Chicken pizzas split into two camps: spicy and tangy, or sweet and smoky. For anyone in Pinetop weighing the two, the clearest way to compare them is to look at a single menu that offers both.
Red Devil Italian Restaurant & Pizzeria, a family-owned restaurant with a location on White Mountain Boulevard in Pinetop-Lakeside, lists a Buffalo Chicken pizza and a Barbeque Chicken pizza on their published specialty menu. Here’s how the two compare.
What Is on a Buffalo Chicken Pizza?
A Buffalo Chicken pizza borrows its flavor from Buffalo wings. Red Devil’s version uses grilled chicken marinated in an original New York-style hot sauce, along with diced green onions, celery and carrots.
It comes with ranch dipping sauce on the side. The celery and carrots echo the vegetables usually served with a plate of wings, and the ranch cools down the heat.
Expect a vinegar-forward tang with noticeable spice. It’s the bolder of the two.
What Is on a BBQ Chicken Pizza?
A BBQ chicken pizza swaps tomato sauce for barbecue sauce. Red Devil builds theirs on their original white pizza, then adds grilled chicken, red onions, a BBQ pizza sauce and fresh cilantro.
The result is sweeter and smokier, with the red onion adding a little bite and the cilantro adding a fresh, herbal finish. It has no real heat, which makes it the easier pick for kids or anyone who avoids spice.
How Do the Two Compare Side by Side?
- Sauce: Buffalo uses a New York-style hot sauce on the chicken. BBQ uses a sweet barbecue pizza sauce over a white pizza base.
- Heat: Buffalo is spicy. BBQ is mild.
- Vegetables: Buffalo has green onions, celery and carrots. BBQ has red onions and cilantro.
- On the side: Buffalo comes with ranch for dipping. BBQ needs nothing extra.
- Sizes: Both come in 10-, 14- and 16-inch pizzas on homemade, hand-tossed dough.
Which One Suits Which Crowd?
For a cabin weekend with mixed ages, the BBQ Chicken pizza is usually the safer shared pie. It appeals to younger eaters and anyone who prefers mild flavors.
For a group that already orders wings, the Buffalo Chicken pizza fits right in. It’s also a good second pizza when someone wants something with more kick.
Ordering one of each is a common solution. It gives the table both a mild and a spicy option without anyone settling.
How Well Do Chicken Pizzas Hold Up for Delivery?
Both travel reasonably well, but a few details help.
- Keep the ranch separate. Leave it in its cup until serving so it doesn’t soak the crust.
- Expect a little steam. Grilled chicken and fresh vegetables release some moisture in a closed box. Opening the lid for a minute on arrival helps the crust stay firmer.
- Reheat in the oven, not the microwave. Leftover slices reheat best on a baking sheet, which keeps the crust from turning chewy.
What Should Pinetop Residents Know About Pizza Delivery?
Ordering pizza in the White Mountains works a little differently than in the Valley. Homes and cabins are more spread out, some roads are unpaved, and winter weather can slow drivers down.
Many local pizza restaurants now rely on third-party apps rather than in-house drivers. Red Devil’s website lists online ordering for pickup and delivery through DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats. Delivery coverage in the Pinetop-Lakeside area depends on each app, so it’s worth checking more than one.
A few tips make a pizza order delivery smoother:
- Enter a full street address, not just a cabin name or subdivision.
- Add notes about gates, driveways or a landmark if the house is hard to spot.
- In winter, allow extra time and keep porch lights on after dark.
- If delivery isn’t available to an address, pickup is often the faster option.
Red Devil’s Pinetop restaurant also runs its own menu, separate from their Phoenix-area locations, so anyone set on a specific pizza should confirm it’s listed before ordering. Readers comparing local Pizza shops that deliver can find their Pinetop location details and ordering options there.
So, Buffalo or BBQ?
- Pick the Buffalo Chicken pizza for heat, tang and a wing-night feel.
- Pick the Barbeque Chicken pizza for a sweet, smoky and mild pie.
- Pick both when the group can’t agree, and let the table decide by the last slice.
Whether it comes from an Italian pizza place or another pizza delivery service, these two chicken pies are easy ways to change up a regular pizza night in Pinetop.
