Best-pizzeria lists have proliferated online in recent years, but a couple of them matter the most. 50 Top Pizza’s annual ranking (the next one comes on June 25) reflects pizza-making experts’ opinions and confers the kind of prestige that most operators covet. But Yelp’s top 100 list tells us what the everyday customer thinks—and, of course, that’s every pizzeria’s bread-and-butter, so to speak.
For 2024, Yelp crowned Pequod’s Pizzeria, a classic pan-pizza joint in Chicago, as No. 1 in its annual Top 100 Pizza Spots list, based on the opinions of what the crowd-review site calls its Yelp Elites.
The ranking includes Bestia in Los Angeles at No. 2; the legendary Lombardi’s Pizza in New York City at No. 3; Mama D’s Italian Kitchen in Newport Beach at No. 4; and Base Camp Pizza Co. in South Lake Tahoe, California, in the No. 5 spot.
Rounding out the top 10:
No. 6: Secret Pizza, Las Vegas
No. 7: Prince Street Pizza, New York City
No. 8: Olio e Più, New York City
No. 9: Monkeypad Kitchen by Merriman, Kapolei, Oahu, Hawaii
No. 10: CUCINA urbana, San Diego
Pequod’s Pizzeria took the No. 1 spot away from last year’s top-ranked pizzeria, Sapori Di 786 Degrees, owned by U.S. Pizza Team member Ali Haider in Pasadena. In 2022, Cheese Board Collective, an employee-owned joint Berkeley, California, claimed the top spot.
Yelp noted that Pequod’s has been in the public eye for two years now, with a little help from a certain hit TV show beloved by restaurateurs and restaurant employees around the country. “When a pizza appears on 2 seasons of TV’s chef-focused The Bear, you know it must be something special,” the Yelp report states. “Pequod’s legendary caramelized-crust pies may have gotten Hollywood’s attention, but aficionados are busy debating whether they qualify as traditional Chi-town deep dish.”
But Sean Asbra, general manager of Pequod’s, told Yelp he isn’t worried about that minor controversy. “We call it pan pizza, but, really, it’s just our pizza: a unique take on traditional Chicago pizza,” he said. “It’s thick, with a soft bready center, a crispy bottom and a caramelized cheese crust around the edge.”
At Bestia, the dough ferments for 72 hours to achieve a flavor that’s “sweet and slightly sour,” Executive Chef Ori Menashe said. “It creates a very tender and crispy texture.”
At No. 3, Lombardi’s, founded in 1905, is by far the oldest pizza shop on Yelp’s new list. One Yelp Elite praised Lombardi’s Meatball & Ricotta pizza for its “giant globs of creamy ricotta” and singled out the Rustic Double Pepperoni for being “unique, very crispy [and] full of beautiful flavors.”
Fans of No. 4 Mama D’s said its Neapolitan-style thin-crust pies are “good enough to sell at a train station in Roma. And speaking for No. 5 Base Camp Pizza Co., founder and CEO Ray Villaman described the loving care that goes into every thin-crust pizza. “We spend a significant amount of effort and time preparing fresh, high-quality ingredients that top our pizzas.” says Ray, a 20-year restaurant veteran who opened the spot with long-time friend Ted Kennedy. “They’re cooked and seasoned, then cooked again on the pizzas, so there’s a lot of flavor packed in.”
Rounding out the top 20 were:
No. 11: Home Slice Pizza, Austin, Texas
No. 12: Serious Pie Downtown, Seattle
No. 13: Bronx Pizza, San Diego
No. 14: il Canale, Washington, D.C.
No. 15: Golden Boy Pizza, San Francisco
No. 16: Di Fara Pizza, Brooklyn
No. 17: Piece Brewery and Pizzeria, Chicago
No. 18: Maso of Echo Park, Los Angeles
No. 19: Hideaway House, Sedona, Arizona
No. 20: Cheese Board Pizza, Berkeley, California
Click here to view the full list of Yelp’s top 100 pizzerias in the U.S. for 2024.
