Godfather's: Republican Herman Cain's Pizza Reviewed

Lauren Torrisi

A Godfather's Pizza at a gas station rest stop in Elizabeth, N.J. Lauren Torrisi/ABC

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain first introduced himself to the public as the former CEO of the Godfather’s Pizza chain.

So I set out to sample the pie the candidate has made a household name.  I looked up the nearest restaurant location to New York City, which happened to be in Elizabeth, N.J.  I plugged in my GPS, and took a little drive that ended not far from Newark Liberty International Airport.

To my surprise, my GPS took me to a gas station rest stop, packed with limo drivers waiting for customers leaving the airport.  I walked into the building, and found Godfather’s next to the Blimpies counter.  (Not all chains are formatted like this, as some are stand-alone restaurants, but location and convenience dictated my trip to Elizabeth.)

I tried their signature mini personal pizza, called the “Humble” pie, (probably appropriate for this assignment), which had sausage, peppers, mozzarella, and pepperoni.  Then, I picked up some cheesy bread sticks with marinara sauce.

I paid, (almost 5 bucks for that mini pie), and I sat, and I ate.

The cheese sticks were pretty good.  Put cheese on something that tastes like it has been soaking overnight in butter and I’m game.  Sprinkle some dried oregano on it and you’ve upgraded it to “fancy” fast food.  Then, dip it in marinara sauce and you’ve got yourself a well-rounded meal.  I was happy.

The “Humble” pie wasn’t as fantastic.  I was hoping that their signature pizza would have more pizzazz.  The crust was pretty good, (I’m guessing it’s made from the same dough as the cheese sticks) and the food came out piping hot.  The meat toppings were aplenty, which according to Cain in a recent GQ interview are indicative of masculinity: “A manly man don’t want it piled high with vegetables! He would call that a sissy pizza.”

I would recommend this “Godfather’s Pizza” location to those on the go.  If you just got off of your flight and want to satisfy your fast food fix — go for it.

However, you dieters, the pizza had enough grease on it to deep-fry a Thanksgiving turkey.    Calorielab.com reports that 1/4 of a mini personal pizza has 11 grams fat and 230 calories. Eat the whole thing, as most people would, and you’ve got 44 grams of fat and over nearly 1,000 calories.