place is small and has a limited number of tables, but the patio is great if it's warm. The atomica is a good choice if you like a lot on your pizza. Their sausage is flavorful, not too much fat with a good amount of fennel. Sometimes the pizzas could use more sauce. The salads are prefect for an entree or for sharing, but a little expensive. The wine list is good and fairly priced, nothing eclectic, but easy to navigate.
The service is very casual, not much better than a Chili's, but it's never bad, just nothing to write home about.

Pros: Good thin crust pizza, fresh salads

Cons: Parking

Posted 10/14/07

Good food, but Protos is very proud of everything they do. Salads are some of the best in town. Fresh, fresh ingredients. I find the wait staff, although personable, lacking in warmth. I have visited many times and am never treated as a valued customer. Maybe my money doesn't mean as much as someone else's. I don't know. I don't got here any more.

Pros: Food is good

Cons: Personnel generally do not generate any warmth - kind of pompous actually

Posted 09/12/07

If you want to go somewhere with amazing pizza, amazing service, and a wonderful atmosphere, Protos is the perfect place. I love the atmosphere! They have a bar, a small sitting area outside to people watch while you eat, and you can watch them bake the pizzas in their oven at the back end of the restaurant. The pizza is delicious. There are several different types of pizzas on their menu. You can order small med or large. The thin soft crust is delicious. I also have had several of their appetizers and they were excellent. The panini w/ olive oil was great and so was the Caesar Salad w/ Anchovies. They have Stella on Draft...mmmm! I love how it is more on the healthy side and reasonably priced. I highly recommend this place.

Posted 08/11/07

Wait staff showed lack of concern for getting our drinks and the sausage pizza didn't have any sausage on it when it arrived at our table. The waiter offer to correct the situation by sprinkling cooked sausage on our baked pizza and said that was all they could do to correct our order. They then offered to let us have our cheese and onion pizza at half price. Never again.

Pros: location

Cons: service

Posted 07/13/07

I went to Protos one evening with a friend, my teenage son and a few of his buddies. The pizza at Protos was outstanding. The boys loved the Protos' pizza with yummy sausage and my favorite was the Pontiff's with spinach and fresh tomatoes and cheese. The crust is thin in the style of Napoli, so it's lovely, lower carbs and not as filling. The special salad was good too with walnuts , feta and bits of fruit. We had tiramasu and gelatos for dessert and espresso which topped of the meal delightfully. The service was great with many people checking in with us regularly, despite the fact that they were quite busy with customers. Last, but certainly not least, the young manager, Kara, was charming and made us feel welcome as well giving an excellent suggestion as to our wine choice with dinner. We will certainly return to Protos in Denver and highly recommend a visit to this restaurant.

Pros: Parking was great in the garage at the back. Great pizza, nice wines and full bar.

Posted 04/06/07

Coming from a small town I had my doubts that I could find a similar experience in the big city. I have to say that Protos has proven to me that no matter were you are in the world that a small town feel can be experienced anywhere. Every time I walk into Protos on wednesday nights I feel like I am a welcome friend. Not only do they have great food but they also have fabulous customer service; the greeting I receive by the Hostess, the positive attitudes and smiles seen in the Kitchen crew and Support staff, as well as great conversations with the Bartender, Waiters/Waitresses, and Manager, I feel that this little place called Protos is food for the soul...

Posted 04/05/07

My roommate and I have been going to Proto's every Wednesday night for the last 6 months. We go for the great pizza, the great beer, and the incredible service that we get from a fantastic group of people. Go to Proto's becuase you want to have a good time...hang out with a group of eclectic people from all over the Denver area. It has a chill vibe and a welcoming environment. If you are in hurry for pizza...call one of those chains for delivery. But If you want a one of a kind pie, check this place out. I can honestly say this is one of my favorite spots in Denver.

Pros: Service, diverse bar menu

Posted 04/05/07

Proto's has incredable pizza...if it was not for there awesome pizza I would never go back. On multiple occasions it would take close to 10 minutes before anyone greeted us and another 45 minutes to seat us. Then once we did get seated it has taken close to another 15 minutes before our waiter even stopped by the table to get our drink order. There service is terrable and the resturant is so small your lucky to even get a table. If your willing to deal with waiting and terrable service for good pizza then this is the place for you.

Pros: Good pizza

Cons: Pricey, BAD service, small resturant & not many tables

Posted 04/03/07

We tried Proto's because of the great reviews. There were 3 tables seated in the restaurant, but it took 15 minutes for our waiter to greet us with his "I don't want to be here" attitude. It took another 20 minutes for him to return with our drinks and take our order. We didn't see him again until our burned pizza arrived. Then, after we had finished eating our charred dinner, he decided to smile when he dropped off the check--nice last-ditch effort for a tip. The place was empty, and this is the service we had. I can't imagine what it's like when the place is packed. We will never return to this restaurant.

Pros: Not a single one

Cons: bad service, burned food

Posted 03/09/07

This place has great pizza, wine, martinis and desert. The pizza is the best I have had in a long time. The seating is tight but it works just fine. The entire staff was very nice. We tried two different types of pizza and the gelato cookies and cream and it was all amazing! Great neighborhood also.

Pros: Pizza, Gelato

Cons: Nothing

Posted 12/09/06

We were seated promptly but people from the bar had their jackets and scarfs on the table and the hostess did not have them moved and expected us to sit on their personal items. Once seated we went unnoticed for about 12 minutes, while those that arrived after us were greeted and had their orders taken. Our table was mashed between a busy walkway and the bar, quite uncomfortable. The portion size of the tomato and mozzarella salad was really small for the high price tag. My boyfriend had a fork and food dropped into his lap by a waiter passing by. We were delivered the wrong pizzas twice, before our pizzas arrived. When they finally arrived 45 minutes after ordering, there was no apology. Overall, we could never get the attention of our waiter. The restaurant has lots of staff, but they seem to not coordinate together at all. This place was a miserable experience!!!!

Pros: Not much at all

Cons: Horrible service, tight spaces, rudeness

Posted 11/22/06

This is a place where you want to sit down, split a fresh green salad and have a thin crust (not too heavy) pie. Finish it with either a crisp white or a flavorful red and you have a good start to your evening. On occasion, they have wine tastings that are unpretentious and low cost. Try something new and show up on one of those nights, the staff will help you match your pizza with your wine. When's Domino's ever done that for you?

Pros: Fresh food and good variety

Cons: Parking

Posted 11/20/06

The pizza is light with excellent flavor. The atmosphere is young & urban & neighborhoody. My only complaint is that sometimes the staff is standoff-ish. But it's usually because they are so busy. There are only a couple of tables outside, but it's fun to sit out front on a sunny summer day.

Pros: The pizza

Posted 11/13/06

This is a great occasion to treat yourselves with the best pizza in Denver. The food is great along with the atmosphere and service. Proto's is not your typical pizza restaurant we see here in this part of the country. This is how pizza should be everywhere and makes me appreciate where pizza really came from and what it's really meant to be. Thank you Proto's for your awesome restaurant and hope to see you this winter comming from Oklahoma City.

Pros: If you like pizza, then go to Proto's...

Posted 10/03/06

Today for lunch I had a vegetarian pizza to go (i think it's called the "Key" something) with artichoke hearts, kalamata olives, and pesto. It really was fantastic. They are a little pricey for the size ($10 including tax for the smallest pizza with 4 slices), but I will definitely come back. This is my second time there and was not disappointed.

Posted 07/24/06

I'm on a pizza quest and so far in Denver this is the best pizza I have found.
The neighborhood atmosphere and outdoor dining are great too.

Pros: yummy pizza, outdoor dining

Cons: parking

Posted 07/14/06

Food is delicious! Caesar salad and pizza are fabulous. The service is so-so but everyone is very friendly.

Pros: Fresh ingredients, atmosphere, wine list for a pizza place

Cons: Service can be lacking

Posted 06/25/06

Protos satisfied my search for decent Pizza in the year since I moved to Boulder. It's a different style, unique, tasty, I rate it about 7.5 of 10 (Everything else I had tried was 6 or less). The Restaurants are loud, service ok, but if you have kids it can be fun to watch part of the preparation process, as long as the noise does not bother them. Portions are smaller than standard, very thing crust, so order a size up from your standard (or order dessert, it's reasonably good.) By the way, I've had three pizzas in my life I rated a 10, 2 of them chicago style: Zachary's Pizza in Berkeley (10, oh how I miss the college days), Giordano's in Chicago (9.95), and a dive called Oasis (9.6, since gone downhill to a 7 or 8) in Palo Alto.

Pros: Pizza

Cons: Value

Posted 04/12/06

Best pizza I have had in long time. Was amazingly fresh. I have gone back three times in the past month. I love the concept of the "Wino Card" they offer when you purchase a bottle of wine. I also recommend the tomato salad.

Pros: fresh, non smoking, friendly

Cons: parking

Posted 12/03/05

Having just come from three years on the east coast, I found ambience busy, friendly, pizza was authentic Neopolitan, desserts tasty, wine by glass good. Clam pizza was a treat--not too much garlic. Obviously very popular neighborhood place with available parking. People looking for deep dish stuff your face probably need bigger chairs, bigger parking spaces out in big box suburbia someplace. Protos was not pretentious, just urban. I could easily see why hanging there on Friday nights would be popular.

Pros: food, decor, service

Posted 08/19/05

THIS is the best pizza! Thin crust, ooey-gooey cheese and an amazing selection of toppings! The wine list is fabulous as well! The ambience is very contemporary and she-she!

Posted 05/16/05

I live near Proto's on Platte St. and order pizza from here regulary. However, after my last experience, I do not think I will be eating here for some time. We ordered the clam pizza and traffic jam (this one has the most toppings, unlike the others with barely any cheese/toppings) but I noticed a very heavy garlic taste coming from the clam pizza. I like garlic, but I think they honestly put about 12 cloves on the small pizza. I tasted the garlic 'after-taste' through til the next morning - blegh! My husband has had the same effects and was pretty disgusted. Also, the service was really bad as our 'waitress' or 'waiter' (I could not figure out which) was not courteous and made us feel rushed. Had the same experience from the bartender. She acted like the world was coming to an end. I don't get this place!!!??

Pros: parking, bar, wine

Cons: super crowded, garlic overload, boring pizza

Posted 03/14/05

My wife and I and another couple went to this restaurant because 5280 magazine rated it as one of the best pizza places in town. Major disapointment! Oh yeah they have a thin crust pizza all right. Can you say Quesadilla? We ordered three different pizzas that night and all three arrived at are table sorely lacking in toppings and the flavor was marginal. When your paying a premium price for a pizza I expect to see lots of toppings. As far as wait staff I would say the service was average at best.

If you like a good pizza there are several others in town that blow this one away.

Pros: Nice decor, Location

Cons: Overpriced, Scant toppings, Average flavor

Posted 02/25/05

Cool atmosphere. Great food. Eclectic wine list. The place gets out of hand at night, but that just adds to the vibe. Techno-jazz fusion music. Mixed crowds--DU kids next to LoDo developers next to restaurant people on their night off. The prosciutto pizza rocks. Try the clam pie Friday nights and whatever special drink weirdness is coming out from behind the bar. Love this place!

Pros: Music, City type pace, Great food

Posted 08/21/04

Have been once for dinner. Except for the bartender being a little snooty to us, we had a great experience. Definately upscale pizza place-we spent $55.00 with tip for two and more on the bar tab. We loved the gourmet toppings (really hard to choose) and the atmosphere. Locale is in a cool neighborhood that's off the wild lo-do track. Will definately go back.

Pros: topping choices, parking, locale

Posted 07/15/04

Have eaten pizza all over the US and Italy. Proto's compares very favorably with pizza I've eaten in Naples, Sorrento, Rome and NYC. Deep dish lovers (I want to taste the ingredients, not eat dough) may disagree but thin pizza is the way pizza was meant to be and Proto's is the closest to Italian pizza, I've tasted.

Posted 06/15/04

The thin crust pizza at Proto's is mouth watering! I would highly recommend this tasty neighborhood pizza place. The variety of pizzas is great...you can choose a different one on each visit. The waitstaff is so friendly and attentive. The lemonade/iced tea is the best in town...and they keep the refills coming! My only complaint is that the prices are just a little high. The outdoor patio in front is a fun place to sit and enjoy a beautiful day as well as great pizza!

Pros: location, friendly staff, delicious

Posted 09/15/03