Uncle’s Pizzeria is not your average pizza joint. The bistro occupies a happy medium above fast delivery places, but below upscale restaurants. The menu is small and tailored to the season’s ingredients, which guarantees that each dish is as fresh as possible. Blackboard specials frequently change, allowing one to come back and always find something new to try.

For an appetizer, I ordered and shared a plate of prosciutto, apples and gorgonzola. I’ve never had it with apples, because melon is the traditional pairing. While the fruit is still crisp and sweet, it just isn’t the same. However, the cheese was soft and provided a nice bite to counter the apples.

To wash it down, I had a tequila amaretto sour. It was interesting that they added tequila along with the lime juice, yet I didn’t really taste a difference. Nevertheless, it was well-mixed and smooth. I had to control myself to not quickly finish it before the pizza arrived.

Growing up with parents that lived in Naples, Italy and having visited the country multiple times, I’m very picky about my pizza. I could have gone for the basic Margherita style as a benchmark, but instead I wanted to try the chef’s own creations and picked the popular kale pizza topped with roasted squash, goat cheese, walnuts and balsamic onions.

The crust was expertly baked — not too crunchy, to0 soft or too heavy. The creamy goat cheese, soft squash and crunchy walnuts took me to texture nirvana. These ingredients also created a great sweet-and-salty flavor blend. Everyone in the party was quiet as we voraciously dug in, only stopping to pick up another slice.

Dessert was a classic pair of cannoli made in-house. Immediately after taking a bite, I was assaulted by an overpowering and unexpected lemon flavor. This was not a pleasant limoncello flavor, rather, it was closer to biting straight into the acidic fruit.

Attention to detail goes a long way in the food industry and I could tell that the flaky and fresh shells were made in-house instead of store-bought, unlike other Italian restaurants. However, the crust is not enough to make up for disappointing filling.

My friends weren’t happy with their cannoli or chocolate torte either, and I’ve heard similar reactions to the other options. The best dessert decision might be to go to Chocolate Cafe next door.

This was some of the best pizza I’ve had in Fort Collins, but the it was a shame that the evening ended on a dud. Come for the delicious pizza, but don’t stay for the underwhelming dessert.

Hours: Lunch served from Monday-Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dinner served from Monday-Sunday, 4 to 11:30 p.m. Brunch served on the weekends.

Location: 120 West Olive Street

Prices: Appetizers and salads from $4-$12. Entrees from $14-$19. Custom pizzas start at $8. Speciality pizzas are $14 or $16. Desserts are $6.

Collegian Reporter Jefferson Geiger can be reached at entertainment@collegian.com.