Your Guide To Finding The Best Pizza Places In New Haven

Relatively new in the New Haven pizza scene, Next Door offers great New Haven-style apizza that is innovative and affordable. Their classic 16-inch apizza with tomato sauce, pecorino romano, extra virgin olive oil, oregano, and fresh garlic cost a mere $14, which is much cheaper than the other pizza spots in the city. 

Beyond the apizzas, they have a long list of appetizers, non-pizza entrees, and sandwiches. If you want something other than apizza, try their famous clams casino pie, a white clam pie with a little bit of mootz and bacon, or mashed potato pie made with bacon, onion, mozzarella, and mashed potato. 

Like Next Door, BAR is also new in the pizza scene and does not boast the rich and lengthy history of its competitors, but the restaurant is still in this list of the best pizza in New Haven Ct because of its most unique pizzas. 

BAR's pizza crust is paper thin, achieved by stretching the dough and passing a rolling pin over it. It will probably be the thinnest one you will ever see, but that is not the most surprising. The crust maintains its structural integrity to hold the sauce, cheese, and toppings without becoming soggy. 

Whenever you ask the locals at New Haven to recommend the best pizza place in the area, chances are you will hear about Ernie’s Pizzeria. The family-run Westville neighborhood pizza institution has more than 50 years of history. 

This pizzeria is famous for two pies in particular, a broccoli rabe and Ernie's Special, topped with mootz, Italian sausage, and mushrooms. The mootz make it less New Haven-ish, but cheese on pizza is always welcome. Their pizzas are the closest to an Italian style in New Haven

Somewhere between all the great pizzerias are ones that are not famous outside of town or the neighborhood, but they make New Haven style that locals swear by. One6Three is one such place. They are an unmistakably new school in its approach to pizza toppings that is for the adventurous eaters.

One of their most famous pies is “The King,” which has a peanut butter base, smoked bacon, candied walnuts, and a drizzle of cranberry-honey jam post-bake. Along similar lines, they have “The Memphis,” a combination of pulled pork, BBQ sauce, and blueberries. 

It is a dangerous thing to add tweaks and twists to traditional and classic dishes like the New Haven apizza. The experiment might fail miserably, but not if you are Da Legna.

De Lagna was bold enough to recreate the apizza with a sourdough base, and lucky for De Legna, this worked. Now, they have a cult following who are addicted to the profound tangy flavor of the sourdough pizzas.

Their Honeypot apizza, made with San Marzano tomatoes, sliced hot pepper, onion, mootz, soppressata, and truffle honey, is a must-try. 

Modern Apizza always ranks in the top three in any best New Haven pizza list simply because they earned it. The pizzeria still specializes in its charred, chewy, yet crispy crust that it has been famous for since the mind 1903s.

Their menu has not changed much, and the only thing that has changed is the ingredients used. They use better products. Modern is perhaps synonymous with its “Italian bomb,” a pie loaded with bacon, sausage, pepperoni, mushroom, onion, pepper and garlic.

Opened in 1925, Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana has cemented its status in the New Haven pizza scene, beckoning patrons near and far to try one of the original tomato apizza. The menu at this pizzeria is extensive, with a blend of classic favorites, innovative creations, and well-loved specialties. It was once considered one of the best pizza places in the US.

Among their specialties is their famous original white clam pie featuring clams, fresh garlic, olive oil, parsley, romano cheese, and intensely smoked bacon. Hundreds of imitators have attempted to recreate this famous pie, but none come close to the original. 

Sally’s Apizza is the final pizzeria that completes the Holy Trinity of the New Haven pizza world, including Frank Pepe's Pizzeria Napoletana and Modern Apizza. They keep it classic with traditional New Haven apizza style. 

Most critics say their tomato pie reigns supreme in New Haven thanks partly to their house-made tomato sauce layered on an evenly crispy and charred-edged pizza. But beyond the tomato pies, there are fan favorites like the roasted eggplant pie and Firebird with roasted chicken, diced sweet and hot bell peppers, and onions. 

Tucked away in a residential area of New Haven, Zuppadi’s Apizza is a neighborhood pizzeria that attracts the neighboring locals. You will not see the mobs of pizzaphiles who flock to the heavyweights. They serve traditional thin and crispy New Haven-style apizza with a puffy circumference that demands a good chew. 

They offer all kinds of pizza, but if you must, go for their house-made fennel sausages strewn on their tomato pie. Their clam pizza also should not be ignored. Fresh, sweet clams mingle with parsley, dried herbs, and garlic on a chewy, thick-crust pizza.

Located in the same street as powerhouses, Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana and Sally’s Apizza is Zeneli Pizzeria. The pizzeria is run by Gazmir Zeneli and his three brothers, who grew up in Naples, Italy. The Zenelis honed their skills and love for Italian food and opened Zeneli Pizzeria in 2021.

The restaurant serves Naples-style pizza, a simple wheat dough with fresh basil and mozzarella, olive oil, and tomatoes. Other than the pizzas, make sure you order the calzone, meatballs, and the cacio-e-Pepe. You will not regret it.

You will not find New Haven-style apizza at Zois. You go there instead for Greek-style pizza, the kind that is proofed and cooked in a shallow metal pan rather than baked on the floor of the pizza oven. This results in a much thicker crust than that of Italian pizzas. 

Apart from their unique pizzas, they offer freshly made salads, appetizers, grinders, calzones, and much more. They also have options for those with gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan diets, like cauliflower crust and vegan sausage. 

Often overlooked in the New Haven Connecticut famed pizza scene is Roseland Apizza, located in Derby. They serve the quintessential New Haven thin-crust tomato pie that is not as good as Pepe’s or Sally’s but certainly comes close. 

Other than their tomato pies, they are known for their white sauce and seafood options like the white clam pie (freshly shucked whole clams, bacon, mozzarella, fresh garlic, and basil) and Jumbo Shrimp Casino with chopped onion, peppers, and garlic. 

Aniello's Pizza and Italian Restaurant is known for its excellent Italian cuisine. The locals rave about their Philly cheesesteak, the Sicilian pizza, and the Primavera Pizza, Red, which they claim might be the best they have ever tried. 

Apart from their pizza, the restaurant has great stuffed breads, fried mozzarella, and potato croquettes. Everything is reasonably priced, so whether you are dining in or taking out, Aniello's offers quality food.

Opened in 1935, Colony Grill has been serving apizzas with their signature “hot oil” topping, a spicy, flavorful, pepper-infused creation that can be ordered with any other combination of toppings for almost 80 years. 

Critics claim a trip to Colony Grill is wasted if you are not going to try their famous hot oil pizza. The oil’s spiciness infuses the crust, cheese, and toppings and adds a spicy kick and a unique aroma to their apizzas.

Everyone has their favorite apizza place in New Haven, and it may or may not be one of the New Haven heavyweights. But if you are looking for some of the best apizza in Milford, Jimmy’s Apizza will not disappoint.

They serve their apizza exactly like they are supposed to be: charred paper-thin crust with a good sauce and pizza ratio. Some of their famous items include the caesar salad pizza, the Hawaiian, and the buffalo chicken pizza.