If you know me at all, even by acquaintance, you’ll quickly learn that pizza is one of my life’s greatest passions 🤤
Having been to the very heart of pizza craft 🇮🇹 Naples, Southern Italy 🇮🇹 and sampled the best in the world, I’ve made it a personal mission never to accept anything less.
While sadly I haven’t mastered the craft myself, what I can do is hunt down the good stuff and impart my knowledge of the best haunts 🔍
This is a living post that will be refreshed from time to time as I uncover more gems! For now, these are my top picks to satisfy your Neapolitan wood fired pizza cravings in London.
Disclaimer: Only traditional pizza is covered here. If you’re a fan of pineapple, fast food or New York style ‘pizza’ then you’re in the wrong place!
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The best
🥇 L’Antica Pizzeria
“Real Neapolitan taste. Cooked with passion.”
🚇 Hampstead, High Barnet
🍕 Caputo flour, low-salt dough, slow-fermented over 36 hours, cooked at 400°C
⭐ Go for: date night or with a small group of friends
👍 Traditional Neapolitan wood fired pizza, accepts table reservations, great desserts
👎 Average service, cramped seating, loud.
🥈 Homeslice
“20” pizza whole or by the slice.”
🚇 Covent Garden, Oxford Circus, Bond Street, Mansion House, Old Street, White City, Earl’s Court
🍕 High protein German 405 flour, aged 24 hours minimum, cooked at 500°C for 60-90 seconds
⭐ Go for: a slice on the go or a casual walk-in
👍 Balance of tradition with innovation, flavours split 50/50, one pizza feeds two people
👎 Chaotic service, cramped seating, loud.
🥉 Zia Lucia
“Genuine pizza.”
🚇 Highbury & Islington, Hammersmith, Wembley Park
🍕 Four types of dough: vegetable charcoal, wholemeal, gluten-free, traditional, slow-fermented over 48 hours
⭐ Go for: a proper sit down meal with family and friends
👍 Traditional Neapolitan pizza with a twist – the charcoal base is an experience!
👎 Bookings available for a minimum of eight people.
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The rest
… but definitely not less!
Made of Dough
“Pizza. And some.”
🚇 Oxford Circus, Brixton, Fulham Broadway, 🚆Peckham Rye
🍕 Lean dough: flour, water, sea salt, fresh yeast, 60% hydration, cooked fast
⭐ Go for: Neapolitan wood fired pizza with mates
👍 Consistently good, traditional wood fired pizza, great toppings
👎 Casual in food halls and markets – may be hard to find a group table.
Pizzeria di Camden
“The sun on your plate.”
🚇 Camden Town
🍕 ‘00’ grade flour, stone baked
⭐ Go for: date night or with a small group of friends
👍 Great location, great flavours, decent Aperol spritz
👎 Small venue.
Franco Manca
“Sourdough pizza. As it should be.”
🚇 Restaurants in all corners of London as well as around the UK
🍕 Italian grains, live culture of flour, water and wild yeast, fermented 20 hours
⭐ Go for: a decent cheap meal
👍 Pizzas start from £5, many locations, walk-in friendly, No. 7 rotating specialty pizza
👎 Average quality, stingy on toppings.
La Pizza Napoletana – Mercato Metropolitano
🚇 Southwark
⭐ Go for: a quality pizza option at a varied food hall
👍 Lots of choice, consistently decent
👎 Long wait time and crowded space during busy periods.
Santa Maria Pizzeria Napoletana
🚇 Fulham Broadway, Goodge Street, South Ealing
⭐ Go for: a hearty sit down meal with family, friends or peers
👍 Consistently good, traditional wood fired pizza, great toppings
👎 Some flavours are questionable – mushy peas base, for instance!
Rossopomodoro
“Like a day in Napoli”
🚇 Tottenham Court Road, Covent Garden, Old Street, Fulham Broadway, Camden Road, Finchley Road, 🚆 Wandsworth Town
⭐ Go for: a social occasion with a medium to large size group
👍 Neapolitan pizza, many locations to choose from
👎 It has a bit of a chain vibe and the monthly special I tried wasn’t great. Still, I’d give them another go!
Purezza
“Plant pioneers”
🚇 Camden Town
⭐ Go for: a social occasion with a small size group
👍 The UK’s first ever vegan pizzeria using cruelty free ingredients, serving a variety of traditional inspired flavour combinations
👎 They’re quite generous on the cheese, and if you’re not used to the vegan variety this might not be a good thing.
On my radar…
- Pizza Pilgrims
- Sud Italia
- Voodoo Rays
- Sacre Couer
