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Mark Boughton
The City's Most Beloved Pie | Belly Ham Pizza, City House
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Sam Angel
Most Soulful Pie | P.R.E.A.M., Slim & Husky's
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Nick Bumgardner
Best Sweet & Spicy | Sausage, Honey, Salabrese, Moto
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Sam Angel
Best Hot & Spicy | The Emmy, Emmy Squared
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Nick Bumgardner
Best Use of a Controversial Ingredient | Hawaiian Pizza, Pastaria
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Emily Dorio
Best Coal Fired | Nicky's Supreme, Nicky's Coal Fired
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Jen McDonald
Most Community-Minded Pie | Woodstock Pizza, Lockeland Table
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Sam Angel
Most Authentic (Certified) VPN | Margherita DOC, Porta Via
Full disclosure: The team at Nashville Lifestyles has been wanting to do a pizza feature for years. Literally.
But back in 2012, when we started the conversation, this town didn’t have a ton of pizza options. Fast-forward to 2018, and we can now call ourselves a serious pizza city. Lately, we’ve welcomed a flurry of new arrivals that are pumping out a range of different styles, including wood-fired, coal-fired, VPN certified, Brooklyn style, Chicago style, and even Detroit style. From long-tended sourdough starters, to house-cured salamis and sauces, Nashville’s pizza makers are tossing up their finest crusts yet. Now delivering: The city’s very best slices.
Best Dang Pie, Period
Clam Pizza, Folk ($20)
Yes, it’s a bold claim. But chef Phil Krajeck’s passion for pizza—how custom-milled flours, sea salt, water, and wild yeast can transform into a crisp yet chewy, sublimely flavored dough—has manifested into transcendent pies at Folk. And the most crave-able is topped with clams. Inspired by the famous clam pizza at Franny’s (R.I.P.) in Brooklyn, Krajeck first steams the bivalves in an herbed white wine bath. After scooping the succulent meat from the shells, he reduces, then strains, the aromatic liquid, and enhances it with cream. Spread across the dough, that rich sauce nestles the clams and amplifies their taste. Nine hundred degrees and 90 seconds later, dough, sauce and shellfish transform into the most delicious of bites. In springtime, when it’s available, Krajeck adds agretti, grown especially for him by Rocky Glade Farm. The succulent-like leaves of this salt-tolerant shrub impart a pleasing briny tang. Absent of that, he finishes the pizza with red chili flakes, flat leaf parsley, lemon, and shavings of bonito—a combination that brightens and deepens each umami-packed bite.
The City’s Most Beloved Pie
Belly Ham Pizza, City House ($17; add an egg for $3)
Chef Tandy Wilson recreates rustic Italian cuisine using Southern staples at City House. For the Belly Ham pizza, Wilson brines and roasts his pork bellies to create the ham. His team also makes the mozzarella in-house. The addition of the fresh farm egg, should you choose it, is made for shmearing over the melty, salty surface of the pie, and creates its own added layer of unforgettable sauce.
Most Soulful Pie
P.R.E.A.M., Slim & Husky’s (Slim 10-inch, $10; Husky 16-inch, $14)
The name of this dish stands for “pizza rules everything around me.” It also serves as this essential North Nashville restaurant’s unofficial motto. Topped with Slim & Husky’s proprietary cheese blend, their slammin’ white sauce, pepperoni, sausage, spinach, onions, and mushrooms, it’s become a beloved neighborhood favorite in the historic Buchanan Street Arts District, as well as at their new location in Antioch. Plus, it’s being prepared by hard-working employees, many who hail from the neighborhood, thanks to the dedication that owners Clinton Gray, Derrick Moore, and Emanuel Reed have put into building a business that both feeds, and serves, the communities right around them.
Best Use of the Controversial Ingredient
Hawaiian Pizza, Pastaria ($14.50)
Pineapple. Who knew the symbol of hospitality could be so divisive? Purists are adamant that its inclusion on pizza is sacrilegious. Aficionados swear by its spark of tropical sweetness, countered by savory pork. At Pastaria, chef Gerard Craft and team aim to please. For purists, they offer their Roman and Neapolitan inspired pies. For pineapple lovers, they ply their Hawaiian with plenty of the sweet fruit, along with house-made Canadian bacon, mozzarella, and a generous measure of sliced jalapeños, which jazz up the heat.
Best Coal Fired
Nicky’s Supreme, Nicky’s Coal Fired ($17)
Okay, yes, it’s true that Nicky’s is the only coal-fired pizza in town—but that just means chef Tony Galzin has set the bar high for anyone who hopes to join him. Unlike wood, coals are nearly smokeless and offer consistent heat. If you peek inside the left-hand chamber of Enrico, Galzin’s oven, all you’ll see is the deceptively faint glow of orange. The oven’s temperature hovers between 800 and 900 degrees, meaning that the pizzas are cooked through in just a minute or two. Our pick this time of year is the Nicky’s Supreme, since it features the restaurant’s chunky house-made fennel sausage, roasted onions, and the heat of a spicy chile sauce.
Best Vegetarian
Vegetariana, Bella Napoli ($15.95)
The Bella Napoli pizzaiolos make their dough with imported Caputo “00” flour and scatter a delectable array of veggies—eggplant, zucchini, peppers, broccolini—over a layer of mozzarella. The Vegetariana emerges from the blazing brick oven blistered and bubbly and utterly delicious. What makes it even better is the setting: Under a string of lights in the Edgehill Village courtyard, you can pretend you’re on a side street of Little Italy. And, it’s a breezy stroll to Legato Gelato for dessert.
Best Vegan
Hummus Pizza, Bella Nashville ($13)
The pies that come out of the piping hot wood oven at Bella, inside the Nashville Farmers’ Market, usually come out bubbling with cheese. But for those who choose vegan, they offer an option that’s just as tantalizing. Ladled with a layer of creamy hummus, the pie gets the fragrant addition of za’atar spices, plus a light crunch from toasted nuts, and a hit of green in the form of fresh mint. Tangy, salty, nutty—it hits all the right notes, vegan and otherwise.
Best Late-Night Slice
Pepperoni, Five Points Pizza East walk-up window ($3.75)
So, your big Saturday night has suddenly become a bleary Sunday morning: 2 a.m. and you are in dire need of sustenance. Ballast to the booze. What to do? Head to Five Points Pizza’s walk-up window. Order a slice of pepperoni, cut from a 20-inch pie, dropped on a paper plate. No substitutions, pal. No matter. That wide triangle has a pliable yeasty crust, tangy red sauce, bubbled mozzarella, and discs of piquant cured meat. Fold and bite into meaty-cheesy-greasy perfection. And you’re back.
fivepointspizza.com/east-nashville
Best Throwback to a Trend
3 Graces, Caffé Nonna (10-inch, $14; 12-inch, $16; 10-inch gluten-free, $15)
Caffé Nonna has been serving pizzas since they opened their doors in Sylvan Park nearly two decades ago. In 2012, they added a wood-fired oven to serve both the original restaurant, along with their next-door addition, Nonna’s Pizzeria and Wine Bar. With its tender crust, topped with olive oil, thin slices of prosciutto, pear, gorgonzola, arugula, and a light balsamic syrup finish, the 3 Graces gets such rave reviews from guests that chef-owner, Daniel Maggipinto, says, rest-assured, “it’s never leaving the menu.”
Most Community-Minded Pie
Woodstock Pizza, Lockeland Table ($15)
During their nightly Community Hour from 4 to 6 p.m., Lockeland Table puts out $6 snacks and a solid kids’ menu as a way to raise money for the PTO groups at two East Nashville public schools. Each school year, they’ve doled out up to $1,600 to the school, which goes directly towards teachers’ needs. Eating at Lockeland makes us feel good, even outside of Community Hour. The Woodstock, especially, adds to that appeal. A seasonally changing veggie pie, it usually comes loaded with flavorful and good-for-you ingredients, like local mushrooms, eye-opening taleggio, olives, and pickled peppers. Enjoy each bite and know you’re supporting a place that cares deeply about their community.
Best Delivery / Take-Out
Castrillo’s Pizza (pricing varies)
From both east side and west side locations, Castrillo’s Pizza pumps out customizable hand-tossed pies that are sturdy enough to endure a short ride to the front door, and plenty packed with flavor, ensuring that your first bite will be worth the wait. Their zippy, herb-flecked sauce stands up to a well-seasoned crust, and adds to whatever selection of toppings you choose. Sausage, onion, and pepper make a nice trio, but if you’re hankering for it all, you can’t go wrong with the meat-and-veggie-loaded Kitchen Sink.
Most Authentic (certified) VPN
Margherita DOC, Porta Via ($13.49)
Authentic Neapolitan pizza has to play by the rules of Italy—cooked in an infernally hot wood oven, using ingredients sourced from the Old Country, like mozzarella di bufala campana and tomatoes harvested in the shadow of Mt. Vesuvius. Porta Via is the only pizzeria in the state that has been officially certified as “verace pizza napoletana,” and their Margherita pizza is like a tiny piece of Italy on a plate.
Best Hot & Spicy
The Emmy, Emmy Squared ($15)
From Detroit to Nashville via New York City, chef Matt Hyland introduces his singular take on Motor City’s square pie, which defies conventional pizza thinking. Here’s what you’ve got: Thick, yeasty crust that bakes light; cheese layered on before the sauce; shreds of mozzarella pressed into the crust to form a toothsome crunch. Toppings follow: A piquant combination of red onion and banana peppers. And finally, a stripe of herbed ranch aioli, post-bake. You’ll get a side of the house red sauce for dunking—but The Emmy is a hot, spicy prize just as it is.
Best Sweet & Spicy
Sausage, Honey, Calabrese, Moto ($19)
Cozy up to the glammy, hexagon-tiled bar at Moto for a front row seat to all the pizza making action. Watch as crusts get stretched, topped with olive oil and toppings, then baked for four to five minutes in an oven that runs between 625 and 675 degrees, producing a slightly crisped crust on the bottom that doesn’t compromise the tender chewiness up top. Fennel-rich sausage, petite cippolini onions, spicy Calabrese peppers, and a drizzle of honey the minute the pie leaves the peel makes for a pretty spectacular balance of sweet and heat.
Best Version of Hot Chicken Pizza
The Kitty, Two Boots (14-inch, $18.95; 18-inch, $23.95)
Available just around the corner from the seemingly endless lines at Hattie B’s, The Kitty at Two Boots is the best hot chicken hack in town. Order a whole pizza, or just a slice, and you can sample those famous spicy chicken tenders on top of your pie without the wait. The Kitty completes the experience with jalapeños to add an extra kick, bleu cheese dressing to cool it off, and pickles on the side for some tang.
Most Loaded
Spicy Bianca, Milk & Honey ($17)
Their methods of making naturally leavened dough and firing pizzas in an 850-degree wood-fired oven follow the Neapolitan tradition. But the team at Milk & Honey forgoes tradition with its creative toppings, like their Spicy Bianca. They begin by loading this white pie with both fresh milk mozzarella and housemade ricotta. Then they add luscious hunks of their chipotle-braised beef short rib, caramelized garlic and onions, and Calabrian chiles. Indulgent but not overdone, Spicy Bianca is loaded with satisfaction.
Best Cheese Bomb
The Robber Baron, Night Train Pizza (10-inch, $10; 14-inch, $14)
For the sauce-averse, a cheese-laden pie offers a satiating alternative. Try the Robber Baron from Night Train in the Gulch for a version that smacks of a flattened out slice of cheese-y garlic bread. The mozzarella forms a base, but there are dabs of blue cheese tucked into the melted topping, and dollops of ricotta placed on top. All of that sits on a dense but puffy crust, bringing the whole pile of cheese towards simple, sauce-less perfection.
Great Gluten-Free
Funghi Pizza, Trattoria il Mulino ($22)
Even those with who can’t (or don’t, or won’t) do gluten can enjoy the crunch of a thin, yeasty crust and a savory pile of toppings. Down the stairs inside the swanky Trattoria il Mulino, the funghi on gluten free crust gets loaded with a chunky, slightly sweet tomato sauce, as well as a drizzle of truffle oil. The mushrooms themselves are chopped in big, bountiful bites and there’s a light dusting of truffle salt coating the whole shebang. Underneath it all, the crust, which is firm and crackly, serves up a solid alternative to a wheat-based dough.