The 12 Best Pizza Spots In Dallas 2024 - Dallas - The Infatuation (2024)

Dallas may be best known for its meat and Tex-Mex, but the pizza is under-appreciated. DFW doesn’t have its own recognizable style, so there’s a bit of everything at restaurants around town: nicely-blistered Neapolitan crusts, New York-style slices, chewy and charred New Haven pies, and even funkier creations, like an inspired star-shaped pie filled with ricotta. Here are 12 of our favorite spots for pizza (and seeing how much dairy a date can take).

THE SPOTS

Partenope is a pretty great Italian restaurant downtown where you’ll find the best pizza in Dallas. The Naples-born chef is arguably the city’s biggest name in pizza (and even won gold for his craft), and the Neapolitan pies come out with perfectly charred, airy crusts that let toppings shine. Go for the classic margherita with creamy, slightly tangy mozzarella that balances out the acidity from crushed tomatoes, or the Tridente doubled up with hot soppressata and Italian sausage. Dishes like zucchini fritters drizzled in honey and octopus on a cannellini spread with lemon zest are worth a visit on their own, but they also make great sidekicks to the nearly perfect pies.

This former laundromat is now the platonic ideal of a neighborhood pizza joint. Staff dole out cold Oak Cliff lagers and Italian wines while chatting with regulars who live down the block, picnic tables line the covered patio, and pizzas are named for nearby streets. The menu is divided into red and white pies, and it’s best to choose one from each category: We like the red-sauce Montclair with Italian sausage and caramelized fennel, and the texturally interesting white-sauce Clinton with lemon ricotta, calabrian chili crisp, and pistachios. If you’re still hungry, the meatball sandwich slathered in cheese and marinara makes a compelling dessert.

Neony’s owner used to run a pizzeria in Seoul, where he cut his teeth serving New York-style pies before setting up shop in Dallas. You’re here for strokes of genius like the bánh mì pizza that combines lemongrass pork with pickled vegetables and fresh herbs. Consider it an open-faced version of your favorite Vietnamese sandwich—just covered in mozzarella cheese. They have a few tables inside, but you won't be missing much if you get takeout or order delivery. The dough here is fermented for 72 hours and baked into chewy crusts, which hold up even after bouncing around the back seat.

This Los Angeles import serves up pies with perky dough that’s been fermented for 48 hours—or roughly the equivalent of a dozen Martin Scorsese movies. It’s baked into pies like the diavola with spicy salami, charred shallot, and walnut romesco, and the cacio e pepe, which turns the classic pasta into cheesy, peppery slices. But Pizzana takes its appetizers and drinks just as seriously as its pizzas. Start with a Negroni or a spritz, some wood-fired broccolini, and a little gem caesar with fried capers and pizza crust croutons before tearing into the main course.

Cane Rosso jumpstarted Dallas’s Neapolitan pizza scene when it opened in 2009 as a mobile wood-fired pizza oven. Since 2011, they’ve had a brick-and-mortar location in Deep Ellum, cranking out pies that expertly balance zesty hand-crushed tomatoes with creamy, fresh mozzarella. If it’s your first time, start with the eponymous Cane Rosso topped with Italian sausage, roasted peppers, and caramelized onions, or the Honey Bastard, a sweet and spicy number featuring hot soppressata, habanero honey, and bacon marmalade. Sit at the bar and watch pizzas bake at 900 degrees for 90 seconds, which is faster than we can get our friends to agree on which appetizers to order.

The team behind Cane Rosso also runs New York-style Zoli’s, an operation free from the precious rules and regulations of Neapolitan pizza. That translates to a charming place full of crispy slices, mozzarella sticks, and fun artwork (that is indeed a Star Wars-themed Last Supper painting on the wall). Don’t leave without eating a fully loaded El Supremo, or the spicy Johnny Bananas with vodka sauce, hot soppressata, and cherry and banana peppers—both have a nice crunch to their crusts. The sandwiches and pastas are better than they need to be, too, including a messy fried meatball parm that requires two hands and your full attention.

When your evening plans require pizza with a full bar, post up at Pie Tap. You’ll be joining the crowd of pregaming late twenty-something-year-olds at this Knox-Henderson spot that’s conveniently located near a bunch of bars for a night out. They have brews from Texas locals like Peticolas beers and carafes of pinot noir also pulled from a tap. Fill any remaining table space with garlic knots, lollipop chicken wings, and the very reliable margherita or pepperoni pizzas. They all make for a hearty stomach lining before the rest of a long evening cheersing to a bachelor or birthday girl. Now you’re ready to bar-hop your way down Henderson, at pubs like Old Monk or The Skellig.

Mister O1 serves “extraordinary pizzas,” by which they mean star-shaped beasts where the dough is pinched into ricotta cheese-filled points that are unlike anything else in town. These juiced-up creations are fun to look at and taste pretty good, using better quality ingredients than any ungodly experiment from Pizza Hut. Come for lunch and start your cheese-pulling with the Star Carlos topped with chorizo, avocado, and jalapeño sauce, or the Star Michele, featuring bright tomato sauce, zucchini, and roasted pepper puree. Just beware of ricotta-induced sleepiness.

Pizzas are best served with ice-cold martinis, and salty cheese and acidic tomato sauce taste better with a liquid lemon twist. That’s at least true at Poco Fiasco. The bustling bar is a great pick for Happy Hour, when beers are $3, slices are $4, and martinis are $9. They don’t skimp when it comes to their hefty pies, like the Texan topped with cheddar, beef brisket, barbecue sauce, and pickled red onion. If Happy Hour runs three rounds, get some more food like the calamari or meatballs.

Fortunate Son is a casual restaurant complete with a shady beer garden and New Haven-style pizza, a rarity in these parts. The thin, crispy crusts are made with sourdough and available as 12- or extra-large 18-inch pies (remember, when you pick them up, lift with your legs). Standouts include the white sauce clam pizza, a potato and pancetta banger, and the red sauce Meatzilla topped with every cured meat under the sun. Order them all and whatever the table next to you got while enjoying a crisp kölsch. It’s worth the drive to downtown Garland and a convenient location for people who live in East Dallas.

While some people focused on their bird watching hobby, an amateur baker opened the small but mighty Carina Pizzeria, channeling his love for Roman-style, thin-crust pizzas. Swing in for a bite after hauling shopping bags around Preston Center. Since it's a tiny space, you'll have to squeeze into the dining room for rolled sandwiches and crispy pizza crusts made from tangy sourdough (better yet, take your pies to go or get it delivered). We particularly love spending lunch with the Diva, a sweet and spicy red pie with pepperoni, jalapeños, and hot honey, or the Bella, a white pie with roast mushrooms, scallions, and truffle oil. Simple, but mighty.

Nobody will ever call Plano the Puglia of Texas, but Dough is serving the kind of food and wines you’ll find in Southern Italy. We’re talking Neapolitan pizzas, housemade burrata, and Italian varietals like falanghina and primitivo. The wood-burning oven and white tiled bar set the scene for a chill weeknight dinner or casual date, where you can share that aforementioned burrata and the Italian wedge salad before digging into the aptly named Pork Love pizza. It’s topped with four kinds of pork (housemade sausage, speck, soppressata, and pancetta), and the rich and salty meat is offset by bright San Marzano tomato sauce and fresh fior di latte cheese.