Best Takeout Pizza
Mamma Mia! Who Has Best Takeout Pizza in Coral Gables?
One of the few constants in life during the coronavirus shutdown has been takeout pizza. Except for the mask on the paisan behind the counter, the experience of picking up pizza was pretty much the same, a welcome and reassuring constant.
Picking the best, however, is a challenge. Pizza comes in such a wide variety – thin or thick crust, New York style, Chicago deep dish, Neapolitan, fresh or frozen, with or without toppings – that one person’s favorite is another person’s disappointment.
Nonetheless, we set out to sample every independent pizza parlor in the city and came up with this selection of the top nine places. Buon appetito!
Best Neopolitan Style Pizza (shown above)
Now in its second year, Terre del Sapore has expanded their menu from pizza to pasta and even osso buco. But what they still do best is their Neapolitan-style pizza, with a super thin crust and moist, melty cheese and tomato sauce. All of the ingredients, including the minimally processed flour they use, comes from Italy, and you can taste it. 234 Giralda Ave.786.870.5955
Best New York Style Pizza
As any native knows, New York style pizza has a thin, crispy crust that gets pliable toward the center, so you can fold it, with a generous spread of tomato sauce and shredded mozzarella cheese. That’s it. Then you sell it by the big, fat slice. If you want that here, go to Pomodoro, our version of a Brooklyn pizza dive. 2413 Galliano St. 305.461.0711.
Healthiest Pizza
Gables Juice Bar and Muscle Pizza
This bohemian vibe hangout for health-conscious folks (their logo is a muscular man holding a pizza aloft) is mostly known for its juices and healthy breakfasts and lunches (closes at 4 p.m.). But they make a great little $10 cheese pizza with whole wheat flower, flaxseed, quinoa, oatmeal and hemp protein. A nice veggie, too. 230 Almeria Ave. 305.529.9090
Best College Pizza
When you are serving a famished crowd of college kids, you had better deliver something satisfying. And that is just what Miami’s Best does with its “Special” Pizza, which comes loaded with ham, sausage, mushrooms, pepperoni, onion, green pepper. A meal in itself, with quality ingredients. 5833 Ponce de Leon Blvd. 305.666.5931.
Best One-Person Pizza
Here they serve Napoletana pizza, which means “soggy and soft,” says manager/partner Larry Mele, using only Italian San Marzano tomatoes and bufala mozzarella made from Italian water buffalo milk. They serve large and extra large, but their personal pizzas, cooked on a lava stone, are the sweet spot. 141 Aragon Ave. 786.409.6866.
Best Specialty Pizza
Normally we would avoid any mention of a national chain, but these guys have been holding steady on Miracle Mile for a couple of decades now. While we aren’t awed by their plain cheese pizza, CPK was among the first to offer pizza with exotic toppings – and their BBQ Chicken pizza still kicks butt. 300 Miracle Mile. 305.774.9940.
Best New Pizza Place
Merrick Pizza had yet to open when the coronavirus hit, but that didn’t stop them from firing up the oven and offering pizza for takeout. Their motto is “bringing you better pizza” and they have definitely raised the bar on quality. Their cheese pizza is thick and rich, and their gourmet pies are amazing. 1915 Ponce de Leon Blvd. 786.953.5693.
Best Bargain Pizza
This is not a pizza place, but they nonetheless make a pretty good pizza pie, with a nice tangy tomato sauce. What elevates it is the price. During happy hour, the normally $14.45, 12-inch peperoni and mushroom pizza goes for $7.23. That’s a tough one to beat even if they don’t use a wood-fired oven. 320 San Lorenzo Ave. 305.447.9273.
Best Non-Pizza Pizza
Okay, you can call this pizza, and we love the array of toppings offered, including eggs, artichokes, gorgonzola, and Canadian bacon (more than two dozen in all.) But let’s call it what it is: flatbread. You dress up a rectangular raft of bread with tomato sauce, cheese, and toppings, and run it under a heat lamp. 279 Miracle Mile. 786.618.5287
Sadly Missed
Joe’s Old School Pizza on Dixie Highway permanently closed last year, and both Forno and Lorenzo closed during the shutdown. Hopefully both will return.