No meal is as versatile as pizza – it can cater to nearly any diet and taste and is easily made at home. Meat, cheese, sauce, vegetables, meat, seafood, cheese, meat – if you can dream it, your pizza can have it. Everyone has an opinion of where the best pizza in Brisbane can be found, so instead of simply adding our two cents to the definitive conversation, we decided to compile a list of the spots that do pizza exceptionally well. Check out the list below and then have yourself a pizza party!
Julius Pizzeria, South Brisbane: Fish Lane has steadily established itself as one of Brisbane’s best dining districts thanks to some terrific eat and drink spots and mainstay Julius Pizzeria doesn’t disappoint. Relax in an intimate atmosphere and sample of the best white- and red-based pizzas in town, washed down with an Aperol Spritz. Need a suggestion? Red-base pizza lovers will adore the salsiccia, featuring tomato, chilli, mozzarella, provolone, pork-and-fennel sausage and rocket. As for the bianche fans, try the tartufo with mozzarella, smoked bacon, portobello mushrooms, stracchino and truffle paste.
Beccofino, Teneriffe: The minds behind Julius Pizzeria are also responsible for iconic eatery Beccofino, which has been feeding Teneriffe locals for years. If you judge a pizza place on how its margherita pizza tastes, then prepare to be amazed by Beccofino’s offering. Beyond the classics, pizza lovers will love luxe offerings like the ‘nduja pizza with mozzarella, local tiger prawns, spicy salami paste, stracciatella and rocket.
Elementi, Paddington: In February 2021 Paddington welcomed a new locale to its midst – Elementi. Helmed by a crew boasting experience working at Julius, Beccofino and Maeve, Elementi was poised from the outset to be an incredible addition to the pizza scene. The venue’s pizza bar is where you’ll spy pizzaolo Stefano Spataro making 12 kinds of pizza – rossa, bianca and sfizio (translated to whim or fancy) – in and out of the ironbark-fuelled woodfired oven. Of particular note is the baciata – a dish boasting crispy flat focaccia filled with stracciatella, mortadella, pistachio and lemon dressing.
Etna, Fortitude Valley: Lauren Smith and Andrea Gatti made a splash in Brisbane’s Italian restaurant scene when they opened Rosmarino in 2021 and they’ve done it again with Etna, a high-end pizzeria located just around the corner on the Marshall Street side of the Stewart & Hemmant. Here the team is offering salivation-worthy options encompassing classic crowdpleasers, contemporary choices and ultra-luxe options. The Napoli-style pizza bases are made using a six-year-old sourdough starter, wholemeal flour and a 48-hour fermentation process. What results are pizzas that are nothing short of spectacular.
Scugnizzi, Brisbane City: While it might be the smallest of the venues listed here, Scugnizzi doesn’t skimp on taste, range or attitude. The Scugnizzi team cite’s Rome’s iconic and influential pizza-by-the-slice specialist Bonci Pizzarium as the inspirational foundation for its range, which boasts approximately seven kinds of square-cut tray pizzas, including the Salamina (mozarella, mild salami, olives and stracciatella), a truffle and pancetta pizza with provola and mushrooms, and the capricciosa (mozzarella, tomato, ham, artichokes and olives).
Ramona Trattoria, Coorparoo: While Ramona Trattoria’s menu features a host of Italian eats, head chef Ashley-Maree Kent’s pizzas are so good on their own that they deserve a spot here. Ramona’s pizza dough is naturally leavened and fermented for a minimum of 48 hours, with a blend of three flours creating a base unique to the restaurant. An impressive custom barrel-vault woodfired oven is employed to cook pizze topped with the likes of mortadella, pistachio and stracciatella, mushroom ragu with fior di latte, rocket and parmesan cream, and salame piccante with salsa di pomodoro, basil and olio piccante.
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La Lupa, West End: This pizza joint specialises in Roman-style pizza which, for the uninitiated, means that a different kind of slow-fermenting dough is employed to create a lighter and more easily digestible pizza. Seven red and six white pizzas are on offer, in addition to its signature long fermented focaccia-style lupacchiotto bites. Our pick of the list? The Pizzo Calabro, with its tomato base topped with spicy spreadable salami, hot salami and burrata, it’s simply irresistible.
Tartufo, Fortitude Valley: The iconic Italian city of Naples and the surrounding regions of Tuscany, Umbria and Abruzzo inspire this restaurant’s pizza menu. Tartufo prides itself on making true Neapolitan pizza with the best ingredients available. A must-try menu item is the signature Pizza Tartufo, which is loaded with tomato, fior di latte, prosciutto, porcini mushroom puree, cherry tomatoes, shaved parmesan, basil and extra virgin olive oil with pork sausage and truffle paste encased in the crust.
Prova Pizzeria, Stafford Heights: This Stafford Heights eatery boasts an authentic, imported Stefano Ferraro wood-fire pizza oven, and experienced hands in the kitchen. We’re talking a world-renowned pizzaiolo spinning the dough and creating some truly unique pizzas for you to sample. Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? Well, wait until to taste the offering. Unique options like Prova’s pistachio pizza (topped with pistachio cream, mozzarella, Italian sausage and more pistachios) is just one example of the team’s ingenuity.
Gemelli Italian, Fortitude Valley: James Street is not short on impressive Italian, but this coast-born concept just knows how to nail a pizza. Gemelli’s bespoke pizza oven is imported from Naples and is used to gently cook an assortment of crispy and delicious pizzas imbued with freshness, flavour and familial warmth. The salina pizza (black olives, Messina black anchovies, capers and a glistening glob of burrata mozzarella) with have mouths drooling – and that’s only one of several enticing options at your fingertips!
Little G, Woolloongabba: After four years of feeding Dutton Park locals from its cosy home on Gladstone Road, Little G picked up sticks and moved to Woolloongabba in 2020 – and trust us when we say it’s worth the follow to its new digs. The supreme slices on offer here include classics like margherita with prosciutto, as well as more complex options such as potato with Spanish goats cheese, Old Bay prawns with sweet tomatoes and jalapeno ranch, hot salami with pickled red onion and stracciatella, and wagyu cheeseburger pizza (yes please).
Toscano Bar & Kitchen, Brisbane City: Naples-style nosh is all the rage at Toscano, which pairs chic surroundings with a menu of eats just as seductive. The menu boasts five kinds of pizze to choose from, including the classic margherita, decadent tartufo (truffle, pancetta and rosemary potatoes) and vegetarian-friendly parmigiana (eggplant, pomodoro, stracciatella and parmigiano), as well as some jaw-dropping panouzzi. This item is a Neapolitan-style sandwich using pizza dough as the bread, which is then filled with the likes of Tamborine buffalo mozzarella, tomato and basil, San Daniele prosciutto and fior di latte, Italian sausage and scamorza cheese, and caciocavallo.
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Sasso Italiano, Woolloongabba: Swagger, style and a sensational menu – Sasso Italiano has got some of the essential characteristics of a great restaurant on lock. In addition to primo pastsa, awesome antipasti and a great range of mains, Sasso’s pizza menu is up there in terms of quality. The acciughe topped with white anchovies or the pancetta, potato and ‘nduja crowned calabria pizzas are our pick.
Antica Pizzeria, Wilston: Pizzantica’s roaming food truck has been a worthy inclusion on this list many times. Now that the team has opened its own flagship restaurant Antica, we can expect the crew to remain a fixture on this list for a while longer. The restaurant’s imported Pavesi Forni Modena pizza oven churns out some incredible Neapolitan-style pizzas, including vegan options and pizzas with a gluten-free base.
Colle Rosso, Red Hill: Craving an authentic pizza hit? This suburban stunner dishes out slices that will have you salivating. Colle Rosso serves up a wide selection of red- and white-base pizzas made using traditional methods and fresh, locally sourced toppings.
Range Brewing, Newstead: You might scoff at the notion that one of Brisbane’s best pizza spots is inside a brewery, but hear us out. The team at Range Brewing takes its slices seriously, so much so that its culinary arm – Jacopo’s Pizza – is well regarded by pizza purists across the city. Named in honour of Range’s original Roman-born chef, who gifted the team the original recipe for its 24-hour slow-rise sourdough pizzas, Jacopo’s serves a range of delicately thin, delightfully crispy and easy to digest ‘za’s, including classic marg and pepperoni pizzas, as well as more experimental options like the Bulgogi Pizza, with mozzarella cheese, bulgogi beef, onions, green capsicum and mushrooms.
NUG. General Store, Fortitude Valley: A dark-horse favourite for many, this cosy laneway eatery is a real gem for handmade pizza and pasta. The menu is always changing (giving you plenty of excuses to pop in), but in the past NUG. has been dishing up pizzas topped with potato, rosemary, garlic and pecorino, salami cotto and pistachio, and smoked pork and parsley sausage with Stilton cheese.
Spread, Camp Hill: You can never have too many neighbourhood pizza spots. Over at Spread, guests get the warm and welcoming atmosphere of a regular local and a menu of pizzas made from some exceptional smallgoods courtesy of the eatery’s daytime identity as the home of Say Cheese. Head chef Sergi Guasch has created a menu headlined by the likes of the Parma (a pomodoro-base pizza with mozzarella, prosciutto di Parma, rocket, cherry tomatoes, sharved parmigiano and stracciatella), the Salumi (mild salame, pancetta, pork-and-fennel sausage, chilli oil and mozzarella).
Sì Baby, Newport: Though a relative newcomer to the local food scene, Sì Baby has wasted little time cementing itself as a go-to for quality Italian in Moreton Bay. In addition to the killer pasta and antipasti, Sì Baby’s pizza menu is the goods. The Marana Forni oven pumps out Roman-style pizzas made from dough that’s been fermented for 48 hours, including pizzas topped with ‘nduja, hot salami and fior di latte, and the Burrata Montana with pancetta, anchovies and a shiny orb of creamy cheese in the centre.
Superfly Pizza, Woolloongabba: While we may have lost one of our city’s coolest little izakayas, Superfly’s renaissance as a pizza joint has gifted us some of Brisbane’s best slices. This cute community hub keeps it classic with six options done incredibly well – we call dibs on the pumpkin and honey.
Sugo IT, Bulimba: Want a truly memorable pizza experience? Head to this Oxford Street institution and sink your teeth into its vedura pizza with smoked sugo, grilled capsicum, black olive, smoked eggplant and basil, or its anatra pizza with confit duck, mozzarella, caramelised pear, parmesan and rocket. You won’t be disappointed.
Stone & Brew, Highgate Hill: Take a walk on the wild side at Stone & Brew, a killer spot that’s not afraid to experiment. The carefully crafted bases (that go through a 24-hour fermentation process) are topped with combos like blue-vein cheese and anchovies, oven-roasted lamb, chicken carbonara and wild mushrooms.
Honourable mentions: A list like this is bound to be divisive, but Brisbane is flush with primo pizza spots beyond what is featured on this list. Other top-notch pizzerias include Il Forno in Sandgate, Tocco Italiano in Chelmer, Nonna’s Nightmare in West End, Mr Badger’s in Woolloongabba, Casa Cibo in Chermside, Osteria Epoca in Yeronga, munja pizza in Wynnum, Corbett & Claude in The City and Everton Park, Il Posto and La Pinsa in Paddington, Popolo in South Bank, Italia Lane and Tinderbox in Fortitude Valley, Pizzeria 1760 in Yeronga, Italian Street Kitchen in West End and Newstead, Giallo in Carina, and Amalfi Pizzeria in Clayfield.
We’ve also put together a handy list of vegan-friendly pizzerias. To find out where to satiate your plant-based slice cravings, click here.