The 10 best pizza spots in Adelaide

Dubbed Adelaide’s retro-ish ‘clubstraunt’, Sunny’s Pizza brings the cool to hot pies. Not only are they hand-whirling discs of dough high in the sky, but they’ve got local DJs spinning vinyls up on the decks and big ol’ disco balls twirlin’ from the rafters too. Sunny’s turns up the heat with their wood-fired pizzas, layered with both new-wave and traditional toppings, like chargrilled pineapple and melt-in-your-mouth eggplant, respectively. Pair your pie with a glass of local wine or get into party mode with a zingy cocktail. It’s the celebration you’ll want to stick around for – vegans welcome.

Order the: '#03' – eggplant parmigiana, smoked scarmorza, pecorino, San Marzano, garlic confit, basil

Tucked away down Adelaide’s south end of the city lies Etica, an inconspicuous pizzeria that boasts an AVPN (Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana) seal of approval – meaning that you can get your grubby hands on an authentic Neapolitan pizza without taking the long-haul to Italy. Etica’s wood oven sits smack-bang in the middle of their no-frills dining room, where you can watch the magic moments of your meal in the making. The restaurant's minimal toppings are an ode to the quality of each ingredient – from the cheese and tomatoes to the salami and tuna. South Australian and Italian wines are poured ‘til the daily yeasty stuff runs out.

Order the: 'Salsicce e friarielli' – fior di latte, pork sausage, rapine, garlic

California, here we come. Inspired by the American desert town, Palm Springs, Chicco Palms brings a mid-century resort edge to its suburban pizza restaurant in Brooklyn Park. Wood-clad ceilings and checkerboard flooring are a warm welcome for the visual senses, while the Roman-style pizzas and Italo-American snacks are an awakening for the taste buds. Wood-fired numbers are churned out both day and night, with a selection of both pizza rosse (red pizza) and pizza bianche (white pizza) up for grabs. The Chicco Palms experience is just as much about the drinks as it is the fare, with a focus on local and Italian wines, zesty cocktail jugs and tinnies. 

Order the: 'Patate' – potato, rosemary, taleggio, fior di latte, salsa verde

La Trattoria has well and truly stood the test of time – having opened its doors in 1975, the Italian joint is now one of the oldest restaurants in Adelaide. It’s the godfather, some may say. At a glance, La Trattoria’s walls are adorned with black and white snaps from a bygone era, but upon closer inspection, the faded portraits are a memoir to famed diners that have passed through over the years. Take Mick Jagger, Jon Bon Jovi and John Farnham, for instance. There’s no doubt La Tratt’s pies are top-tier, with a hefty menu to boot. Andy’s marinara fresh seafood pizza with king prawns, scallops, calamari, cheese and basil claimed the Best Gourmet Pizza award in South Australia and New York – year unknown and other details shrouded in mystery, but nevertheless, it’s a winner.

Order the: 'Andy’s marinara fresh seafood' - detailed above

Central Italian meets Northern Italian in a clean-cut dining room at Frewville’s Coccobello. Terrazzo touches, concrete facades and wood panelling complete Coccobello’s three seating spots, along with a breezy terrace for those Mediterranean-dreaming, sundrenched days. Speaking of the sun, Coccobello’s pizza oven is partially solar-powered – does it make for a crisper crust? We’ll let you be the judge. Coccobello’s vegan pies go hard with an oozy ‘notzzarella’ that defies the stretch laws of plant-based cheese, while omnivorous numbers shine with class-A ingredients and cheeky add-ons, like stracciatella and black truffle honey.

Order the: 'Green supreme' – broccoli puree, vegan mozzarella, Kalamata olives, broccoli 

Anchovy Bandit put the groove into nostalgia with their slick yet old-timey restaurant and bar that’s reminiscent of a nonna’s kitchen. The cosy Prospect eatery rises to the occasion, not only with its delectable wood-fired dough but with its signature cocktails. Simplicity and considered ingredients make for moreish mouthfuls – take the Olasagasti anchovies and Westside mushrooms. And how about it, Anchovy Bandit is conveniently located underneath the same roof as Palace Nova Cinema – it’s one to jot down for date night. 

Order the: pork and fennel sausage, spinach, provolone, hot and sour honey pizza

Relatively new on the Adelaide pizza scene is Yellow Matter – it’s not a through-and-through pizzeria, but more so a neighbourhood brewery that happens to serve pizza and gets the job done. Since its 2023 inception, the Brooklyn Park hotspot has sliced its way to popularity with its non-traditional pizzas – kinda like its smoked beetroot pizza with shio koji, ‘nozzarella’, pomegranate molasses and rocket. Seven of eight pizzas can be made gluten-free, while four can be tipped to the vegan side. As you relish the flavour sensations, try your hand at pool, get on the foosball or whip out the in-house board games. 

Order the: 'Meatball' – meatball, nduja red sauce, mozzarella, basil

Start the car and head up the hill to Crafers Pizza Bar. What they lack in square meterage, they make up for in flavour, with locally sourced ingredients and regional vino at the forefront of their ethos. The wee pizza shop keeps it casual-cool with a mid-century get-up and takes a likeness to a lowkey Italian bar. Inventive fare is all the rage at Crafers, where they sling slow-fermented pies, including the cheeseburger pizza, the greens and feta, and the chicken bacon ranch. Pull up on the porch and gaze across the treetops with cheese-pulls galore.

Order the: 'Cheeseburger' – beef meatballs, bacon, ketchup, mustard, pickles, sesame seeds

As the name suggests, come to this laidback restaurant for some of the best wood-fired pizza in this city. And don’t forget about their mozzarella plates! Their fresh buffalo mozzarella with beef carpaccio and pickled green tomato reminds us that simplicity really is bliss. Follow it up with a pizza, fresh out of their two hand-built woodfired ovens, roaring at 400 degrees. Our favourite is the calabrese, sticking to its roots with the addictive Calabrian nduja spread, hot salami and chilli. Learn the secret to their perfect dough at their monthly pizza-making classes.

Order the: 'Calabrese' – nduja, hot salami, chilli, cheese, tomato

Southern Italian traditions, South Australian conditions. That’s the name of the game at this much-loved institution tucked away in a rustic-chic McLaren country house, around a 45-minute drive from Adelaide CBD. The pizzas here are made most traditionally, with recipes passed down from generations and given an ‘Oztalian’ twist. The soft, thin crusts are stretched out by hand – no rolling pins in sight – and cooked in a woodfire oven imported from Napoli, until the crust is puffy, charred and spotted. It’s hard to pick a favourite, but you won’t be disappointed with the Salami pizza, featuring homemade sugo, hand-pitted olives, portobello mushrooms and fior di latte.