No matter what the pizza snobs say, you can find amazing pies anywhere in the U.S., from New York to Oklahoma all the way down to Florida and all the way up Washington State. But some pizza snobs are more well-traveled than others. They get to explore the whole wide world of pizza. And when they pronounce their verdict, the whole world listens.
That’s the case with 50 Top Pizza’s list of the world’s “best pizzerias” for 2023, released earlier this week. But, once again, the panel of respected Italian pizzaioli—dubbed “pizza inspectors”—couldn’t quite make up their minds. The top spot ended up being shared by two Italian pizza restaurants: 10 Diego Vitagliano Pizzeria, located—not surprisingly—in Naples, Italy, and I Masanielli di Francesco Martucci in Caserta, Italy.
Last year’s 50 Top Pizza list saw Martucci locked in a tie for No. 1 as well, but he shared the spot with New York pizzeria Una Pizza Napoletana, owned by Anthony Mangieri. In this year’s list, Una Pizza Napoletana ended up ranked second on the list.
Related: Italian pizza guide says this is the best pizzeria in the U.S.
10 by Diego Vitagliano also got the nod as the world’s best pizzeria earlier this year from Big 7 Travel.
Diego Vitagliano
In a statement, the curators said they held award ceremonies in cities like New York, Rome, Tokyo and Barcelona this year and “witnessed a continual rise in pizza quality.” The 2023 guide features more than 2,000 venues ranging from independent pizzerias to artisan pizza chains, all chosen by “our diligent inspectors who traveled the world, expanding our map of excellent pizza destinations.”
In June, 50 Top Pizza named Una Pizza Napoletana as the best pizzeria in the U.S., with Razza Pizza Artigianale in Jersey City taking the No. 2 spot and Ken’s Artisan Pizza in Portland, Oregon, finishing third.
“New York has been deemed one of the greatest cities in the world for pizza, and it is the city with the most pizzerias in the world, with more than 7,000 businesses which serve pizzas,” project curators Barbara Guerra, Luciano Pignataro and Albert Sapere said at the time. “The biggest news this year is the impressive improvement in quality demonstrated by the pizzerias from the city of Portland. California is the state with the most pizzerias.”
“The American pizza movement is very active right now, with a new generation of artisans who are ever more careful with the quality of their product and their ingredients,” they added. “It is a trend that has been particularly noticeable over the last year.”
Even so, Italian pizzerias dominated this year’s ranking of the best pizzerias worldwide. In fact, Una Pizza Napoletana was the only American pizzeria to crack the top 10. U.S. pizza shops ranked in the top 50 included Razza Pizza Artigianale (No. 11); Ken’s Artisan Pizza (No. 18); Tony’s Pizza Napoletana in San Francisco (No. 19); Pizzeria Bianco in Phoenix (No. 21); Ribalta in New York (No. 22); ‘0 Munaciello in Miami (No. 25); Jay’s Artisan Pizzeria in Kenmore, New York (No. 28); and Song’ E Napule in New York (No. 33).
American pizzerias that finished in the top 100 included Kesté in New York at No. 72 and La Leggenda Pizzeria in Miami at No. 73.
(TIE) 1. 10 Diego Vitagliano Pizzeria – Naples, Italy, and I Masanielli – Francesco Martucci – Caserta, Italy
2. Una Pizza Napoletana – New York, USA
3. Sartoria Panatieri – Barcelona, Spain
4. The Pizza Bar on 38th – Tokyo, Japan
5. I Tigli – San Bonifacio, Italy
6. Seu Pizza Illuminati – Rome, Italy
7. 50 Kalò – Naples, Italy
8. Bottega – Beijing, China
9. 180g Pizzeria Romana – Rome, Italy
10. I Masanielli – Sasà Martucci – Caserta, Italy
11. Razza Pizza Artigianale – Jersey City
12. Francesco & Salvatore Salvo – Naples, Italy
13. Bæst – Copenhagen, Denmark
14. 50 Kalò – London, England
15. Dry Milano – Milan, Italy
16. Cambia-Menti di Ciccio Vitiello – Caserta, Italy
17. Via Toledo Enopizzeria – Vienna, Austria
18. Ken’s Artisan Pizza – Portland
19. Tony’s Pizza Napoletana – San Francisco
20. La Notizia 94 – Naples, Italy
21. Pizzeria Bianco – Phoenix
22. Ribalta – New York
23. Pizzeria Peppe – Napoli Sta’ Ca’’ – Tokyo, Japan
24. Confine – Milan, Italy
25. 0′ Munaciello – Miami
26. Le Grotticelle – Caggiano, Italy
27. Carlo Sammarco Pizzeria 2.0 – Aversa, Italy
28. Jay’s Artisan Pizzeria – Kenmore
29. Pepe in Grani – Caiazzo, Italy
30. La Cascina dei Sapori – Rezzato, Italy
31. Apogeo – Pietrasanta, Italy
32. Pizza Zulù – Fürth, Germany
33. Song’ E Napule – New York
34. Denis – Milan, Italy
35. BOB Alchimia a Spicchi – Montepaone Lido, Italy
36. Allegrìo – Rome, Italy
37. Pizzeria Da Lioniello – Succivo, Italy
38. Ti Amo – Buenos Aires, Argentina
39. 400 Gradi – Lecce, Italy
40. Pupillo Pura Pizza – Frosinone, Italy
41. 48h Pizza e Gnocchi Bar – Melbourne, Australia
42. Fratelli Figurato – Madrid, Spain
43. Fiata by Salvatore Fiata – Hong Kong, China
44. Via Toledo Enopizzeria – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
45. Forza – Helsinki, Finland
46. Napoli on the Road – London, England
47. Dante’s Pizzeria Napoletana – Auckland, New Zealand
48. nNea – Amsterdam, The Netherlands
49. Pizza Massilia – Bangkok, Thailand
50. La Balmesina – Barcelona, Spain
