Molten Monkey opened last December with a clear message.

“We’re a small but mighty collective of primates with one goal — maximum pizza goodness,” the Molten Monkey website reads.

Owner Otto Dilba describes the compact restaurant, located on 912 E Johnson St, as a “pizza lounge.” The dining room is moody with dark tones, a wood ceiling and emerald green bricks distinguishing the bar.

Along the walls is a wide array of artwork, many of which are Dilba’s original pieces.

“Everything you see here is either from my collection or I did myself,” Dilba said. “There’s honestly very little around you that doesn’t have a very specific meaning or special place in my heart.”

Here, Dilba and dedicated staff do what they set out to — make cheesy, delicious pizza. Their pizza is Detroit style, meaning it’s rectangular with cheese extending to the edge of a deep-dish pan.

Dilba only discovered Detroit style recently after a friend introduced it to him. It left a big impression.

“What is this?” Dilba said. “Where has this been all my life?”

Dilba’s culinary resume stretches back to when he was just 12 years old. Between his childhood and his tenure as owner of Molten Monkey, Dilba racked up experience in numerous restaurant positions, including busboy, server, bartender, manager, owner, head kitchen and headline cook.

Before Molten Monkey, Dilba co-founded the brewery Ale Asylum, which closed in 2022, according to Wisconsin Public Radio. The 45,000 square foot former Ale Asylum brewery is now under renovation to become the Dane County Election center, according to WKOW.

Though he thoroughly enjoyed his time at Ale Asylum, his involvement with Molten Monkey is more demanding in a personally gratifying way, Dilba said.

Dilba leans into the personal conversations he gets to have with staff and customers.

“I could go back into marketing, public relations, branding … or give one more shot to a hospitality thing, which really is just a part of who I am,” Dilba said.

And that is where Molten Monkey shines. The moment you step in the door, you feel welcomed into a small, hungry community.

Dilba works behind the bar as well as taking on ownership duties. Behind the bar, Dilba gets to be the hospitality mastermind he’s become over his tenure in the restaurant business. Dilba manufactures a shared, dark, relaxed atmosphere, which is fully intentional.

“The amount of times at the bar that random customers end up talking to each other, it just makes me smile,” Dilba said.

Since childhood, Dilba has been oriented around quality. He recounts a story of mowing his “middle of nowhere” Wisconsin lawn, where after five hot sweaty hours, his father told him he wasn’t done because he left a few blades of grass on the corners.

“Corners matter,” Dilba said.

And this eye for quality translates into taste. I visited Molten Monkey one busy Friday night to try and get a feel — and taste — of this maximum pizza goodness.

I first tried their “Monkey Styx,” Molten Monkey’s take on garlic breadsticks with a signature “Monkey Sauce,” a blend of mayo with some zing. The Styx’s perfectly doughy insides lay on top of a gorgeous, melted crust from the bottom and sides of the pan. The combination of that crust with the “Monkey Sauce” make for a delicious pairing.

Two of Molten Monkey’s most popular pizzas are the “Umami Bomby,” and the “What’s Up Dough.” The former comes with a variety of mushrooms and other vegetables, while the latter is the standard pepperoni brought up to perfection. The Umami Bomby’s mixture of mushroom flavor and truffle parmesan zest was a huge hit, even to local patrons who aren’t big on fungi. The What’s Up Dough is a sure crowd pleaser, with double cup and char pepperoni that curl upwards to trap as much flavor as they can.

The portion size at Molten Monkey is worth the cost and more. I spent $15 on each medium-size pizza, which could have easily fed two people each.

On top of that, the vast majority of food you eat at Molten monkey is handmade.

“I don’t personally understand the places that just bring everything in, you’ve got to put your own touch on it,” Dilba said.

Molten Monkey is open Wednesday through Sunday from 4-10 p.m. In between openings, Dilba and staff make their own ingredients from scratch.

If you have any dietary restrictions, Molten Monkey has you covered. The restaurant offers vegan cheese and has a recipe planned for a gluten free crust.

So, what’s with the cheesy primate theme?

“The molten part of it is how you get a pizza out of the oven, bubbly cheese, that molten goodness,” Dilba said. “And the monkey side is just a nickname for people I’ve loved, friends, family, pets, my whole life. It’s an homage to what we do and who we love.”

The secret to success lies in a focused mastery and not spreading yourself thin, according to Dilba. Perhaps Detroit-style pizza embodies that ideal. Molten Monkey combines a dark, friendly atmosphere with delicious pizza and wonderful hospitality to realize one goal — maximum pizza goodness.