Naples takes pizza more seriously than most cities take their cathedrals. The craft of the Neapolitan pizzaiuolo was added to UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage in 2017, and the classic Neapolitan pizza has an EU protected-specialty designation that dictates the dough, the temperature and the shape. In practice this means one thing for a visitor: it is very hard to eat badly here, and worth knowing where the differences actually lie.
These three cover the range, the oldest, the purest and the most modern.
1. Antica Pizzeria Port'Alba: the oldest
Port'Alba traces its origins to 1738, when it sold pizza from a street stall to passers-by, and became a sit-down pizzeria a few decades later. That makes it, by most accounts, the oldest pizzeria in the world. It sits just off Piazza Dante, under the arch of the same name, on a street lined with second-hand bookshops.
Come here for the setting and the sense of continuity rather than because it will be the single best pizza of your trip. The rooms are old, the wood oven is in plain view, and the menu is longer than a purist would like.
2. L'Antica Pizzeria da Michele: the purist
Da Michele has been on Via Cesare Sersale since 1870 and built its reputation on refusing to do very much. For most of its history the menu was two pizzas: marinara, tomato, garlic, oregano, oil, no cheese, and margherita. That constraint is the point. When you only make two things, they are very good.
There are no reservations. You take a numbered ticket from the man at the door and wait on the street, sometimes for an hour. The pizza arrives wider than the plate, soupy in the middle, and costs a fraction of what the same thing costs anywhere north of Rome. Eat it with a knife and fork or fold it into quarters; both are normal.
Go at an odd hour, half past eleven in the morning, or three in the afternoon, and the wait shrinks dramatically.
3. 50 Kalò: the modern one
Over in Piazza Sannazaro, away from the historic centre, 50 Kalò is where the contemporary Neapolitan school shows what it can do. The dough is highly hydrated and given a long rise, which produces a lighter, airier crust than the traditional version, and the toppings use named regional producers, buffalo mozzarella, Piennolo tomatoes from the slopes of Vesuvius, particular oils.
It is more expensive than the historic places and worth it if you want to taste what has changed. The name is old Neapolitan dialect for good dough.
Also worth your time
Starita a Materdei and Di Matteo on Via dei Tribunali both do pizza fritta, fried pizza, filled and sealed like a calzone, which is the street food version and, for many Neapolitans, the more emotional one. And anywhere in the centre you can buy a pizza a portafoglio: a small margherita folded into quarters, wrapped in paper, eaten walking. It costs almost nothing and it is the most Neapolitan thing you can do.
How to order without floundering
A margherita is the default and the right first order. Ask for a marinara if you want to taste the dough without cheese getting in the way. Beer or Coca-Cola are more usual than wine. Nobody shares a pizza, each person orders their own, and they arrive when they arrive.
Do not ask for pineapple. You will not be thrown out, but you will be thought about.
Walk it off with a game
Naples is best eaten in stages with walking in between, and a city game gives that walking a shape. You explore in small teams with your phone, solving puzzles attached to real streets, courtyards and churches, and end up in parts of the centre you would not have found alone. No guide, no fixed start time, and you stop for the next pizza whenever you want.
It works for friends, families and company outings and larger groups. The how it works page explains the format step by step.
Frequently asked questions
Which is the best pizzeria in Naples?
There is no single answer, and locals argue about it constantly. Da Michele for the classic, 50 Kalò for the modern style, Port'Alba for the history.
Do you need to book?
The historic places generally do not take bookings, you queue. The newer restaurants often do. Going early or late is the reliable trick.
What makes Neapolitan pizza different?
A soft, high-hydration dough, a very hot wood-fired oven, a short bake, and a soft centre that does not hold its shape. It is meant to be floppy.
How much does a pizza cost?
Less than almost anywhere else in Europe at the historic pizzerias, more at the modern ones. Check current menus, since prices change.
What is pizza fritta?
A filled, sealed pizza that is deep-fried rather than baked. It is street food, it is enormous, and it predates the tourist version of Naples entirely.
Is one pizza enough for two people?
No. Order one each, they are wide but thin, and sharing is not really done here.
Go hungry
The best plan in Naples is a short walk, a pizza, another walk. See all the cities where we run games, read about our routes further north in Quests in Rome, or get in touch if you are planning something for a group.
