Writer Evie McCabe reviews the latest addition to the James McCune Smith building
You might be surprised to hear that you can now get a woodfired pizza on the third floor of the James McCune Smith Learning Hub. Treehouse Pizza Co is the new kid on the block of UofG’s food options, having opened its doors at the beginning of this academic year. Whilst not exactly a fine dining destination, it’s also definitely not the worst place on campus to sit and have a slice of pizza – being above the main entrance to JMS makes it a great place to people watch, and at least you don’t have to fight tooth and nail for a table as you do on the library’s third-floor cafe.
Now for the pizza itself. I went for the Veg Explosion and the Margherita, and both were pretty good. The Veg Explosion contains an eclectic selection of toppings – think pineapple and jalapenos on the same pizza, with a load of pepper and red onion thrown in for good measure too. The number of toppings on the veg pizza made for a lot of liquid coming off the slices, but despite this the base remained crisp, which definitely deserves bonus points. In contrast, the Margherita was quite plain, so I’d suggest maybe opting for a veg pizza without some of the more random toppings (I’m looking at you, pineapple).
With the Margherita being £4.95 and the Veg Explosion being £5.95, this is definitely not the worst value option for a satisfying, warm lunch on campus. I would say that it would be a great dinner option if you were doing a late-night study session, but unfortunately, Treehouse is only open until 5pm throughout the week. The portion size would be okay to split with a friend if you were both just wanting a snack, but the pizza is only a full meal for one person. Considering that they are made fresh to order and the cheapest is under a fiver, the prices aren’t too bad – especially when compared to a lot of the other mediocre but bank-breaking food options on campus.
Treehouse Pizza Co seems relatively unknown by a lot of students, despite having been open for almost an entire semester now, so I’d go as far as to say that it is a hidden gem on a campus where good-value, fresh, hot food is scarce. Is it the best pizza you’ll ever eat? Absolutely not. But is it better than stuff I’ve bought from a kebab shop after a night out? Absolutely, and it’s probably cheaper too.
