The Best Pizza In Naples | Best Of The Best

Welcome to Naples. Harry Kersh: Hi guys, I'm Harry. Claudia Romeo: And this is Claudia. And today we are in Naples, Italy, in the birthplace of

pizza

, to find out which has the

best

in the city. Harry: So there are over 3,000 pizzerias here in Naples and

pizza

is a big part of the culture. We've used TripAdvisor, YouTube and social media to narrow it down to the top four. Claudia: We also spoke with a local expert who has eaten hundreds of pizzas in her life. And she will give us her opinion on what an authentic Neapolitan pizza is.

Antonio Fucito: So Neapolitan pizza is a kind of ritual. We can't wait to eat the next pizza. And we dream about that thought all the time. A typical and classic margarita is made with tomato sauce, fior di latte cheese, a little basil and you can also add a little pecorino cheese, if you like a richer flavor. Harry: It's very hot now. It's very early, but I really want to eat pizza. Should we go? Claudia: Yes, let's go. Our first stop is at Gino e Toto Sorbillo, which is located in the historic city center of Naples. Antonio: Sorbillo, perhaps, is the most social pizzeria in Italy and in the world because the owner, Gino Sorbillo, is well known throughout the world.

He likes to experiment with organic flour and try to further enhance the ingredients and the atmosphere in the center of Naples. Claudia: We met up with Gino Sorbillo in his kitchen to show us how he makes his version of the perfect margherita pizza. Harry: This is a Sorbillo pizza. What do you think, Claudia? Claudia: Well, it looks amazing. I mean, look at all the colors here. I love the fact that the mozzarella is sprinkled throughout and mixed with the tomato sauce. Do you know the trick of bending the tip? Harry: Interesting, okay. Claudia: I've never really believed in that, but this makes it seem like... oh, look at the juices coming out.

That's all. Harry: Cheers! Claudia: Greetings! Just biting into that basil leaf, it's so refreshing. I love how it's all one flavor. They all mix together. So heavenly. Harry: Yes, they really do. I got a lot of tomato, I mean, that kind of acidity, the sweetness of the tomato is really good. Claudia: The pizza itself is being built, from crust to tip. So you find that the crust is thicker and then of course there is this juice. But it's still very soft on the inside, crispy on the outside, and then when you get to the tip, it's like all the flavors come together and click at the same time.

And you just achieve that perfection. Harry: Next, we headed to Starita, a pizzeria run by four generations of the Starita family, who made pizza famous for Pope John Paul II in 2000. Antonio: Starita is another historic place. Offers many, many different types of pizza. Even the shapes, they have horn pizza, fried pizza with horns, it's very nice to try it. And the owner, Don Antonio, is a marinara master. Harry: It looks like there might be a little more cheese than we had at Sorbillo. It is, or at least it is as if it pulled a little more.

The crust looks amazing. The crust is a little more pronounced on this pizza. Claudia: I think this one looks a little more uniform, like all the colors blend together perfectly. The tomato sauce looks brighter, it just looks a little redder. Wow. That tomato sauce is really kicking in. Harry: Mm-hmm, that hits you. So, as we mentioned at the beginning, this dough has a very nice color. It has that kind of leopard spot, which, again, that's all flavor because it comes directly from the oven, directly from the wood and goes directly to the pizza. So maybe a little chewier and denser than the one we had before.

Claudia: I think the pizza ingredients themselves are much richer. Aside from the tomato, the mozzarella has more volume, so I think you need a stronger base to hold it, and also, did you notice that with this one we didn't turn, Didn't you turn the tip? There was no need for it. I mean, there was still a lot of juice coming out, a little bit of oil, a few drops, so I quite like that, so I appreciate it. Now we leave the city center to visit Pizzaria La Notizia. Antonio: La Notizia is far from the center, but it is a nice place because the owner, Enzo Coccia, is a kind of pizza bible.

He knows everything about pizza and has a type of pizza that tends to have higher quality ingredients, so the price is higher than other places, but it's worth it. Welcome to Naples. Harry: On this one, the crust looks much more evenly golden than on previous ones, whereas in the past it was a little pale in some spots and then quite charred in others. It's more of a uniform golden brown color, which is interesting. So one thing they do here, similar to what they were doing at Starita, is add a little pecorino cheese to the pizza, which for purists might be a little controversial, but I'm interested to see if it's a little bit, adds another layer to the classic margarita.

Claudia: Yes, I have my doubts because I am not a big fan of grated cheese and pizza, especially since it already has mozzarella, which for me is like cheese. So, well, let's see. You don't judge a book by its cover, let's try it. Yes, you actually get quite a bit of pecorino. Harry: I quite like it. Do you like it? Claudia: Yeah, it's not that bad, I had it with a lot of my basil leaf on my slice, and they blended together pretty well, like the basil and pecorino. Harry: Yeah, I was going to say it's a lot spicier compared to just the mozzarella, which can mix in a little bit with the sauce and stuff, so you actually get more of a cheese flavor.

Claudia: Yes, the first bite definitely has cheese. What do you think of the crust? Harry: I think it's good. It's chewier than, say, Sorbillo, but I quite like it, it's chewy and, again, it's helpful because it holds things up better if it has a little more strength. Claudia: It's quite interesting because, I don't know, if you look, this one has, it's quite similar in terms of how it looks like Sorbillo's, but then the texture of it is quite, like, Just another game. It's much more uniform and has a stronger bite, which is definitely a little tougher, I would say.

Harry: Next, we head to our last stop. Antica Pizzeria Da Michele. He is known for his huge pizzas and rose to fame when he appeared in "Eat Pray Love," starring Julia Roberts. Antonio: La Michele, of course, is very famous for the movie "Eat Pray Love", but also for her style. In Italian it is called "a ruota di carro". It's like cart wheels. It doesn't mean anything in English, but it means it's so big that it's bigger than the plate behind the pizza. Harry: This might be the nicest pizza we've had today. I think in terms of, they really have the really perfect kind of leopard spots on the crust.

It's a beautiful golden brown color, then you have a lot of these charred spots. The cheese distribution seems pretty good and you also have the basil. Everything seems very perfect. Claudia: Yes, that's true, and I also like the fact that you can see the tomato sauce fading into the crust here and turning an orange hue. Yes I agree. You know, if you want an Insta photo, this is your pizza. Are you channeling your inner Julia Roberts? What relationship do you have with this pizza right now? Harry: I'm like in a committed relationship with this pizza. We are thinking about buying a house together.

Claudia: Yes, yes, I like this a lot. Harry: I was also interested to know that they don't use olive oil here, but soybean oil. You get the kind of texture that we're used to, but I think I can definitely taste the mozzarella a little bit more, I think, and the tomato too, so I think it's a really good idea. Claudia: Yeah, definitely, there wasn't any oil in the bite I just took, it was actually just all the juices from the mozzarella and tomato. I couldn't really taste the oil. Harry: Yeah, I think the crust is definitely not as doughy as the one we had at La Natizia.

I had to put the lid back on to make sure it doesn't crumble too much, but it's okay. It really is, it's less about the crust, more about the toppings and, for example, the freshness of the tomato. Claudia: Now it's time to decide which pizza is the

best

of the best. So, here we are, in front of Mount Vesuvius, which is the iconic volcano of Naples, and it's time to choose our winner. Harry: We had some amazing pizzas today and choosing a winner will be very difficult, but I'm pretty confident in my decision, so I think we should see what we choose.

One two three. It's okay. Claudia: Oh yeah, I see why you go for that one. Harry: OK, we have a division. So let's see if one of us can convince the other to accept. So why did you like Starita so much? Claudia: Well, the reason I like Starita was because Don Antonio was really taking the vibe to the next level. He was such a likable character, and he's in our top four and he's really making an out-of-this-world (chef's kiss) product. And also, yeah, I also liked the fact that he put olive oil on top, which is something Da Michele doesn't have.

Harry: So, you make some very good points. I chose Da Michele because he had everything you would expect from a traditional Neapolitan pizzeria. The atmosphere there was great too, it was very traditional, had the type of tiled floors and walls. It still looked the same as when Julia Roberts had a relationship with her pizza in "Eat Pray Love," so I think, if you're a tourist coming to Naples and looking for a Neapolitan pizza, I think that would give you maybe the best tourist experience . Claudia: Wouldn't you say that maybe Da Michele was what Starita is now like 20 years ago?

You know, when the owners were still there making the pizza, you know, you'd walk in and you'd be greeted by the old guy who was very passionate about his job and then they'd show you around, you know? For me, that's very, very important, to have not only the product, but also the person who makes it, who likes it, loves it very much, and is still there looking at it. after tradition. Harry: I guess I'll have to agree with you. I think if you want a really authentic experience, Starita is the place to go, simply because Don Antonio loved what he did.

It really showed, and the pizza had olive oil, which is apparently a deal breaker for Claudia. Claudia: Yes, without olive oil there is no party.