Audrey Jane’s Pizza Garage isn’t the sort of place you just happen to stumble into. Located in the back of Vic’s Coffee on Alpine Avenue and 13th Street in Boulder, it’s far enough from the Hill and the Pearl Street Mall that it could even be a considered a local secret.

But business at this spot, which doesn’t have a liquor license, is brisk and family oriented. In fact, Audrey Jane’s isn’t just family-friendly, it’s family-owned and run. Audrey Sherman herself can usually be spotted manning the electric pizza oven, concocting new flavor combinations, and serving customers day and night. Her brother Peter handles the business end of things and fills in on front-of-house duty on busy weekend nights.

Audrey’s love for pizza started at home, where it was her favorite meal growing up in Boulder. She took her passion for pizza seriously, heading to San Francisco after high school and attending the Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts. A stint in Italy and five years under the tutelage of pizza guru and 11-time World Pizza Champion Tony Gemignani provided the experience and confidence to strike out on her own. Audrey opened her namesake shop in October last year.

She keeps things so simple that, at first glance, you might think Audrey’s Pizza Garage is just a slice house. The basic-yet-delicious Original Tomato Pie—topped with mozzarella, tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, and oregano—is Audrey’s personal favorite. But the more complicated creations are also worth a look. We demolished the Diavola, with its hand-crushed tomato sauce, spicy salami picante, Calabrese chile Piave, and hot chile oil, smothered in mozzarella. And, seeing that this is Boulder, all pies are available gluten-free.

Hungrier patrons may want to dig into a meatball or eggplant parm grinder. Add an arugula or kale salad and a natural, fair-trade Stubborn Soda, and, for my money, you’ve got one of the simplest yet most satisfying lunches in town. As Spring comes into full force, expect to see even more fresh, seasonal ingredients adorning Audrey’s pies and salads.

2675 W. 13th St., Boulder, 303-442-2032