This was published 9 years ago
Searching for the perfect pizza? Look no further: here are Melbourne's best
By Mary O’Brien
1. 400 GRADI
Johnny Di Francesco created a stir last year when he scooped the World Pizza Championships in Naples. His empire includes the cool 400 Gradi pizza joint in Brunswick, 90 Secondi in Collins Street, the latest 300-seater Crown outpost, and a new Essendon eatery is due to open later this year. You can't go past his award-winning margherita with light-as-a-feather dough, San Marzano tomato sauce and Sydney-made chewy buffalo mozzarella cooked to perfection in a wood-fired oven. If you must order something else, Di Francesco suggests the fried pizza, a real Neapolitan-style treat.
400 Gradi margheritaCredit:
Crown, Whiteman Street, Southbank; 99 Lygon Street, East Brunswick; Bourke St, city; 400gradi.com.au
2. SCOOZI
DOC pizza pomodoroCredit:
Pizza-maker Phillip Bruno has been kneading dough for 35 years. In this little Ascot Vale eatery, he fires up his passion and his hand-built, wood-fired oven. His secret is filtered water, Neapolitan flour, and DOP (protected designation of origin) Italian ingredients flown in every seven to 14 days. Scoozi is approved by Naples groups AVPN and Associazione Pizzaiuoli Napoletani. Try Bruno's salsicce pizza – the pork and wild fennel sausage and artisan NSW pancetta sizzle beautifully with San Marzano tomatoes and local fior di latte. The folded (portafoglio) pizza is all very Naples.
136 Union Road, Ascot Vale, 9370 0100, Scoozi.net
3. DOC
Tony Nicolini of DOC has been fighting the good pizza fight for 18 years. You can sample his crisp, thin pizza bases in Carlton, Mornington and Albert Park. Nicolini uses Italian artisan flour, San Marzano tomatoes and mozzarella. Three or four star ingredients are all you need, he says. The margherita is a benchmark, of course, but watch for the weekly specials, maybe scampi, salsa verde and mozzarella or classic pomodoro with yellow passata, heirloom tomatoes, anchovies, and Pantelleria caperberries. Authentic ingredients, lively staff, and moreish pizza – it's Italy without the airfare.
Scoozi salsicce pizzaCredit:
295 Drummond Street, Carlton, 9347 2998, docgroup.net
4. LA SVOLTA
Valerio Calabro and Giuseppe '"Pino'" Russo are sticklers for tradition so it's no wonder they've got official Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN) approval. Baysiders flocked to the original Hampton pitstop in 2010 and a Prahran eatery followed in 2012. Pizza bases here are super light, after 24 hours proofing, followed by a blast in a 400-degree wood-fired oven. Choose from pizza rosso (tomato) or bianco (garlic, olive oil). On a warm night it's hard to go past the lovely Linda (San Marzano tomatoes, bocconcini, cherry tomatoes, rocket, prosciutto and parmigiano). As the boys say, mangiare e felicita (eating is happiness).
450 Hampton Street, Hampton, 9521 8990, lasvolta.com.au
5. KAPRICA
Pietro Barbagallo, who has been making pizzas since he was 11, has gone back to basics in this simple family eatery in a converted garage. The magic is all in the dough, says the man who started the iconic I Carusi. Using Italian tomatoes and quality local ingredients, he offers just 10 choices. His margherita plus his pork fennel sausage and chilli pizzas fly out of the oven but for something special opt for the mushroom (asiago, enoki, swiss brown and oyster). The open kitchen is an added bonus.
19 Lincoln Square South, Carlton, 9347 1138, facebook.com/kapricacarlton