Topper’s Pizza artist Peter Hanson works his magic the way he knows how. Hanson spins and flattens the dough with decadence, spreads the sauce with elegance, tosses the cheese with ease and spaces pepperoni with style.
Toppers: Best pizza
The Pointer
mbaum925@uwsp.edu
In an environmentally-friendly community cluttered with 5-second attention spans and apathetic behavior, Toppers Pizza sets itself to blend in. They use green peppers. Outside of that, they actually tend to set a different tone.
“The pizzas made here at Toppers tend to be unique creations,” said Kelly Collins, manager of the Stevens Point location.
The pizzas aren’t the only point of interest that comes from the well-known building on Division Street. Many of the slogans for these pizza connoisseurs are inventive and done to entertain the customer base. Their newest, “You can sit back, watching the economy crumble, or you can order Toppers and sit around and watch the economy crumble” is a sure-fire example of this.
Its location, on one of the main streets in town for the community, and for the student body, just across parking lot P from the residence halls, creates a distinct connection between the students and this pizzeria. With DeBot closing early and as students in the halls have yet to get a feel for other local eateries, it’s proximity to campus is ideal.
“The majority of our customers are college-aged, although people in their seventies still order from us as well,” said Collins.
Collins mentioned that most Toppers locations, in the Midwest as well as in North Carolina, are not all that far away from campuses. Emily Fuger, a University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point student, has prior experience with one of these Midwest locations.
Fuger, a native of DeKalb, Ill., was present at the grand opening of that store. A number of individuals, including Fuger, won the grand opening contest. The winners received one pizza a week for a full year. During this period, Fuger refined her tastes for Toppers products.
“Where else can you get a baked potato pizza?” said Fuger. “Their chicken bacon ranch is delectable. The California is also another favorite.”
Another Pointer, Kat Stratton, is impressed by the menu at Toppers.
“The barbecue chicken pizza at Toppers is to die for,” said Stratton.
As there are four months out of the year when students disappear from the area like the winter break UW-SP just experienced, Toppers fiscal-heart grows fonder for it’s wayward Pointers.
“There is a steep decline in business when students are not in town,” said Collins.
Students, now that you know that you are missed, there is no better time to try out the special that Toppers is currently running: a large one-topping pizza and a triple order of Topperstix for $14.99. When asked why Topperstix appear more popular than the pizzas themselves, Collins kept it simple.
“Because people just love them,” said Collins.
Even when there are not regular store specials, there are student specials that come along every so often when a PointCard is in hand. So those of you that think the PointCard can only be used on campus, this should come as a pleasant surprise.
Collins does not find that the competition in town is not overly threatening, and besides, no other location in town is open as late as 3 a.m. all week long that serves pizza cravings. In a college town, there are plenty of those.
“Drunks are not so much of a rambunctious crowd, as they are entertaining,” said Collins. “Even more so, during home deliveries.”
As any experienced drinker can speak of their stories from yesteryear, rest assured Toppers’ employees might be able to compare notes with them.
It’s not that sober students are not privy too. When dollars are not coming in from the rail drink crowd, the hottest day for pizza sales is normally homecoming.
Alumni weekend also tends to spawn an increase in business. Super Bowl weekend, which is on the horizon, brings in the greenbacks hand over fist as well.
As the year goes by, Collins notices others reaching out, not customers for pizza, but Toppers to Stevens Point.
“There is a ‘good amount’ of involvement with the community,” said Collins.
At the same time, Toppers does give out donations to student organizations for fundraisers and other campus promotional programs. Even before Collins was informed that Toppers had been given “The Best Point” honors from The Pointer, he was abundantly clear that this store loves the students.
And after he was informed…
“After I talk to the company representatives, we will do anything we can do in reply,” said Collins.
As voted by the students of UW-SP, best pizza bar none, or after bar.
