London’s best restaurants for pizza

Had enough of the ubiquitous, doughy Neapolitan-style pizza that's taken London by storm over the past decade? Then get yourself to backstreet Hammersmith pub, The Chancellors. Here you'll find thin, stiff and perfectly rendered New York-style slices. Cooked up by Carl McCluskey inside his grandma's boozer, these pizzas are worth the mission. Keep your eyes open too, for the occasional collab with the likes of pasta supremos Padella. 

Five Points Brewing Co's Hackney home is also where you'll find some seriously good pizza. Ace Pizza's stonebaked pies owe their deliciousness to their cold fermented 'biga' sourdough starter, which means the dough and base remains crispy at the bottom as well as on the crust. They come as 12" individual pizzas, with local specials like the vegan Clapton Cowboy, topped with plant-based Texas 'beef', pink pickled onions and jalapenos. Add a chilli-honey drizzle to your pizza for an extra £1.50 or some rightfully addictive crack sauce for crust dipping purposes. 

Detroit-style pizza is on the up in London – but which of the capital’s pizzerias will perfect it first? Ria’s in Notting Hill stylishly flicks its hat in the ring. Detroiter pizzas have a rep for being weighty on both the scales and the stomach – instead Ria’s are delicate and scrupulous, each bite meticulously measured to sink just the right amount, to crunch at exactly the right depth. The toppings are equally weighted, dollops of mozz, sweet caramelised onions and tangy lemon basil sauce all sitting atop airy crispness. Motor City flawlessly refined in the heart of west London.

If you're looking for deep dish in Soho, you've come to the right place. Japes does Chicago-style pizza – and these big sloppy beasts have come to steal your heart. They laugh in the face of a thin, crispy sourdough crust, and instead serve up seriously juicy pies with the most sensational cheese pull in town. We recommended ordering the pizzas ‘London style’, basically a Detroit/Chicago/grandma style mash-up. It was invented in this actual restaurant and is absolutely delicious. 

Dough Hands is a roving pizza proposition currently in permanent residence at the always lively Spurstowe Arms by London Fields. The project of chef Hannah Drye, her mega New York-style pies are big and heartily topped behemoths, with brittle (in a good way) crispy crusts and a pleasingly oily array of toppings. If you don't like getting your fingers dirty, then Dough Hands isn't for you – red oil runs down your elbows, ready to stain shirts and shorts with little compassion. You'll let it though, because pizzas such as the Jode (tomato, mozzarella, n'duja, hot honey and stracciatella) are masterpieces. The garlic and herb dip is a must for any leftover crusts.

Yard Sale pizzas are served fresh from the oven in either 12" or 18" stone-baked sourdough rounds. Toppings range from classic margherita to the crowd-pleasing TSB with tenderstem broccoli, parmesan and pine nuts. They peddle gluten-free bases and fully vegan toppings too. There are 12 branches spread far and wide across London – from Clapton to Tottenham, and with the latest outposts in Hither Green and Tufnell Park – so you’re never too far from one of their sublime pies. 

Earthy, unrefined and with heritage grain bases, veg-forward toppings and a promise to work with ethical providers and growers; Flat Earth do pizza a little differently. If you want to feel better about stuffing your face, this is the place to do it, with seasonal pizzas that'll make you feel all good inside. Sample the likes of a kimchi fiorentina with house-made kimchi, Somerset mozzarella and cheddar, Cacklebean eggs, beetroot crumb and tomato passata or vegan cauliflower, butter bean and tahini pizza. Angelic. 

Santa Maria has nailed the trifecta of peerless pizza: fresh ingredients, traditional methods, spectacular sourdough. The margherita at this Fitzrovia branch of the revered restaurant was practically perfect. Finding nowhere in London to match the pizza of their upbringing, Angelo Ambrosio and Pasquale Chionchio first set about recreating a slice of Naples in Ealing. There are also branches in Fulham and Islington as well as this Fitzrovia joint.

The London outpost of the UK’s first vegan pizzeria (its other branches are in Brighton and Manchester), Purezza offers a range of plant-based toppings – from smoked tofu to beetroot carpaccio – on a Neapolitan-style sourdough base. Try the Parmigiana Party, topped with rich aubergine pieces and lightly smoked ‘mozzarella’, made from fermented brown rice milk. 

So, the head chef at Napoli on the Road got voted the literal best chef in the world. No, really. The world! And hey, the pizza really is very good, all light and fluffy crusts and fresh AF tomato sauce and delicious dollops of fior di latte, with some really out-there flavour combos too. The fritti are a must-order: get the frittatina (literally deep-fried cheesy bucatini) and the very good supplì. Add an aperol spritz, or one of the delicious wines on offer that the staff team hand-picked in Napoli. The best pizza in London? Probably not. But a serious contender? Certainly.

Another one of our prefered alternatives to the dominance of Naples-style pizza is squidgy, cake-like square pie that is Detroit-style pizza. With two locations in London – Spitalfields and Upper Street in Islington – Detroit Pizza cook their creations in steel pans to give it a soft but crunchy and deep crust. Eat it or use it as a pillow - the choice is yours. Their marinara too, is something special. Try their house special, the Detroit, made with pepperoni, jalapeño, honey, parsley and parmesan. 

This rapidly expanding pizza chain does extremely tasty and light Neapolitan-style pies such as the vegan Agnello Vegana, which comes topped with extremely convincing plant-based lamb and garlic-roasted tenderstem broccoli. They also do all the classics (marinara, marghertia, capricciosa, calabrese etc) as well as regular specials and banging desserts. Don't forget to order chilli honey and nduja aioli for drizzling and dipping purposes and a potent rum baba for pud. The Shoreditch location joins outposts in Soho and on Tottenham Court Road, and there's a Spitalfields branch too. 

An atmospheric, noisy spot off Marylebone High Street, Alley Cats is an ideal place to indulge in those New York-style, crispy crackly pizzas that are way lighter than their comparatively doughy Neopolitan cousins. The menu’s short, but who needs choice when the standard offerings are so effective? There are seven styles of pie on offer, all served at a hunger-busting size of 14”, including a fantastic pizza take on the classic penne alla vodka that’s every bit as moreish and comforting as the dish that inspired it. If you are in the market for starters, both the candied bacon and sauce-slathered meatballs should not be missed. A great addition to London’s varied and ever-evolving pizza scene.

Sodo may look a little rough around the edges, but it’s really all about the pizza at this cheery branch of the mini-chain. Margheritas never have a lot to hide behind and our version was superb: the Neapolitan-style sourdough base (so-do, geddit?) was thin, crisp, delicious and impressively topped. Look out for ‘The Wicker Man’ (with ’nduja, mascarpone and pepperoni) and the ‘Jon Bon Chovy’, with tomato, mozzarella, anchovies and capers. Gluten-free options come on a base fashioned from butterbeans. There are branches in Hoxton, Bethnal Green, Deptford and Walthamstow. 

This small chain’s original restaurant in Neal’s Yard dishes out pizzas fresh from a wood-fired oven – and boy, are they big ’uns. Thankfully, most of these thin-crusted beauties are available by the slice – although you can order a whole 20-incher, enough to feed you and two of your pals. They’ll even let you have more than one choice from the topping selections if you ask nicely. Homeslice has other branches in Marylebone and the City, too.

This neighbourhood Neapolitan pizza joint in Peckham has a second branch in Fitzrovia. Come for the house pizza — the 081 — an expertly pimped up margarita, with a paper-thin base and thick, airy crust, topped with a generous helping of pillowy discs of juicy DOP mozzarella di bufala. The parmigiana pizza is a little more exciting, made with silky aubergine that's so brilliantly smokey you might mistake it for meat. If you frequent London’s many pizza spots, you’ll know by now that the crust dip is having a moment. 081’s pesto dip is a special one, sweet, tangy and herby. 

Nestled on the edge of Old Spitalfields Market, Sud Italia is quietly, confidently, dishing out some of the best to-go pizzas in east London. One of the market's most buzzing food stalls, the Sud Italia van does a handful of Neapolitan classics, with the a few fancy versions for good measure (try the pumpkin and gorgonzola offering). Ingredients are imported direct from Italy, and only the freshest cherry tomatoes, buffala mozzarella and anchovies will do.

Four Hundred Rabbits in Nunhead is a restaurant that serves pizza and craft beer. So far, so Nunhead. The former is made with organic sourdough (thus chewy rather than brittle), while toppings are equal parts familiar and inventive – think chipotle-rolled goat’s cheese, rhubarb and piquillo peppers, or courgette with feta and pine-nut pesto. Also, snap up the banging specials, like the lamb mince, roasted cauliflower florets and pistachio dukkah. There are branches across south-east London, including West Norwood and Crystal Palace, too.

Bright blue colours set the tone in this Stokey pizzeria where the pizzas are gigantic and properly luscious. Vicoli di Napoli means ‘alleys of Naples’, which is where some say pizza was born – and the sisters who run this spot are doing a sterling job of keeping it alive and kicking. Mariana and margheritas are the house specials, but veer into the calzone and prosciutto e funghi section of the menu and you won’t be mad about it. Wash it down with some aperitivo. There’s even a Nutella pizza for pud – but we recommend the tasty tiramisu. 

Opened by Highbury locals Claudio Vescovo and Gianluca d’Angelo, Zia Lucia serves up an old-fashioned Italian family feast in a contemporary setting. Various 48-hour fermented doughs give the menu its USP: there’s a deliciously nutty wholemeal option, an impressive-looking vegetable charcoal one and even a gluten-free crust. Toppings are new classics (’nduja, aubergine, broccoli etc) and there’s also a vegan version involving butternut-squash cream. There are further branches across the capital, including Boxpark Wembley, Hammersmith, Stoke Newington, Balham and Chelsea.

Wood-fired sourdough pizzas with serious artisan credentials guarantee queues at Franco Manca – no wonder this cult-status chain has spread across London like a drizzle of chilli oil on your plate. Prices are rock bottom, the pizzas are served up super-quickly, and kids can watch the pizzaiolo doing ‘messy play’ in the open kitchen. The very first branch opened in Brixton in 2008, and at the start of 2024 they moved to a bigger, better and altogether shinier space on Atlantic Road. 

A trendy street-food stall gone permanent, this cool pizza joint comes with a moody lick of paint and a stylish marble bar – although it’s all about the blistered Neapolitan-style specialities that are pulled out of the oven. Our top pick from a range of inventive toppings is the version strewn with merguez sausage (from Flock & Herd across the road), red onion, shredded cavolo nero and fior di latte – a Peckham classic in the making. 

An impeccably hip drop-in selling seriously delicious pizzas by the slice up to 22" New York-style whoppers. The hours are long, portions are gigantic and the menu is downright wacky. Try a ‘Giorgio Moroder’ or a ‘Hot Mix 5’, while for the veggies there's a ‘Vegan Queen’, with artichoke hearts, green olives, red onion, sun-blush tomatoes and green sauce. The OG branch is over in Dalston. 

The first north London branch of this popular Italian chain, which was voted the fourth best artisan pizza in the world, Berberè can now be found in Kentish Town as well as in Clapham Common. Expect all the usual sourdough tricks as well as some more innnovative offerings. Their vegan offering comprises smashed falafel, red onions, black olives, fresh chilli and parsley. Don't forget to load up on crust dippers; spicy 'nduja and honey, aioli and garlic butter as well as basil and walnut pesto.

As an all-round restaurant specialising in southern Italian food, Mimmo La Bufala has a bias towards mozzarella (of course) and fish. The long list of 13" pizzas includes all the classics as well as seasonal variations such as tomato-free ‘bianche’. Mimmo’s signature version (named after the ebullient proprietor) is made in true southern Italian style, its thin base topped with juicy tomatoes, smoky provolone and melt-in-your-mouth buffalo mozzarella before being baked in a wood-fired oven.

Theo’s is similar to indie artisan setups such as Franco Manca, dishing up Neapolitan-style sourdough pizzas and very little else. But this joint has made itself the crown pie-prince of Camberwell, with crusts that are soft and chewy on top and crisp underneath. Additions include datterini tomatoes, chestnut mushrooms, anchovies and pork in various guises – and they come piled high. There is also a branch in Elephant & Castle. 

There are now branches across London, but Pizza Pilgrims opened its first bricks-and-mortar site on this busy Soho corner back in 2013 and its been busy ever since. You can see the kitchen and pizza oven through the ground-floor windows as the cooks wheel out soft, chewy offerings in the Neapolitan style, with thick bases and generous toppings. Go classic with ’nduja or go big with their signature eight (eight!) cheese pizza. Want to try something totally different? Order a 'carbonara', with roasted bacon, egg yolk and al dente spaghetti.

Crusts are traditionally the unloved stepchildren of the pizza world, fated to be abandoned, chewed with a grimace, or pimped into oblivion via some sort of crassly vulgar stuffing. It’s very bold of Waterloo-based Crust Bros to bill theirs as the active USP of their customisable pizzas, but they really are very nice, a great tangy chewy border that’s quite different from the almost paper-thin base. You would obviously be off your rocker to see them as the actual best bit of the pizza, but it would be equally eccentric to leave them uneaten at the end of your impressively hearty meal.

A stripped-back ‘pizza bar’ version of swanky Cecconi’s in Mayfair, this Soho spot feels shabby-chic rather than top-end elegant, but its pizzette and more sizeable wood-fired pizzas are decent contenders in a crowded marketplace. Try the spicy salami pizza, or a quattro stagioni with ham, mushrooms, artichockes, olives, all washed down with a Negroni Sbagliato or Aperol Spritz, which are dispensed from taps at the bar. 

The name translates as ‘brothers of Vesuvius’ – a reference to the fact that this Summerstown pizza joint was set up by some enterprising Neapolitan lads who wanted to recreate a slice of their home city in SW17. Sit by the oven, admire the craft of the pizzaiolo as he spins the dough and watch as the traditional Italian toppings are assembled to order – perhaps friarelli (‘turnip top’ winter greens), juicy sausage or tender artichoke hearts.