You know something about this place before you even step inside. One of the neon signs in the windows beams the charmingly retro expression "Pizza Pie," the other "Spaghetti." This is no affectation. The Tower really does serve the kind of food that the city's first pizzerias did back in the 1950s. Which is to say that it's highly Americanized, but not mechanized the way most pizzerias have become.
The original Tower Of Pizza opened in 1970 on Downman Road in New Orleans East, and grew out of a loosely-allied group of similarly utilitarian pizzerias, including Sandy's in Arabi and Artista on Franklin Avenue. Only the Tower survives, and only in its second location on Veterans Blvd., which has been there since 1971. There is some forward motion: the Tower is now open for lunch, and accepts credit cards.
Pizzerias of the Tower's generation were never much on looks, and the Tower still isn't. It's too small for the number of customers who are always there, and there's not enough staff to keep the place neat. Families are drawn by the window through which the kids can watch pizzas being made while the adults drink beer. The staff is sometimes short on patience, but the time you spend with them is brief.
It's tempting to get pizza to go, but don't. It doesn't survive any more than the shortest trip.
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| Local Color | 1 |
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| Value | 2 |
| Wine | 0 |
