JI Pizza

One could be seduced by JI's ginormous specialty pies, the pizzeria's 24-inch whoppers being the size of smart cars. And why not? We're only human. But doing so might mean sacrificing our appetite, and JI's Pizza has much to offer, those monster pizza pies notwithstanding.

Oh, they're excellent, don't worry your pretty heads. But JI's Pizza, situated in the Food Lion shopping center off Maybank Highway on Johns Island, serves up a menu of equally exceptional smaller pies, salads, wraps, pastas and subs.

It's good stuff. The well-rounded, balanced pizza sauce gives way to toppings and ingredients heaped high, the entire packaged flanked by airy, buttery crust. The Supreme (14-inch $13.75, 18-inch $16.75, 24-inch $25) is as it sounds: pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, black olives and green peppers.

The Spicy Buddha ($13.50-$26.50) contains a zesty Thai peanut sauce, chicken, red peppers, gouda cheese and cilantro, while The Islander ($13.50-$26.50) is a contrivance of garlic, artichokes, tomatoes, mushrooms, spinach, basil and olive oil base.

Of course, the restaurant menu dutifully lists calzones ($7.50), stromboli ($7.75) and pizza pockets: your favorite toppings, plus sauce folded into pizza dough.

As sandwiches go, we can praise the Italian ($6.75) in particular: It's a tight, fresh sub roll festooned with the requisites, pepperoni, Canadian bacon, salami, mozzarella and provolone. Traditional parmesans ($8), meatball, chicken, sausage, beef or eggplant, are all made with homemade sauce, mozzarella and provolone. Even better, they're made with "Love," a special blend of seasonings from JI.

And trust us, it's not of the unrequited kind.

JI Pizza

Web: www.jipizza.com

Address: 2770 Maybank Highway, Suite M

Phone: 559-9200

Hours: noon-9 p.m. Sun.; 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Mon.-Thu.; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Fri.-Sat.