We were on a road trip, traveling through Pennsylvania, and looking for a place to eat lunch. A web search turned up a couple of likely spots. The one that peaked our interest was Mountain Pies. Pizza pies, that is. And, as we found out, their pizza is great!

Mountain Pies is located in Markleysburg, a small town in south western Pennsylvania near both the Maryland and West Virginia borders. The restaurant is owned and operated by the Joseph family, one of the areas most prominent families. Under the name The Joseph Crew, they own several restaurants, stores, and hotels in the area. In addition to these businesses, the Josephs are active in the local community. Rob Joseph is even the local fire chief. Mountain Pies has been in operation for about a decade.

The Menu

Mountain Pies has a small menu. Besides pizza, they have appetizers/sides, subs, Strombolis, bread sticks, and salads. The bakery section has pies and cookies. I’m going to focus on the pizza. It comes in three sizes: personal, 14″, and 18″. You can get toppings a la cart or have one one of the specialty pizzas. The Specialty Pizzas are: Buffalo Chicken, BBQ Chicken, Chicken Bacon Ranch, Supreme, Veggie Lovers, Meat Lovers, and Hawaiian.

The bakery had some pies, but not many. No slices were available; only half pies. As a consequence, we did not have the chance to taste any of the pies. In addition to the restaurant, there is also an ice cream stand connected to the restaurant. I was hoping to try some of their custard, but The Custard Shoppe was not open for the season yet. One week too early!

Our Meal

Both my companion and I ordered personal sized specialty pizzas. I chose the Chicken Bacon Ranch and he picked the Buffalo Chicken.

As it turned out, both pizzas were white pizzas. The Chicken Bacon Ranch had a creamy white sauce that I very much liked. The Buffalo Chicken only had Buffalo sauce, no marinara. Both had great crusts – thick, crisp, but chewy. Generously topped with fresh ingredients, the flavor profiles were quite unique. I preferred the Ranch over the Buffalo because I don’t like the tang of the hot sauce on pizza. But I would recommend either of them.

Ambiance

Mountain Pies is a small place. They have an indoor seating area and it is limited. There was another group at the table next to ours and it was quite cozy. There is also some outdoor eating area as well, although that too had not opened yet for the season. I got the impression that most people order to go. The ambiance is quite rustic, with wood paneling and stone walls. And the staff was friendly. All the pizzas are freshly made; it took about 25 minutes for our pizza to come out. With the friendly service and great food, Mountain Pies is a great place to stop and get a meal.