Where to Find the Best Pizza in Melbourne

Stepping into Leonardo’s Pizza Palace, there’s a lot going on. Literally. For a Wednesday night at eight o’clock, it’s packed. A DJ is playing laidback tracks and waitstaff carry pizza and pasta to various nooks and crannies, navigating around punters waving cocktails and glasses of wine. It comes from the team responsible for southside favourite Leonard’s House of Love, and is home to some of the best pizza in Melbourne.

Expect to find traditional woodfired, charred and blistered Italian bases with US-style toppings. The peach and burrata pizza is a standout, as is the classic margs and the mushroom creation. But do keep an eye out for next-level specials like the garlic prawn with squid ink salami. You won’t go wrong with any of the offerings at Leonardo’s, as the crew here are total pizza experts.

Image: Jana Langhorst

The Bar Liberty crew have proved themselves as masters of transformation at Capitano, which sits in the Beaufort’s refurbished space — now, a light, bright neighbourhood diner with olive green banquettes, wooden tables and art deco light shades.

Come for the pizza, both square-shaped and round. The base is sourdough, fermented for 48 hours to give just the right amount of chew. Plus, the kitchen doesn’t go overboard on the toppings. Choose from a classic cheese pizza or the garlicky Tomato Pie, or go for one of the more complex options; like The Carbonara, starring guanciale, pecorino and an egg yolk. To match these Melbourne pizzas, there’s an expansive wine list largely celebrating Italian drops and varieties.

Image: Kate Shanasy

Soft lighting and dark features make 400 Gradi (Italian for ‘400 degrees’, pizza’s ideal cooking temperature) the kind of spot that calls you for dinner on a rainy night. The type that’ll have you instantly dreaming about holidaying in the sunny Mediterranean, regardless of the weather here. Given that the pizzeria has won multiple awards — including best in Oceania — you can forget about jetting off overseas, though. Clearly, you’ve got the gold standard right on your doorstep.

At this popular Melbourne pizza haunt, you’ll find all the classics, alongside a swag of other top-notch pizza options. That includes the white-based Porcina, teaming porcini with gorgonzola and hot salami; a garlic prawn and tomato number; and the combination of ricotta, salami and ham they call the Carnivora.

Image: Kristoffer Paulsen

Pizza has a huge spectrum of quality and authenticity. But Ladro, located in both Fitzroy and Prahran, does it well. Really well. And, with a sleek interior, a woodfired oven or two and an Italian Nonna, Zia, making pasta by hand in the kitchen, that’s not all they’re winning at.

If the pizza menu is your main port of call, you might find yourself faced with some tough decisions. Some of the best pizzas in Melbourne lie behind these walls. The Badabing with tomato, provolone, pork sausage, oregano and chilli has been a favourite for as long as Ladro has been serving it. Another well-loved option is Scout’s Pizza (affectionately named after one of the owners’ children), which heroes taleggio, caramelised onion, rocket and parmigiano. If seafood is your thing try the Gamberi, with its lush topping of lemon-marinated prawns, garlic, chilli and zucchini.

Il Mercato Centrale’s La Pizza Napoletana is one of Il Mercato Centrale’s top vendors — Valerio Violetti is running the show. He’s known for creating some of the best pizza in Australia — and has plenty of awards to prove it — and the pizzas he’s making here are no joke. Il Mercato Centrale worked hard to get him here, and we are all too grateful for their perseverance.

Here, he and his team are plating up sensational Napoletana pizza, cooked up in one of the two huge puma-shaped pizza ovens. This is a must-visit spot at the new CBD food hall.

DOC’s pizza offering falls nothing short of brilliant. At this Melbourne pizza institution, achieving the perfect balance means the thin, yeasty, crispy bases aren’t overloaded and are instead artfully presented with delicate toppings.

Simple yet ingenious flavour combinations see the menu comprised of genuine classics and — against Australian tastes — there’s absolutely no pineapple in sight. Beautiful. Opt instead for creations like the Pizza Speck, starring smoked prosciutto, fontina, wild mushroom and thyme, a tiger prawn number or the pork sausage-topped Pizza Salsiccia. Follow up your feed at one of the best Melbourne pizza joints with something sweet and, again, entirely classic — perhaps the cannoli or tiramisu.

Brunswick East has always been blessed with late-night joints aplenty and, following in the footsteps of the shuttered Café Romantica, Bar Romantica is one of them. Current owners Oscar Hermann, Monty Mullooly-Hill, Ravi Thompson, Henry Crawford and Bill Howard have reworked the interior, and produced an exceptional menu and drinks list to match.

In a nod to the venue’s history, the kitchen’s kept the classic Pizza Romantica, this time incorporating a little fior di latte and passata. It’s so simple, but still one of the best pizzas in Melbourne. Otherwise, the menu changes weekly, reflecting seasonal nuances and goodness, though you can always expect premium ingredients like Italian sausage, heirloom zucchini and white anchovies.

Nestled down the eastern end of Johnston Street, Rita’s has hit the sweet spot. A beacon of friendly service accentuated by Italian undertones and a classic diner vibe, it’s a charming neighbourhood local you need to know about.

At this Melbourne pizza joint, simple, honest fare is executed with the right amounts of nonchalance and passion. Rita’s 13-inch pizzas dare to push the boundaries: the bases are rolled in semolina for extra texture, resulting in a puffy, thick and satisfying crust. They’re game-changing-ly good. Find clever yet considered toppings like the combination of potato, rosemary, taleggio and truffle oil, a cavalo nero and blue cheese situation, and the crowd favourite Salty Pig — a fusion of pancetta, mozzarella, chilli, capers and anchovy.

48h Pizza e Gnocchi Bar’s biggest claim to fame is past title as Oceania’s best pizzeria, and with more than 20 varieties on offer, you’re faced with some tough decisions. With two southside outposts and one up at Grazeland, the restaurant’s offering is inspired by the authentic Italian flavours that owners Fabio Biscaldi and Michele Circhirillo grew up with.

The Marinara and Margherita pizzas keep things classic, or you can opt for everything from fried eggplant and buffalo mozzarella to house-made sausage and king brown mushrooms. There’s even a slew of vegan options, including a three-cheese plant-based number with red onion and walnuts. With so many fab options here, you’ll find many of the best pizzas in Melbourne.

Collingwood’s all-vegan pizzeria has built its menu around a hefty commitment to top-notch plant-based ingredients — and it’s as good as any non-vegan pizza offering you’ll try. Here, tuck into crafty, vegan riffs on the classics, including the Patatas Bravas with potato, dairy-free parmesan, chipotle aioli and mock chorizo, and the Mushroom, featuring a duo of ‘shrooms, caramelised onion, truffle oil and thyme.

If you’re for one of the best pizzas in Melbourne that’ll make you feel as healthy as your morning superfood smoothie, look to the Verde, which comes loaded with kale pesto, artichoke, broccolini and pepitas. And there’s always a great excuse to finish with the dessert pizza, decked out with choc hazelnut spread, banana and vegan vanilla ice cream.

Image: Simon Schultz

With Asian juggernaut Chin Chin as your older sibling (and with Society, Grill Americano and Kisume a part of the same family), sometimes it’s easy for Chris Lucas’ other venture, Baby Pizza, to shrink into the shadows. The Italian brainchild of one of Melbourne’s most talked about restaurateurs took over the space on Church Street, Richmond in 2013 and has been a steady addition to the growing empire.

Serving over 13 variations of pizzas, we recommend going for one with the house-made mozzarella. In other words: all of them. The Polpette is one of the standouts, made with creamy fior di latte (mozzarella), meatballs, juicy San Marzano tomatoes, pecorino, fresh basil and chilli. The bases are thin and light, made with special flour from Naples to recreate traditional Italian pizza that’s some of the best in Melbourne.

Melbourne’s north doesn’t have enough late-night wine bars serving oversized slices of pizza. At least, that’s what Sam Peasnell, and business partners Adam Goldblatt and Tom Peasnell thought. They’re the talented trio behind Preston hotspot Dexter Meat & Buns, who followed it up by opening a casual pizza joint directly across the road. The way it works is pretty simple: out front is a takeaway Melbourne pizza joint where you can order 12-inch pies through a small window, while inside is a fully stocked cocktail and wine bar. It’s the kind of place you can duck in for a quick beer while you wait for your pizza, or roll into for a few kick-ons after dinner.

Pizza options include such creative delights as the Lamb, with braised lamb shoulder on a potato and leek base; a Middle Eastern spiced cauliflower number; a rich combination of pastrami and bone marrow; and a riff on the Hawaiian, starring house-smoked ham and rum-soaked pineapple. Find some of the best pizza in Melbourne sliding out of this shop front window.

A word so nice they named it thrice. This Melbourne CBD pizza joint does it NYC-style with 18-inch pies and pizza by the slice, selling the latter at $5 a pop, with pies at $32. While these might not compare to the $1 beauties of New York City, they’re pretty fair prices for the Aussie market and much heftier slices than we’re generally used to.

Pizza toppings range from classics like margherita and pepperoni, to a decadent mushroom and truffle oil number that you probably wouldn’t encounter at your corner NYC pizza shop. Also on the menu, you’ll find a triple cheese creation (that’s parmesan, mozzarella and bocconcini for ya), a loaded Veggie Lovers, and a version of that Aussie favourite: Hawaiian.

The multi-level CBD space once home to Cheek and Peaches was reborn post-pandemic as Dom’s Social Club — a casual three-storey haunt championing classic drinks, top-notch charcuterie and handmade pizza. As sibling to Preston’s Dexter and Takeaway Pizza, it’s no surprise the venue is doing the latter exceptionally well, with an offering of light, puffy woodfired pizzas crafted using a three-day slow fermented sourdough.

Choose from toppings like mortadella with fermented honey and thyme, a cured pork cheek and pumpkin number, and veg-packed combinations like the one with green pea and snow pea tendrils. And with two extra floors for drinking, playing pool and lapping up some sun, we’ve also named it one of the best bars in Melbourne.

This Italian takeaway spot is baking damn delicious Tuscan-style bread (schiacciata), which is used as the base for its pizzas. This dough is similar to focaccia, but it’s thinner, airier and crispier.

Our favourite has got to be the Mortazza, topped with mortadella, pistachio paste, crushed pistachios and a mini burrata ball — that you rip open yourself. This is so satisfying to eat. Other classic pizza toppings and seasonal creations also grace the cabinet each day. You can grab these bites to go or sit at one of the tables on Therry Street, right across from the busy market.