The Best Pizza Restaurant in Every Major Florida City

Hello, fellow pizza lover. Glad to see you.

If you’ve been on the hunt for the best pizza in Florida, you’ve come to the right place. The editors of Travel Magazine have put in extensive research to help guide you to the right slice of pizza, one city at a time. We won’t speak to our overall favorite slice in Florida, but we will guide you right through the best pizza in Florida, city by city.

Let’s get in the know on the dough.

Jacksonville

Being a large city with plenty of New Yorkers, there’s no shortage of options in Jacksonville. It’s a low-key pretty great pizza city in the Sunshine State.

Carmine’s Pie House is really quality stuff, good crust and great sauce. But for us, the best in Jacksonville is Pie95 Pizza. They serve wood-fired pizza that’s best eaten right away. Our recommendation would be to go light on toppings, the pepperoni was the perfect choice here.

Pie95 Pizza is open from 5pm to 9pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and from 430pm to 915pm depending on demand on Fridays and Saturdays. Phone orders only, no cash, card only. The Bianca is another great option here, featuring fresh mozz, oregano, roasted garlic, extra virgin olive oil, parmesan, and a touch of lemon. Perfecto.

An honorable mention goes out to Tony Ds, another local favorite in Jacksonville worth visiting for a pie.

Miami

Oh, you thought Miami was just Cuban sandwiches and beautiful people? You thought wrong. It is those things too, of course, but there’s also some great slices of pizza to be had here. Just keep it between you and me though, we don’t want to overwhelm this spot.

‘O Munaciello is true Neopolitan Pizza in the heart of Miami. Located in Miami’s low key coolest neighborhood, the Mimo District, they’re located at 6425 Biscayne Boulevard. Straight from Florence, this restaurant opened its doors in January 2017, and they’ve been turning out the best pizza in Miami ever since. They’ve even been named the top pizza in Florida, the 5th best pizzeriea in the USA, and the 28th best in the world. Pretty high marks for your local pizza shop if you live in Miami.

Their dough is leavened for 48 hours and they bake their pizza in a wood-fired oven. We’d recommend trying their pizze classiche, the classics. Their marinara is simple but fantastic, featuring a beautiful sauce, garlic, oregono, and basil. It’s a great place to start, but order yourself a Calabrese and a Capricciosa when you need a little bit more. The former comes with sauce, fior de latte mozzarella cheese, and spicy salami, while the latter has sauce, fior de lattee mozarella cheese, ham, artichokes, olives and mushrooms.

There won’t be any leftovers.

Tampa

We’ll cover St. Petersburg below, but first, let’s talk Tampa. This up and coming city is quickly becoming one of our favorite places to visit when we step out of South Florida, and the food scene is really worth the trip.

One of the spots we’re always sure to visit in Tampa is Due Amici, our favorite pizza in Tampa. Due Amici is a family run pizza and pasta bar located right in Ybor City. They take a lot of pride in their home made pizza and pasta, and handcraft all of their own sauces to compliment the flavors of every dish. The pizza dough is of course made in house and is hand spun, topped with the freshest ingredients and cooked to perfection.

If you’re having a party, Due Amici does catering too, so check that out if you need to feed a group. We love their Sausage Pie and their White Pizza, but if you’re looking for something really interesting that you don’t see everyday, order the Lasagna Pizza. And come hungry.

Orlando

Maybe instead of Orlando, this should say Detroit. Let’s take a trip north to SoDough in Orlando, our favorite pizza shop in the city.

This is not your thin-crust, done in 4-minutes kind of pie. SoDough is selling pizzas made from 24+ hour fermented artisan dough, home made detroit red sauce from fresh pack tomatoes, with a brick cheese blend that’s shredded fresh daily. Come to papa.

Founder Robert Blair is the creator of SoDough, having grown up on the 313 “square” pizza. It was only a matter of time until he introduced Detroit Style Pizza (DSP) to Orlando, especially since he’s been in the pizza game for over 40 years.

SoDough starts by baking your DSP in traditional blue steel pans sourced directly from Michigan. They create the unique characteristics of the pizza, along with their in house Stanislaus tomato sauce, their proprietary brick cheese blend, and their high hydration dough. The carmelized cheese crust will knock you knees.

St. Petersburg

Pizza reviewer and President of Barstool Sports Dave Portnoy recently did a round of reviews in the St. Petersburg area, and we weren’t surprised that one of his favorites is one of ours, too.

Pizza Box is our go-to when we visit. It’s a locally owned wood fire pizza shop featuring a seasonal menu and a warm atmosphere, with gluten-free and vegan pie options available too. So you can bring the whole gang.

From the decor to the wood fire pizza oven, everything in Pizza Box was build from the ground up. They use an old school style of cooking that translates into some incredible bites. Their dough is made with a high hydration recipe to create a thin and crispy crust, and they cook with oak and smoke with cherry wood which gives their pizza a sweet, smokey flavor. You’re gonna love it.

Fresh ingredients all come from local distributors in the St. Petersburg area, and they even have some great art and music events at Pizza Box, but you won’t need much more than the pizza itself. Try the Lover Boy, which comes with house made tomato sauce, fresh mozz, house made meatballs, herb whipped ricotta, cherry peppers, carmelized onions, and fresh basil. What a pie.

Hialeah

The name of this next one might surprise you.

Pia’s Not Just Pizza is our favorite pizza restaurant in Hialeah, and yes, their other food is good too. But we’re coming here for the pizza, sorry, not sorry, Pia.

Located on 7551 W 4th Ave, Pia’s is a popular spot for anyone in the Miami or Hialeah area. It’s a mainstay in the community. First, let’s talk about La Nonna. This pie comes with tomato sauce, arugula, dried tomatoes, prosciutto, balsamic glaze, and, wait for it–a giant ball of truffle burrata for you and your friends to fight over. If that’s not your thing, first of all what’s wrong with you, but second, try the Piamonte. This pie features tomato sauce, mozz, gorgonzola, roasted onions, bacon and fresh basil.

Our last recommendation at Pia’s Not Just Pizza is for the salt lovers. Try the Pescara, a pie that comes with tomato sauce, mozz, black olives and anchovies. So freakin’ good. Pia’s is closed on Wednesdays and Thursdays, so plan accordingly.

Tallahassee

Think you can’t find a great slice of pizza in a college town? Think again. Florida’s capital is home to some really good spots, but for us, Isabella’s Pizzeria Napoletana is the go-to.

Their menu features some great, simple but powerful combinations. We love the Funghi e Prosciutto, which comes without tomato sauce. You’ll be served a pie instead with ricotta, mushrooms, basil, home made mozzarella, extra virgin olive oil, and prosciutto di parma.

If that doesn’t tickle your pizza fancy, try the Bianca e Porri, a unique slice if there ever was one. It comes with leek, garlic, pecorino Romano, home made mozzarella, and extra virgin olive oil. It’s a must-try.

They don’t just offer pizza, either. Calzones, paninis, salads, dessert pizza, and gelato are also popular here. Try the the next time you visit Isabela’s.

Fort Lauderdale

Last but not least, let’s talk about the pizza scene in Fort Lauderdale. There are shops on the beach, shops in the city, and even the Pittsburgh famous Primanti Bros which is always worth a visit. But for the taste of Italy right in Fort Lauderdale, it’s Luigi’s Coal Oven Pizza for us.

Chef Luigi DiMeo is proud to present the Original Pizza of Naples Italy to the FLL. Luigi is a native of Naples Italy, having moved to the USA in 2005.

For the meat lovers like us, there’s really only one thing to try first: Pop’s Pizza. Tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, sausage, meatballs and bacon come on a 16” pie for $21.95. Their specialty pizzas are also fantastic, whether it’s the Fradiavolo or Contadina. But if you can only pick one, go with the Truffle Pie. It comes with mozzarella, Romano, fresh goat cheese, spinach, fresh sauteed mushrooms, and is drizzled with white truffle oil.

It’s divine.

Florida is home to some great pizza

There’s no question that Florida isn’t starved for great pizza. The shops mentioned on this list can compete with some of the best pizza around the country, so be sure to check them out the next time you’re in town. The beach might be great for the daytime, but when the sun goes down, it’s all about finding the next great slice of pizza in Florida.

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