Culture / Foodie Events

Houston’s Pizza Guide: These Top Choices Prove Jay-Z is Wrong to Diss the Bayou City’s Pizza Game

BY Faith Nguyen // 10.28.15

In a recent appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Jay Z lightheartedly joked about Beyonce and her unconventional pizza choices. “She’s from Houston,” the rapper says. “They don’t have pizza there.”

Sorry, Jay Z, but we have to disagree. Houston is brimming with pizzas of almost every kind. Be it thin crust or deep dish, Italian-style or even Indian fusion, the Bayou City has plenty of pizza, and we’ve put together a list of some of our favorite parlors that serve a  good slice.

Barry’s Pizza
6003 Richmond Ave., Houston 77057
Barry’s opened in 1983 and now occupies a cabin-like building made of reclaimed lumber. The restaurant offers three different varieties of pizza — hand-tossed, deep dish and a gluten-free option. The cheese is Barry’s secret recipe, and everything is made fresh daily.

Bombay Pizza Co.
914 Main St., Houston 77002; 636 Highway 6, Sugar Land 77478
Featured on the Food Network’s Best Thing I Ever Ate, this unique restaurant serves wafer-thin slices of pizza that are a fusion of Italian tradition and Indian herbs and spices. Order the Gateway of India; It’s topped with crab meat, tandoori chicken, provolone, mozzarella and artichoke hearts, all assembled on a base of cilantro-mint chutney.

Bollo Woodfired Pizza
2202 W. Alabama St., Houston 77098
Ray Salti and his team, led by general manager Ernesto Cano, bring to the table Neapolitan-style pizza cooked in a 5,000-pound oven imported from Napoli. Bollo offers two different types of sauces, bianco or rosse (white or red), and you can create your own pie or pick one from the preselected menu. They also offer a great happy-hour deal: The pizza of the day served with a pitcher of Karbach beer or a bottle of Cano’s choice of wine, all for $19 (available before 7 pm and after 9 pm).

Brother’s Pizzeria
1029 Highway 6, North Houston 77079; 3820 N. Shepherd Dr., Houston 77018
We’ll admit it: It’s hard to find a slice of New York-style pizza that’s as authentic as the Big Apple. But here in Houston, Brother’s is getting it right. Brother’s offers a classic array of pizzas that are worth your time. Give the buffalo wings a try as well.

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Collina’s Italian Café
502 W. 19th St., Houston 77008; 3835 Richmond Ave., Houston 77027; 8800 Katy Freeway, Houston 77024
There are three great things about Collina’s: It’s family-friendly, it has a very fine pizza, and BYOB is only $2 per diner. Our go-to dish here is the Mona Lisa à la Lisa. It’s a pizza topped with spinach, onions feta cheese, mushrooms, sausage, pepperoni, roma tomatoes and jalapeños. We also recommend the calzones.

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District 7 is a hidden gem in Midtown. (Photo courtesy District 7 Pizzeria’s Facebook page)

District 7 Pizzeria
2117 Chenevert St., Houston 77003
Located in Midtown, District 7 Pizzeria is a subsidiary of District 7 Grill. Here you can order a pizza with sauces such as pesto, barbecue, aioli or classic tomato. This place is well worth a visit.

Dolce Vita
500 Westheimer Road, Houston 77006
Dolce Vita comes from renowned chef Marco Wiles, who also owns Vinoteca Poscol and Da Marco. Dolce Vita serves authentic Neapolitan-style pizza cooked in a wood-burning oven. The kitchen here also makes excellent pasta. Our favorite dish is the Vongole Pizza, topped with clams, garlic, cherry tomatoes and mozzarella.

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Frank’s is open late on the weekends for your cravings. (Photo courtesy Frank’s Pizza)

Frank’s Pizza
417 Travis St., Houston 77002
Frank’s reminds us of the archetypal city pizza joint: neon signs, painted green walls, dim lighting and exposed brick. The shop is located in downtown’s Historic District, and it’s open until 3 am on weekends for night owls.

Grimaldi’s Pizzeria
16535 Southwest Freeway, Sugar Land 77479; 2643 Commercial Center Blvd., Katy 77494; 20 Waterway Ave., The Woodlands 77380
Grimaldi’s is a chain based in the New York area, and they’ve been making some of the best pizza in America for 100 years. (Frank Sinatra liked it so much that he had it flown to him). Grimaldi’s dough is a secret recipe, and the pies are cooked in coal-fired brick ovens. The crust is to die for.

Luigi’s Pizzeria
3700 Almeda Road, Houston 77004; 4505 Bissonnet St., Bellaire 77401
This family-owned establishment serves delicious, simple pizza for a very good price. Try the margherita pizza followed by a blood-orange gelato for dessert.

Luna Pizzeria
3435 Kirby Dr., Houston 77098
Luna is a great place to visit with family and friends. Tables here hold fun brain-teaser puzzles, playing card, and Cards Against Humanity (a grown-up party game) to entertain you while you wait for your pizza. This Barnaby’s subsidiary brings fresh ingredients to the table, making both the pizza and the ambience things you don’t want to miss.

Pink’s Pizza
1403 Heights Blvd., Houston 77008; 4701 Calhoun Road, Houston 77004; 710 W. Gray St., Houston 77007; 1009 Moy St., Houston 77007; 2726 Bissonnet St., Houston 77005; 3404 N. Shepherd Dr., Houston 77018; 5225 Bellaire Blvd., Bellaire 77401
Pink’s Pizza is a Houston classic, and it seems as if there’s one on every corner. Order by the giant slice or get the Double Down, a pizza covered with Alfredo sauce, rosemary chicken, tomatoes, bacon, mozzarella and roasted garlic.

Pi Pizza Truck
This isn’t your average pizza truck. Pi Pizza offers an unconventional rotating menu of pizza topped with items such as Fritos, venison and quail eggs. They’re open late night on Fridays and Saturdays, and you can usually find them at Johnny’s Gold Brick.

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At Pizaro’s, the crust looks perfect. (Photo courtesy Pizaro’s Facebook page)

Pizaro’s Pizza Napoletana
1000 W. Gray St., Houston 77019; 14028 Memorial Dr., Houston 77079
This pizza parlor serves traditional Italian pizza cooked for 90 seconds at 900 degrees in a custom-made Italian brick oven. It also import flour, tomatoes and olive oil from Italy. Everything else on the menu is made in-house.

Pizzeria Solario
3333 Weslayan, Houston 77027
Pizzeria Solario serves Neapolitan-style pizza and handcrafted pastas. Try the Tartufo pie, made with Fontina and Peccorino-Romano cheese, white truffle oil, black truffle purée and egg.

Romano’s Pizza Italian Restaurant
1528 W. Gray St., Houston 77019
The Italian owners of this parlor originally started their pizza careers in New York. They then made their move to Houston to start their own venture. Thankfully, they stayed. Romano’s serves unforgettable, truly authentic New York-style pizza cooked right before your eyes.

Star Pizza
2111 Norfolk St., Houston 77098; 77 Harvard St., Houston 77007
No Houston pizza list is complete without this local staple. Star Pizza opened in 1976 when two native Chicagoans decided to relocate to Houston. A trip to Star Pizza isn’t complete unless you’ve ordered one of their cheesy deep-dish pies. Their restaurant is filled with quirky pieces of art, making your experience there truly eccentric.

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