As if Silicon Valley could get any techier, Mountain View-based startup Zume Pizza decided to slice things up a little differently. Look no further than their employees, Marta and Bruno, two robots that have revolutionized “handcrafted,” artisan pizza to be more sustainable, cost-effective and efficient for pizzaholics.

Working behind-the-scenes in a nondescript warehouse, Marta, Bruno and a few human counterparts have been cooking up pizza combinations since April, using locally sourced produce, non-GMO dough and artisan-cured meats to craft expertly flavored pizzas with amusing names. Marta adds sauce and spreads it evenly across the pizzas, while workers add toppings individually to each pie. Then Bruno carefully nudges the uncooked pizzas into an 800-degree oven, where they’re cooked and then packaged in space-age, biodegradable pizza boxes made from 100 percent sugarcane fiber; they look and feel light years away from the grease-stained cardboard boxes of the past.

Futuristic presentation aside, Zume’s pizzas are pretty tasty, too. With a menu that consists of a handful of meat and vegetarian pies, two gluten-free options and one type of salad, simplicity is the name of the game. Unique flavor and texture combinations make the relatively small, non-customizable menu seem more expansive than it actually is, giving the pizzas a more artisan feel.

I ordered the Saul Goodman ($18), which was topped with mozzarella, salsa verde, cilantro, chopped onion, blue corn tortilla strips, cotija cheese and slices of roasted chicken. Generous portions of chicken complemented a flavorful salsa verde that packed a punch but surprisingly did not make the pizza soggy. The saltiness of the cotija cheese, which was sprinkled over a gooey layer of mozzarella, paired well with the freshly chopped cilantro.

I also tried out the Sonrisa ($15), which included tomato sauce, cremini mushrooms, roasted garlic, cilantro, sesame seeds, Calabrian chilies and honey. The sweet-spicy-salty flavor medley made it an instant classic in my book, but the mushroom and sliced chili toppings were minimal. The Veggie Jackson ($16) was also surprisingly rich and full-flavored for a vegetarian pizza, thanks in part to the addition of goat gouda to the base of mozzarella cheese and marinara sauce. With a decent amount of green and yellow squash, baby spinach, kalamata olives, sliced red onion, roasted red pepper and gremolata on top, a slice or two was satisfying and filling.

The good news is that Zume has made ordering easy with its no-fuss, minimal frills business model. From the streamlined online and in-app ordering process to the real-time order tracking and personalized text updates—and not to forget the free delivery, no-tip policy—Zume makes eating pizza easier than it already was. The bad news is that pizzas, for now, are only being delivered in Mountain View. But with delivery service rolling out across the Bay Area in the near future, farm-to-robot-to-table pizza should be zooming into a neighborhood near you soon.

Zume Pizza
Mountain View
www.zumepizza.com.