I guess I remember Fortel's being better than it is. We always used to eat at their Arnold location. We were craving it, so we ordered takeout. We picked up a pizza and it was cold when we got home (we tried it 4 minutes after picking it up, we live nearby). It just sadly wasn't anything like the way it used to be. Spongy cheese, soggy crust, cloyingly sweet sauce. It always used to have a touch of sweetness, not taste like a dessert. On the bright side, our wings were very good. But the pizza, I sadly would not get again. Especially with St. Louis Pizza & Wings RIGHT down the road. read more

Fortel's Pizza Den - You can tell it's cold by this photo. (Build Your Own Pizza with Sausage) - Pizza Near Me - Saint Louis, Missouri

The Taco Pizza is everything! Don't walk but run and grab one. I placed the order over the phone for pick up and service was helpful and quick. Pizza was ready when I arrived, inside seemed like it could have used a spruce up but that's just me. Didn't not take away from that delicious Taco Pizza that felt like it weighed 10lbs easily...it was HEFTY! read more

See all

We had a Friendsgiving celebration here in the back room. It was kid friendly, spacious, and complete with lots of seating. The game room is connected which is awesome, and best part is that there is no room reservation fee. We ordered multiple pizzas and all were tasty. I've been eating Fortels forever and it was a nice throwback for me. It was how I remembered it. Cheesy and square cut! The servers/ bussers were working so hard, props to them. read more

Long established family run business serving up pizza , appetizers and a comfortable atmosphere. They have a nice menu, lunch specials ( Monday thru Friday only) and you order at counter and pay them food is delivered to table.Salad was crisp and fresh with a nice dressing and plenty of cheese. The pizza crust was a nice crisp thin yeast based crust with plenty of sauce and fresh toppings (I would like a bit more cheese) . Place was clean and well lit and plenty of seating and helpful staff. read more

See all

I order from Fortels two times a month, as it's my go to "cheat meal". I've spent the last year losing 130+ pounds, and I get to really let loose once or twice a month and enjoy my favorite food, and that's almost always pizza. My go to is the Fortels "Cheese, Cheese, Cheese". I absolutely love this pizza. The salty cheese, balances so well with the slightly sweet sauce, and all of this combined with the crispy crust (and lovely slightly charred bits around the edges) make for the ultimate savory pizza treat. I look forward to enjoying this treat all month, and can't wait to enjoy it again soon. Thank you Fortels peeps for always being friendly, speedy, and for making my delicious pizza! -Matt Kesl read more

Pizza was great and we loved the salad and garlic knots. Quick order for pickup and homey feel IG you eat in.

The Owner is extremely rude and many of the other reviews mention this. Don't bother coming to this pizza place if you want to be treated with a smile or even a little respect. read more

This has been one of my favorites since the first time I had them 20 years ago. They have the perfect crust---Thin and crunchy. Yum. I also love their choices of sauce and the topping options. My go to is one with southwest sauce chicken and bacon. I also love their Hawaiian. Honestly I have never had a bad pizza there. I buy a medium and have half of it eaten by the time I get home. It's just so good that you can't stop eating it. Highly recommend. read more

Best pizza in town. Been eating there since late 80's. Pizza has only gotten better. Friendly staff. Good service. Pretty fast. Kids friendly. Family oriented. Shelly is a great owner and host. I come from Miami to St. Louis to visit my daughter 3-4 times a year and Fortels is always on the menu for me. And I even buy frozen Fortels to bring to Miami. Recommend 100% read more

It has a large dining room with games for the kids to play and televisions all over the walls . I ordered a pizza, chef salad and cheese garlic bread. All the food was great and the staff were all so nice and helpful . The pizza is a little more expensive then others but worth the money . read more

It's always a good spot for a family dinner. The chicken fries are my daughter's favorite, while the rest of the family enjoys their pizza and salad. The sauce on the pizza is somewhat sweeter than a typical pizza place, making it extra delicious. The service was quick, which was appreciated because we went in late. The dining room is large and has an attached gaming room to keep kids occupied while the adults visit, so bring your change! There is plenty of Tvs for sports too. read more

See all

Parking is open and easy. They offered a couple gluten free options, pizza and chicken tenders - no fired foods are gluten free. We had a house salad and tenders which was should have tried the pizza since that is their specialty. read more

See all

Have heard for many years that Fortel's has great pizza, so decided to try it. When you walk in, you order food & drinks at the counter, which includes a full bar and pay then and food is brought to your table. Salads were promptly served with dressing on the side. Pretty good salad, but when we asked server for more dressing, were told we would need to go to counter. Really?! They actually charge $1.00 for an extra small plastic cup of dressing. Pizza was disappointing...bacon was sparsely sprinkled bacon bits, crust was good...thin & crispy. Not a fan of the mozzarella topping, too stringy. read more

Fortel's Pizza Den - Counter/bar - Pizza Near Me - Saint Louis, Missouri

Delicious pizza good every time I have one I enjoy the take-home pizza recommend everybody try this pizza

We had a party for a friend and the lady working was super rude. We had a few balloons and some table confetti of which we were going to clean when we were finished. They had ordered wings toaste raviolis and like 10pizzas . When she came to get dishes, she told each table you needed to get this cleaned up. I didn't approve this. We had the whole back room reserved, so we did not know this was such a problem, but she made sure to be as rude as she could be . Maybe a bad day, but not a good look. Probably will avoid in the future. If I want a grumpy lady to listen to while I eat I will stay home. Wowsuch a professional response. I am not related to the party so her response se is incorrect. The way that you came at people at the tables was like we did it and it was addressed to people who had nothing to do with it but treating people like this is your problem clean it up. Just a rediculous response. read more

The server was overwhelmed, incredibly nice, and was working his butt off. There was a big party there and, what I can only assume was management, was incredibly rude to them. I was an outsider on these interactions, but the woman was incredibly rude to these families and the CHILDREN! Don't pride yourself as a family restaurant if all you do is complain about kids being kids My food was good, but because of this woman's attitude/ interaction with these families, I doubt I'll be back read more

Had a lunch special with pizza and salad, and it was good value. The pizza was thin crust with mozzarella , not the provel that St Louis seems to enjoy. It was cooked just right, and the crust is homemade every day. The salad was big and fresh. It is a family owned business with plenty of parking. On one occasion, I ordered a "special" for takeout, and it was not cooked enough, which was not as tasty. They may have different cooks. read more

Taco pizza "chef's kiss" Sauce is perfectly balanced. Some of the best pizza I have ever had! I can wait to have this again next time I am in town! read more

I ordered two pizzas and one was burnt on one side of pizza. After paying 15 for a small pizza, I was dissatisfied and you would think fortels would not send out a burnt pizza. The customer service was good. Also, business charges 3.5 percent on All Credit Card transactions to all customers, Not Cool!! Business should have a sign at register letting customers know of this extra charge. read more

Fortel's Pizza Den - Bacon topping burnt!!! - Pizza Near Me - Saint Louis, Missouri

See all

Smelled gross, very outdated, dirty, pizza was gross. The only good thing was the bus boy- very nice and a hard worker. Keep it up bus boy. Fortels idk how you're still open. Step it up. read more

The OG Fortel's. The first and now the only. Square cut, like St. Louis Style or Chicago Tavern Style. Like the Chicago Tavern Style and unlike St. Louis Style, there is no Provel here, just Mozzarella. No cracker crust either and it's thick with toppings. Prompt and friendly service, frequently from the owner's family. Peek into the kitchen area, you'll probably see Shelly back there. I had a serious Fortel's habit back in the day. It was nice to take a trip down Memory Lane and enjoy a Meat Lover's Mojo Pie. You may have to drive a bit further than you used to, but you can still get that Fortel's taste. Don't overlook the non-pizza options, either. The salads and pasta are also fantastic. They've added on a bit and expanded the game room. read more

We were looking for something different on DOORDASH and this was one to try. I haven't been to a Fortels probably in 10 years or more so I couldn't remember how it tasted. Everything was hot and fresh. I let "someone else" pick the toppings so the flavor combination wasn't my personal favorite but that has nothing to do with the quality of the pizza (sausage, garlic, mozzarella, and pepper jack). I especially enjoyed the chips and side of cheese. They did need a good crank of salt though to be just right. The garlic cheese bread was good but I prefer Imo's more. We will definitely order from here again and try more items. read more

See all

Ask what size of pizza for 4 ppl they suggested the largest one. It was way too big and $36 not worth it. although if we would have liked the pizza it would have been great for leftovers. Not sure what I was expecting but we ordered the buffalo chicken- it was packed with chicken (great if you want that) but was way to much topping and you could barley pick it up with out it all falling off the crust. I'd like to try a basic pizza as none of us liked the buffalo chicken. read more

Best pizza in town. No matter what toppings you choose, you will not be disappointed. I have eaten there over 20 times and have never gotten a bad pie. Please give them a try! read more

I've been to Fortel's dozens of times but it had been a little while. I used to eat at this one regularly when I lived in the neighborhood. I had seen a photo of a Fortel's pizza online and decided I needed to go get it! I ordered a 12" pizza with pepperoni and pepper cheese and asked that it be cooked well done. When it was set down in front of me I got excited because it looked perfect. I love the black blisters and charred edges. The pepper cheese and pepperoni were great together and the pepper cheese was very smooth and melted well. The crust was crisp throughout, even in the center. I had about half leftover and it was even still crisp and delicious the following day. Love Fortel's. It had been too long. I will be back! read more

Fortel's Pizza Den - Pepperoni & Pepper Cheese - Pizza Near Me - Saint Louis, Missouri

amazing place. best pizza in st louis, thankfully void of the tasteless provel cheese. the hamburger has a unique flavor profile and the ruben pizza has no equal read more

I ordered Fortel's twice on door dash because I didn't want to drive that far. The first time I ordered the pizza was amazing. The sauce has flavor, they put the perfect amount of cheese and toppings and the crust has a fluffy buttery taste. The second time is was just ok. I don't know if the pizza sat longer for delivery or not but it wasn't as great as the first time. The hot wings however are soooo good. My favorite foods are pizza and wings and the flavor on the wings is my top 5. Going forward I think I'm just going to get the wings. read more

Fortel's Pizza Den - Chicken Wings - Pizza Near Me - Saint Louis, Missouri

See all

We moved from St. Louis a number of years ago and this was our favorite pizza. We were sad to come back and find out only one remained, the original, but was glad it was there. So we stopped in to grab our fortels fix and they did not disappoint. Still love the house salad w some ranch. And the pizzas are still so good because I ate way too much of it. The service was quick and the employees were nice. Fortels over Imos any day!! If you are traveling through the area hit this place up for some good pizza. read more

Came in because of the reviews for those with allergies. They do offer pizzas and are serious with their cross contamination practices. I do recommend them but surprisingly these brownies were the star of the show. Yum! read more

So good fresh and tasty. Never had a bad pizza. The woman at the counter almost deffened me she was talking so loud. But other than her it was amazing. read more

The 2 old women working were incredibly rude. They told us it was seat yourself, and we went to seat ourselves and they yelled at my husband as well as the rest of my family. They clearly had a terrible day and took it out on customers. If we hadn't already paid, we would have left. The busboy was very nice and accommodating. He deserves a raise. read more

When we came to eat it wasn't very busy at all. We were able to sit wherever we wanted and we were instructed to order up front at the register. The lighting is nice and sets a comfortable dining experience. The booth we sat at was clean and comfortable. We had garlic bread sticks and a deluxe pizza. The bread sticks were seasoned perfectly and served super hot with hot marinara sauce. There was no shortage of toppings on the pizza like a lot of places seem to do lately. I forgot the name of the pizza we got, but it had a hamburger, which was seasoned nicely, and it wasn't in a typical ball it was spread out and made such a difference! I can not describe it, but it was so good! I believe it also had bacon, pepperoni, green pepper, and onion. The pepperoni was a little burnt, which is my favorite way to eat it (I feel like it just adds to the flavor and texture of the meat). The vegetables were so fresh. Do not skip out on Fortel's. I will be back. read more

Fortel's Pizza Den - Pizza Near Me - Saint Louis, Missouri

See all

PIZZA! The universal food of man. At Fortel's Pizza Den, you taste each topping in every bite, and I mean that quite literally. This pizza is loaded with content, great sauce distribution, with a crispy, seasoned crust. Huge fan of the SQUARE-CUT style slices, making the small corner pieces my first priority. All kinds of specialty pizzas; my go-to be the Shelly's Deluxe. So many toppings, you won't notice the hamburger basin until it's melted in your mouth. Everything just feels organic at Fortel's. ***Bring your wallet with you, quality can cost you. Never been disappointed with a Fortel's creation. Their salads and breadsticks (w/ marinara) are excellent as well*** read more

Fortel's Pizza Den - Shelly's Deluxe - Pizza Near Me - Saint Louis, Missouri

THIS IS The Original Fortel's Pizza and what the other franchise stores (which are just not as good IMO) should strive to be. So after I had pointed out inconsistent quality at the location in Fairview Heights IL that FRANCHISE store subsequently closed. Even in my previous reviews I noted this Original Store which we started eating at many years ago at the original building next door IS Still the best and an absolute fave! Sat out on the patio today (As most Dining rooms understandably still aren't open quite yet due to this pandemic) a great time, and the Pizza was absolutely exceptional. The Manager working was very friendly/thankful for our business. Yes the Bob's Deluxe one of our favorite pizzas of all time. Great Job guys we will indeed be back many more times! read more

Fortel's Pizza Den - Bob's Deluxe at the Original Fortel's Exceptionally Good!! - Pizza Near Me - Saint Louis, Missouri

Good, but not great pizza., we ordered delivery so I cannot comment on service or ambiance. I do not plan to order from here again. read more

Excellent pizza and service this visit. We visited on a week day and there were not many patrons. There was a tall animated scarecrow at the entrance that kept our granddaughter entertained and the game room is always a hit. They serve some of the best pizza in the area. read more

I hate to do this, but I've got a call it as I see it. Went with a sausage and extra cheese pizza, the housemade chips and a Caesar salad. Pizza was undercooked, sauce was too sweet for my liking and the cheese was underwhelming. Chips were soggy and tasteless. Unfortunately, the highlight was the Caesar salad. At least it had croutons in it... read more

Fortel's Pizza Den - Sausage and extra cheese - Pizza Near Me - Saint Louis, Missouri

Had not been here since before 2020. Have always liked the pizza. Just be aware when entering you'll need to immediately go to the back dining area to reserve a table prior to placing your pizza order at the front counter. We were second in line upon entering and when it was our turn, the owner rudely asked, "do you have a table!?," and we responded with, "do we have to have one before ordering?" She said, "if you don't have a table you'll need to step aside and wait!" We did as she instructed, were not allowed to go ahead and place our order while we waited, and had to stand there as the long line behind us went ahead and ordered. We quickly looked on the Fortell's website to see if there was a place to reserve a table online but there was nothing! An employee finally escorted us back to a table and then said we could now go back up and place our order. Huge line now and had to go to the back. We noticed a sign, not at the entrance when you walk in, but way back in the dining area that told people the proper instructions. Bad customer experience! Fortell's: make it very clear upon entering what the process is and don't be rude to those who have no idea of your strict rules. We don't ever recall this ordering process when we walked in and placed our order in the past. read more

a really good pie. had the shellys deluxe. Plenty of toppings, good crust. Ill be back.

The Cornbread Mojo Pie is a family favorite! It's perfect with a house salad with their house dressing!