Abundant. Plentiful. Excessive. I'm not referring to campaign commercials here. I'm talking about that other seasonal annoyance: zucchini. (Not an annoyance, you say? Then you must not have a garden. Or a neighbor with one.)

With this veggie at its peak, I've enjoyed watching how chefs around town are handling the invasion. At Salt in Boulder, squash is just one of many vegetables in ratatouille, a time-honored, late-summer dish that plows through more than a few zucchini in my house every year. Traditional, yes, but less so in the way it's served -- as a bed for flatiron steak, along with cascade hops and roasted potatoes.

At The Wooden Table in Littleton, zucchini is grated, then jazzed up with goat cheese, mint and dill in fritters that give a pop to seared lamb.

And the creative geniuses at Il Posto have reworked this summer squash into chilled spicy zucchini soup, with cubeb pepper flan, lardo and crispy parsnips.

But nowhere have I seen zucchini put to such pure and simple use as at Lucky Pie Pizza & Tap House, the restaurant that's the subject of this week's review. Curious? Check back tomorrow to find out just how good zucchini can be.