Shocking yellow glares out at customers as they turn into the newly opened Hungry Howie’s Pizza, which offers both take-out and delivery. The pizzeria proudly claims it has the original flavored pizza crust, fills its menu with affordable meals for cash-strapped college students and has already become a popular favorite at Kent State.

The pizza comes in a yellow box filled with boring, yet cute pizza trivia and a variety of breads, subs, wings and salads come neatly packaged as well. And, for the most part, the food inside those boxes tastes great.

Pizza crust comes in eight different flavors: original, butter, buttercheese, garlic herb, ranch, onion, sesame and Cajun. After sampling all of the crusts, I can easily recommend buttercheese as the best, a nice mixture of subtle flavoring that doesn’t detract from the overall quality of the pizza.

Some of the flavorings, however, are a bit too much, most specifically the garlic herb and Cajun. The tastes overwhelm the bread and leaves a bad aftertaste in your throat long after you finish.

As for the pizza itself, aside from being a bit too greasy, the flavoring is dead-on. The sauce isn’t too sweet or tart and the cheese doesn’t overwhelm the experience.

While the flavoring isn’t a knock-off of better-known brands, it does have a similar taste to Domino’s, though Hungry Howie’s Pizza has a corner on quality of the toppings. The sausage, veggies and pepperoni are all so yummy you want to rip the rest off the leftover pizza (if there is any) and eat it up.

The breadsticks, called Howie Bread on the menu, are also too greasy for my liking, and none stand out as something you can’t get at any of the chain restaurants.

Also underwhelming are the wings and chicken tenders, which are fine if you are in the mood, but passable if you aren’t.

The pizzeria opens up most mornings at 10 and stays open until 2 a.m. or 4 a.m., depending on the day, so chances are whenever you have a craving you’ll be able to fulfill it at Hungry Howie’s.

Though anything that doesn’t involve actual pizza on the menu isn’t quite up to par, the pizza itself is worth your time and money.

The flavored crusts, if you choose the right one, can be an excellent addition to the already above-average pizza.

With prices affordable for penny pinchers (it also accepts FlashCash), Hungry Howie’s is a great addition to the restaurants around campus, and I intend to go back for pizza this weekend.

Contact ALL correspondent Robert Taylor at [email protected].