The Best Pizza in Rome
Pizza is a religion in Rome. It's served on street corners by the slice as well as in some of the world’s best restaurants, under topping combinations created by mad geniuses with flour on their cheeks. If you like your hometown pizza, prepare to love the best pizza in Rome. If you’re (somehow) on the fence, get ready to understand why it’s the world’s most popular dish. Nowhere else in the world treats this takeaway staple with such imagination, verve, and downright panache. Forget thin crust or thick, with cheese or without; Rome takes pizza to the next level. From whole pizzas layered with hearty mushrooms and ham, to take-away slices topped with fresh potatoes and rosemary, to thick Naples-style pies made with the very best tomatoes, this is the place to come to taste pizza as it was meant to be eaten. Here, the places you should know for finding the best pizza in Rome right now.
Read our complete Rome travel guide here.
This gallery has been updated with new information since its original publish date.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantPizzeria Ostiense
$Pizzeria Ostiense is the quintessential Roman pizzeria, serving fried starters and chewy-crust pizzas topped sparingly so as not to overload the thin base. The menu holds no surprises; you'll find the typical fried snacks like filetti di baccala' (battered cod), suppli' (rice croquettes), and olive ascolane (meat-filled olives), plus plenty of pizzas with classic toppings like zucchini flower with mozzarella and anchovy, or capricciosa with artichoke, boiled egg, mushrooms, and prosciutto.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantA Rota Pizzeria Romanesca
$Bonci alumni Sami El Sabawy started up this innovative pizzeria a few years ago, and to great acclaim. The pizzas are round (not by the slice), and their standout feature is their consistency; paper thin and crispy, thanks to a mix of white 00 pizza flour and wholemeal Molino Mariani flour. The menu starts with fried things and bruschetta; the suppli alla carbonara is a fried ball of pasta carbonara, and well worth a try. If you can fit it in, the bruschetta with stracciatella cheese and anchovies is also not to be missed. The pizza list itself is straightforward and includes a margherita, with a tomato base and mozzarella; diavola, with spicy salami; tonno e cipolla, with tuna and onions. The potato and sausage option is one of their biggest hits, as is the “quattro formaggi” with four types of cheese including a note-worthy combination of fior di latte mozzarella, brie, gorgonzola and parmesan. Be sure to check out the daily specials, some which come with an extra base on top, sandwich style, and drizzled with olive oil and salt. Given the location—a little off the tourist track—the crowd is Roman, through and through. They’re here for a mid-week dinner, catching up with family and friends. Groups tend to be small, either couples or groups of four, enjoying an easy, informal night out.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantTrieste Pizza
$Monti has become a sea of mediocre cafes, aperitivo bars, and restaurants that might look good on the surface but peddle sub-par snacks, drinks, and meals. Trieste, meanwhile, both looks cute and serves very solid food. The shop is part of a small chain that started as a beach kiosk in Pescara in the 1950s and has grown to five locations since. The quick service and attention to quality means Trieste delivers consistently tasty pizza at a price everyone can afford.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantDa Artenio
$Da Artenio is a bakery stall in the Testaccio Market—you'll find it near the fishmongers on the market's south side—whose pizza takes on a few forms: there's pizza al taglio (by the slice); "lingue" (tongues), long ropes of pizza dough studded with green olives; and pizzette, little hand-shaped oval pizzas topped with tomato, red onion, or potato. All three variations are great, but the pizzette are especially tasty; they're perfectly chewy and crispy at once, just as Roman all pizza should be.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantTrapizzino Trastevere
$In 2009, pizza maker Stefano Callegari was playing around in the kitchen and invented the trapizzino, a triangular slice of pizza bianca—his made with a thick, fluffy flatbread—that's been cut open and filled with traditional Roman dishes like simmered oxtail, tripe with tomatoes, and chicken cacciatore. This affordable, portable pizza-sandwich hybrid has really taken off, and now there are locations of Trapizzino all over Italy, as well as in the United States and Japan. The chicken cacciatore (here, made without tomato) is mind-blowing, as is the vegetarian eggplant parmesan. Order a suppli' (rice croquette) to start and eat it while your trapizzino is being prepared.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantSbanco
$$Like its sister pizzeria Sforno, the menu at the casual, convivial Sbanco offers a solid mix of classic and creative pizzas. And why pick favorites? You'd be wise to order a combination of the two so you can taste both interpretations. On busy nights, the pizza oven can get slammed with orders; don't expect TLC, but know that service will be as efficient as possible. To stave off hunger, order some fritti, or fried starters.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantForno Campo de' Fiori
$The simple pizza by the slice at Forno Campo de' Fiori—a bustling bakery in a crowded central piazza—is a thing of beauty. The staff can slice small pieces for you so you can try more than one topping; don't miss pizza rossa (flatbread brushed with tomato sauce), pizza bianca (flatbread seasoned with salt and olive oil), and fior di zucca (zucchini flower, anchovy, and mozzarella). Note that the service isn't particularly happy, helpful, or welcoming, but who has time for pleasantries when you're slammed all day?
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantLa Gatta Mangiona
$$At La Gatta Mangiona, a wood-fired oven is front and center at the entrance, followed by two brightly lit dining rooms embellished with framed pictures of well-fed cats, a tribute to the restaurant's name: "la gatta mangiona" is a way of describing chunky felines. The place is packed every night, and the menu straddles classic (Margherita, marinara) and creative (romanesco and coppa; asparagus, duck speck, and asiago). Pizzas tend to be best Monday through Thursday nights.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantEmma
$$Start with the Roman essentials, the fried stuff. The deep fried zucchini flowers stuffed with mozzarella from Amalfi and anchovies from Sicily are light and crisp, as are the tempura-style fried vegetables. The pizza bases have been created by Pierluigi Roscioli, with a focus on using the very best organic ingredients from around Italy. Pizzas come out of the wood-fire oven golden and crispy, thanks to a base made up of organic dough, Roman water (it’s a thing, apparently), and olive oil from Tuscany. The menu is divided into “red pizzas” and “white pizzas”, depending on whether you like a base with tomato or without. Both embrace the classic toppings, such as mushrooms, parma ham, or four cheese. A separate section, called "Flour Mountain" showcases original inventions like the Scozzese e Bufala, with smoked Scottish salmon from Loch Fyne, fennel, rocket, and shredded buffalo mozzarella. There’s also a selection of focaccia, bruschetta, and crostini.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantPinsere
$Pinsere brightly lit takeaway joint that specializes in a modern interpretation of pinse, an ancient flatbread that's sometimes credited as the original pizza. The oblong flatbreads have become a popular alternative to the large, round, slice-yourself personal pizzas now the norm in Rome. Toppings include all the classics you'll find at every pizzeria in Rome (Margherita, zucchini flowers with mozzarella and anchovies), but there are some creative items on the list, as well (ricotta, honey, raisins, and figs).
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantPanificio Bonci
$$You'll find a mix of super-traditional Roman fare at Panificio Bonci, as well as creative items made with stone milled heirloom wheats. The star of the show, however, is the pizza bianca, Rome's signature flatbread, which is served in pieces or sliced open for sandwiches. The pizza con mortadella (or mortadella sandwich) is a perfect, savory bite and is always available, while the pizza con porchetta (or roasted pork sandwich) is an occasional daily special worthy of a Trans-Atlantic flight in its own right.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantPizzeria da Remo
$Da Remo serves Rome's signature style of pizza: large, unsliced, round personal pies measuring well over a foot in diameter. They're served hot out of the oven, molten cheese riding on the surface of a crisp and chewy base. Start with suppli' (rice croquettes) and fagioli (beans seasoned with olive oil), both classic pizzeria antipasti. But save room: Those pizzas are the main event. The place is busy; the staff doesn't have much time, or interest, in giving advice, so scope other tables for a sense of what's good.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantPro Loco DOL
$$Pro Loco DOL, a favorite among the restaurant-industry crowd and neighbors alike, may be a 30-minute cab ride from central Rome, but it's worth the trek for its thoughtfully prepared cuisine, which is made from ingredients from small producers all over Lazio. There are meat-and-cheese plates, pastas, and mains, as well as pizzas made from organic flour and dough that was fermented for 48 hours. Try the pizza in teglia (cooked in a sheet pan) with two different toppings, one on each half, like buffalo mozzarella, potato, and rosemary.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantAntico Forno Roscioli
$Roscioli's pizza by the slice is baked in five-foot-long slabs. Some is seasoned simply, with olive oil and salt—this masterpiece is pizza bianca, and it's what the bakery does best; others have toppings. Of the pizza with toppings, the pizza rossa, which is brushed with a bright tomato sauce, is outstanding. Order slices to eat in, then take your tray to the tables outside, where you can stand up and eat. Pizza rossa is great to take away; pizza bianca is best consumed on site, right out of the oven.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantPizzeria I Quintili
$$People flock to I Quintili for its incredibly light fried starters, so be sure to order the frittatina ‘nduja (fried rice ball with spicy ‘nduja sausage) and frittatina alla puttanesca (with garlic, capers, anchovies, olives and parmesan). The pizzas come in classic or fried versions—which have long been a Neapolitan street food staple. Try the Pizza Fritta with Neapolitan salami, ricotta, and provolone cheese. The more classic pizzas are made to traditional Neapolitan specifications (thick and doughy), and span everything from classics like Margherita and Capricciosa to the more unique Novella (smoked buffalo mozzarella, potatoes, sausage and rosemary) and Oro Giallo (orange tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, red tomato shavings, and orange essence). The staff are helpful and efficient. Pizzas come out hot and fast, and are served with a smile.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantPizzarium
$Without hyperbole, Pizzarium is one of Rome's most important and influential places for food. Even though it serves pizza by the slice, a traditionally humble fast food, owner Gabriele Bonci has elevated it to an art form here. The simplest toppings are best, so go for the potato and mozzarella, onion, or tomato pies. At lunchtime, there are suppli' (rice croquettes) right out of the fryer, but avoid them later in the day when they have cooled—unless, that is, the staff will fry them to order.
Camillo PasquarellirestaurantLa Pratolina
$$La Pratolina serves pinse romane, oval flatbreads said to be inspired by an ancient Roman recipe. The dough is a mixture of soft wheat, rice, and soy flours, which are combined with water and yeast and set aside to ferment for 48 hours, rendering the dough light and digestible. The thickness of the pinsa can handle some serious toppings, including potatoes, porcini, caciocavallo, and speck. La Pratolina uses cheeses from all over Italy, so you'll have the chance to go beyond mozzarella.
Courtesy Ivo a Trastevere; Jon Chica Parada/GettyrestaurantIvo a Trastevere
$$Because Ivo, a no-frills and quintessentially Roman pizzeria, is recommended by virtually every guidebook, the place is constantly packed with tourists. It's also in Trastevere, a popular dining destination for American college kids (many study-abroad programs and student housing are in the neighborhood). No matter; locals, a mix of Trastevere denizens and Romans from other neighborhoods, know to show up later—perhaps after an evening of bar-hopping—for the paper-thin-crusted pizzas and ice-cold beer.
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Susan WrightrestaurantCesare al Casaletto
$$Cesare is a trattoria specializing in Roman cuisine, and it nails the classics; the starters, pastas, and mains get so much attention, in fact, that the excellent pizzas can be often overlooked. But take it from us: Share a paper-thin, delightfully crispy pizza rossa (a 16-inch round pizza brushed sparingly with tomato sauce and drizzled with olive oil, then baked in a wood-burning oven) as a starter. And don't sleep on the excellent fried starters like eggplant croquettes and shredded beef balls.
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