Where to Find the Best Pizza in Philadelphia

Known for slinging giant, greasy cheese slices to crowds spilling out of nearby bars and music venues late night, Lorenzo and Sons Pizza has been a South Street staple for more than 45 years. The pizza is simple, but so very satisfying.

Pizza Brain in Fishtown doubles as the world’s first pizza museum, complete with pizza-related vinyl records and pizza-bearing action figures. With names like “Forbes Waggensense” and “Felix Huppert,” the brick-oven pies are as quirky as their home. Plus, vegan pizzas are offered by the pie and slice.

“Pizza party” in Italian, Pizzata focuses on naturally leavened dough (the slow fermentation makes the dough easier to digest) in their 16-inch New York-style round pies. Before the pizza is wood-fired, it’s topped with fresh cheeses, mushrooms, porchetta, soppressata and any other topping you can think of.

It’s no secret that Joe Beddia crafts some of the best pizza in the city at his full-service restaurant in Fishtown, which was named one of the world’s greatest places in 2019 by Time magazine. The small menu of impeccably charred, masterful pies always features a creative seasonal option and a classic cheese pie that can be topped with pepperoni, crimini mushrooms, pickled chiles and other fresh toppings. Bookend the meal with a heavenly piece of tomato pie and creamy homemade soft serve.

Port Richmond residents would have preferred to keep this one a secret, but no luck, thanks to the incredible pies at this BYOB spot. The vibe at Tacconelli’s is decidedly neighborhood: cash-only and a limit of three toppings per pie, and guests are encouraged to call ahead to reserve dough.

Focusing on naturally fermented dough and fresh ingredients, Eeva brings farm-to-table vibes to the wood-fire oven. The seasonal menus highlight fresh herbs, mozzarella, greens and house fennel sausage. Wash it all down with a glass of natural wine.

Though mobile pizza purveyor Pitruco now has a brick-and-mortar home at West Philly’s Franklin’s Table Food Hall, the truck is still on the move all over Philly. Both the shop and truck dish out classic, made-to-order Neopolitan personal pies.

Stephen Starr’s stepped-up neighborhood pizza place in Headhouse Square serves specialty and creative takes on wood-fired pizzas. Highlights include the Pistachio, topped with red onions, rosemary and fontina, and the San Daniele, topped with prosciutto, smoked mozzarella, pecorino and arugula.

With two Philly locations, a third in Chester County, and a fourth in Montgomery County’s King of Prussia, Pizzeria Vetri — all with wood-fired ovens — goes all out. The Neapolitan crust requires a four-day rise and every pizza is made with fresh, high-quality ingredients. Side dish standouts include the mortadella- and ricotta-stuffed, pistachio-sauced rotolo, which looks like a savory cinnamon bun and eats like heaven.

A South Philly institution with five other locations in the New Jersey suburbs, the family-owned and -operated Cacia’s Bakery has been serving high-quality pizza, tomato pie, breads and more for over 70 years. The pies here are rectangular-shaped and cooked in thin sheet pans in a massive brick oven. Customers can find traditional varieties as well as quirkier ones, like the bakery’s double cheesesteak pizza and the famous pizzaz pie—American cheese, sliced tomatoes, banana peppers and no sauce. Insider tip: Try all of the varieties by getting a box of five mixed slices.

An unassuming neighborhood shop deep in South Philly, La Rosa Pizza serves some of the best thick-crust square pies in the city. Similar to a few other pizza shops in the area, the pies here are cooked in thin sheet pans, and both slices and whole pies are available. Pro tip: Go for the potato pizza, an impeccable white pie topped with thinly sliced potatoes and sprinkled with rosemary.

Rione specializes in pizza al taglio, the light and crispy square slice style native to Rome. Regulars argue over whether to heat the slices or eat them at room temperature, but they agree that the Rittenhouse Square pizza shop ranks among the best in the city. The key: the made-from-scratch dough.

This local chain is famous for its sauce-on-top square pizza. Using the owner’s grandparents’ same dough recipe from their original shop in Juniata Park, these slices are Philly pizza cannon.

It’s pizza with a mission. Down North Pizza exclusively employs formerly incarcerated people at a fair wage. Thanks to all the glowing reviews — from The New York Times to Philadelphia magazine — fan favorites are always changing, but you can’t go wrong with the Uptown Vibes (kale, mushrooms, red peppers, red onions and the secret Norf sauce) or What We Do (beef pepperoni, beef sausage, kale, banana peppers and honey chipotle).

After gaining a cult following for its square pies sold at a now-closed location in Haddonfield, New Jersey, Angelo’s Pizzeria reopened in 2019 in Bella Vista, near Philly’s famed Italian Market. Truly old-school, it’s first-come, first-served. There are several pizza styles on the menu here, including round pies and thick- and thin-crust square pies. The magnificent “Upside Down Jawn” — a thick-crust, Sicilian-style square pie with pepperoni and with the sauce on top of the cheese — is one of the shop’s signature pies. Plus, the dough for the pizza and the sandwiches is made in-house daily.

The name Circles + Squares refers to the shapes of the two pie styles available at this Olde Richmond pie shop: traditional thin-crust circle pies and the super-popular Detroit-style square pies. The square pies here, first made popular in Instagram-sensation pop ups around the city known as Pizza Gutt (the owner’s name is Dan Gutter), are cooked in a pan and have the thick, chewy texture of a focaccia and crispy edges of charred cheese. A healthy range of topping options — including pepperoni, ricotta, spinach and pineapple — allow diners to customize their pies in dozens of variations.

We’ll give credit where credit is due: Brooklyn pizza joint Paulie Gee’s can hang. The Philadelphia outpost of this popular pizza shop doles out slices and pies — square and round — in retro digs (complete with old-school Atari). Their twist on the pepperoni pie, the Hellboy, is sweetened with some Mike’s Hot Honey.

Named the best pizza in Philadelphia by Good Morning America, Pizza Jawn started as a mobile operation, but now slings its many varieties of pies from a brick and mortar in Manayunk. On offer: round pies (a mix of Neapolitan and New York-style), thick Detroit style and sheet pan Grandma pizza. Toppings run the gamut for all tastes, from vegan sausage to pork and beef pepperoni.

Visitors can score huge, cheesy slices, whole pies (which are worth the wait) and tomato pie at the buzzy Pizza Shackamaxon, a no-frills pizzeria that calls the old Pizzeria Beddia space in Fishtown home. Similar to its predecessor, the pizza’s very good, the shop’s walk-in only and there’s no phone.