Olivella’s Neo Pizza Napoletana

One of my favorite places in Dallas!
Love the neighborhood atmosphere by SMU. The restaurant is small but we have never had to wait, maybe we just came at the right times.
Started out with Momma’s Homemade Meatballs-​so delicious! I could have made a meal out of just this, but we split it as an appetizer.
We had the bella carne pizza (sauce, house made mozarella, sausage, ground beef, pepperoni, ham and onion) and the black truffle pizza (House-​made mozzarella, speck (Italian ham), mushrooms, truffle oil, black pepper (no sauce)). Outstanding.
I can’t wait to go back.

The black truffle pizza is perfection! We also had the nutella mousse that was the bed shared dessert. The fresh strawberry with walnuts and a spoonful of mousse was a perfect bite. We sat outside in great weather.

My dad and I went two days ago and it was delicious. I had the regular pizza w/​ground beef, and my dad had the metro pizza with spicy Italian Bologna which he loved. I highly recommend this restaurant

Food is excellent, service is great, atmoshpere homey, all makes for an excellent meal. It was crowded and we had to wait for a seat, but the pie came pretty quick after we ordered it. The people working there made you feel like they were making you pie in their home for you.

Top 25 pizza in Dallas. I have been twice and had 4 pizzas. I have not been impressed at all with their version of the Neapolitan but the Roman style pizza is fantastic. Anyone who has been to Rome is transformed to the streets of Rome when they take a bite. Just like the thin crust that a Roman vender cuts into a rectangle, folds in half and hands to you in wax paper.

Thin, crispy, buy one get one free? Yes Please!
If you and your buddies are having some thin crust pizza munchies, stop by Olivella’s. If you come in M-​F before 5:30, the happy hour special is two metro (large size) pizzas for the price of one, not a bad a deal at all.
The pizza here is light and crispy with very flavoful toppings. I had their Della Carne, which is an Italian version of a meat lover’s and their black truffle, which was a white pizza with mushrooms, and Italian ham finished with a bit of truffle oil.
The Della Carne was very tasty but you’ll want to eat it quick, the meats are a bit fatty and if you let it sit, the crust gets slightly soggy. The Black Truffle may not be for everyone as the truffle oil can be a bit much.
The restaurant is also on the small side, if you’re coming with a group, make reservations, however there is a fair amount of seating outdoors on warmer evenings.

Move over, Cane Rosso – Olivella’s has raised the bar for Neapolitan pizza in Dallas.
Don’t get me wrong, here – there’s nothing wrong with Cane Rosso, and I still love it dearly, but Olivella’s is walking distance from Snider Plaza (which makes it close to my house) and I generally think they do pizza ever-​so-​slightly better than Cane Rosso. For my money, that makes Cane Rosso not worth the special trip.
What makes it slightly better? I think they cook the pizza a bit better, and I like their combinations slightly better. (I miss having Jimmy’s sausage as a topping, but then again, I think Cane Rosso isn’t offering that any longer anyhow.) There’s more emphasis here on sun dried tomatoes and some more «premium» toppings. Also, I like the more intimate feel of this location as well… Cane Rosso seems kind of sprawling and disjointed in a way. (The drawback here is that there’s not always enough tables to go around here.).
But, the pizza at Olivella’s is ever so slightly better than Cane Rosso. I’m not exactly sure why – I think it’s just the combinations that they offer. I also find Olivella’s menu a bit less confusing. I don’t know… I just prefer it. They’re both excellent.
The negative thing about Olivella’s is the price. Things here should cost less (though if you go during their happy hour, prices go down dramatically…). If you’re drinking here, as they say in New York City, «Fuggedaboutit!»
In any case, this is the go to place in the Snider Plaza region for pizza, and possibly in the city for Neapolitan pizza. (Neo’s downtown in the victory park area are the same owners and I think virtually the same menu as Olivella’s, but the service down there is not quite as good as it is here in my opinion.)
For Neapolitan pizza around SMU and Snider Plaza – Olivella’s is it, and it represents the area well.

Good pizza, v pricey and waiter to too long to get my change. Besides that, I give my stamp of approval. Braden M, signing off.

We had great expectations from this place, it fulfilled expectations from food taste point of view but lacks in cleaniness; it would had more fun and good experience if it was clean, too many flies and that hurt star rating otherwise I had given 5 star. I might try this place again just to give another shot. Btw we tried The Dream & Margharita Chicken Pizza.

I’ve tried the other Olivellas in the Dallas area and loved each experience but didn’t get a chance to try this McFarlin location until last night when I was in the SMU area and was craving pizza so did a take-​out order.
I ordered the half-​and-​half Metro Pizza (perfectly crispy) and I chose my favorite which is the Black Truffle & Della Carne. The Black Truffle Pizza is my favorite since I love truffle oil and they use a lot of the oil here which is such a great taste! This comes with house-​made mozzarella, speck Italian ham, mushrooms, truffle oil, and black pepper. The other half was the Della Carne and I got this recommendation since I wanted something that had a lot of meat. This pizza had sauce, mozzarella, sausage, ground beef, pepperoni, onion, and I substituted ham with the cooked pancetta which paired really well with the bread.
I was in the mood for a pasta and couldn’t decide between my favorite from here, LASAGNA. (amazing), or to try something new and the server recommended the Spaghetti & Mama’s Meatballs which had a spicy marinara sauce and house-​made meatballs. Perfect for a rainy day!
This location is small and is not good for large groups but is perfect for a small 1 – 4 top or to-​go. I’d recommend the other locations for the atmosphere, but this location if you’re in the area and want a quick fix!

We ordered the caprese salad for an app: not impressed with the mozzarella quality, but the portion was generous.
HUGE plus was the pita bread we asked for! This leads me to believe the flatbreads would be a good order.
We ordered the Rustica, Black Truffle, Breakfast, Snow White, and the Mezolena pizzas. (They were all ½ pizzas-​I swear!) The pizza was good, not sure about best in Texas, but very solid.
Would’ve given this 4 stars, but the service and ambiance decreased it to 3. Patio wasn’t set up, and the inside was very cramped. This could just be based on the location.

I was really excited to try this place, but maybe I set my expectations too high. Nothing except the mushrooms tasted bad, but I also was not wow’ed with flavor in every bite.
The Good:
— the crust of the Metro is so delicious and crispy
— patio seating
The OK:
— the cheese and most of the topping tasted fresh, but were not too flavorful
— our server was a bit rushy after we didn’t order booze (I’m on an antibiotic and can’t drink right now, otherwise would have tried their wine) and seemed less than thrilled that we were occupying a table
— the Caesar dressing was fine, but none of the zing I was hoping for
The Bad:
— the mushrooms were the worst. I love mushrooms and these were just old or improperly stored or something. I actually removed them from my pizza and my boyfriend gave up on his slices because of them.
All in all, for the price, I feel like I should be able to get better pizza and, at minimum, decent mushrooms. Probably I will not return, but if you don’t put mushrooms on your pizza and are going to order some booze, it’s probably an ok place to grab a bite.

Truffle pizza and sangria are AMAZING, this cozy rustic Italian restaurant did a fantastic job of giving me a much needed Italian experience that made me feel like I was back in Rome for a night. Perfecto!

Listen to the others, BLACK TRUFFLE PIZZA is where it’s at.
It’s a small quaint restaurant, so not a great place for large parties during busy hours. I came with 3 others around 8 on a Saturday and was able to get seating right away. My group also tried the dream, chicken & pesto, and della carne pizzas but came to the consensus that the truffle was the best…

Absolutely LOVE this pizza place! Upscale pizza and desserts… great atmosphere, music, and food! Definitely will be coming back!
Small place so go early!

This is what real pizza is all about! Thin crust, delicious toppings and none of the heaviness that usually follows a pizza eating orgy. We got a half and half pizza. one was the dream pizza (mozzarella, pancetta, chicken, Gorgonzola) and the other half was Alfredo chicken. We devoured the delicious slices with sangria. My only complaint… this place is tiny!

Don’t you hate it when different restaurants in a chain are hit or miss? Luckily this one did not disappoint. An added bonus was that each has location specific pies on their menus. We had the Pear and Gorgonzola pie. Our server recommended prosciutto on it and we were glad we did. It really set the pie apart. Yeah it sounds a little bougie but it was completely awesome. I cannot stress this enough, get the nutella mousse! You’ll thank me, so long as you aren’t allergic then you might curse me. Either way, fun for the whole family!

Loved it! Tried it for the first time, we ordered thin crust pizzas with chicken and the veggie option and they were amazing to say the least. Tried the sangria as well which was a bit expensive $ 30 a pitcher (which was during non-​happy hour) but that was good as well.
The only down side is there is almost no sitting place in this joint and if you go at the peak hour then be ready to get your food to-​go!

My favourite pizza. I like their metro pizzas. It can get a little crowded in the evenings on weekends but its worth the wait

We usually get our «pizza fix» at the Olivella’s Lakewood location, which over in our neck-​o-​the-​woods (off Mockingbird & Abrams). But, we were out doing some shopping/​errands, and decided to give their UP location a try. Learned something new today: Olivella’s NEVER disappoints!
The restaurant is cozy (smaller than the Lakewood location), the smell of their pizza greeted us at the door (along with friendly staff), and it was a relaxing place for hubby and me to take a little break from our day to have a glass of wine & some INCREDIBLE food!
We generally over-​order because we love left-​overs from Olivella’s, but since we were running errands and they’d be sitting in the car, we split the Olivella salad (my personal favorite– it has pear, gorgonzola cheese, and walnuts with mixed greens) and a metro «black truffle» pizza –both were excellent, as always. The metro crust is super-​thin, light, and very flavorful (the other type of crust is very good, though, too). Their mozzarella cheese is delicious (made in-​house), and they do a great job spreading the toppings around on the pizza so there is never a bad piece. We thought we were too stuffed for dessert, but the table next to us had the homemade Nutella mousse, and it looked so good, so we couldn’t resist taking one to-​go and ended up eating it in the car. (It was awesome!)
Service was EXCELLENT (just as expected). The entire staff is great, and everyone is friendly, knowledgeable, (but never annoying/​too much). We’ll definitely go back to the UP location again!

When you want a nice change of pace from the chain, then make this one of your top options!
VENUE: It’s small. If you decide to come, think small. Or call ahead for reservations. Came in a group of three and shared a table with another couple of people. It wasn’t awkward or uncomfortable but if you’re not into sharing your space whilst eating, then be wary.
FOOD:
Prima Vera: I could have eaten this alone. It was so good. The portion size if enough if you wanted to make this a meal but also great if you just need something to hold you over until the pizza comes out. At first glance I thought, «This salad is going to be dry.» It looked like there was barely any dressing. Nope. I was wrong. It was really good and just enough sweetness to offset the cheese. I kept scooping myself servings — consciously making the decision that i was sacrificing stomach space that could have been spent on pizza. Worth it. I’m not a fan of coconut but the dressing was so good I could hardly tell there was coconut in it. There is also dried cranberries and goat cheese in it. Perfect combo of tastes.
White Truffle Oil Pizza: Truffle oil lovers!!! Come hither! Need I say more? As soon as we walked in, the smell of aroma truffles hung in the air. It was all i could do shove the server aside when he brought our pizza to us. There’s no sauce so the taste was all about the truffles, mushrooms, and sundried tomoatos. I had one of those moments of almost-​regret because I had filled up on the salad. But trust me, this is the kind of pizza you will make room for.
We ordered another pizza but I can’t even tel l you the name because it was just generic. Something with meat and red sauce.
All this with a bottle of their malbec made for an amazing dinner.
SERVICE: Everyone we interacted with was extremely friendly. Even the couple of people we shared a table with was very pleasant. The elderly couple to other side was also extremely sweet as we were constantly having to navigate around each other to get into and out of our seats between the restroom. I guess when you have good food it’s hard to be a bad mood.

I can’t believe this place slipped past my radar. Seriously incredible pizza and italian food, this is the place I would recommend anyone in Dallas looking for that style of food.
The pizza crust is the best I’ve ever had; it’s obvious they work hard to differentiate their crust from the run-​of-​the-​mill dough found at 90% of Italianesque restaurants. Light, flaky and full of flavor. Not heavy at all!
Olivella’s also gets 5-​stars for the incredible house-​made mozzarella that can be found all over their menu. I had the prosciutto and mozzarella sandwich recently (with bread made from that awesome dough) and it was heavenly. A nice salad on the side for some micros and a wonderful pesto/​balsamic dip for the sandwich. Don’t be scared when you order the sandwich and it looks thin and lacking with fillings! That thin little sandwich contains more flavor and joy than the vast majority of sandwiches I’ve ever had.
The pizza is great, I don’t think you can go wrong with any of the choices. They have a great deal for the mid afternoon where you get a buy one get one for free, which is excellent for food of this caliber.
All in all, I have been super impressed every time I’ve dined here and just yesterday told a coworker new to Dallas that they should hit this place up ASAP. The space is incredibly small, which I personally think adds great character and depth to the idea of a truly fantastic restaurant.

I came here the other day with some co-​workers for a late lunch. Working at SMU, this is a convienent location, as it is close to campus. They also take Mustang dollars (or whatever they are called) for SMU students.
Being located in Snyder Plaza, the parking is tricky and not as convienent as the location. Luckily, because we arrived a little after one, we found a spot right near the restaurant.
What a cute little spot. They have about six or so tables inside. It is pretty tight, but super quaint. I could see this being a romantic spot.
I ordered the chicken parmesan sandwich with a side Caesar. I asked the sever for a side of marinara to dip the sandwich into the sauce. For around $ 10 it is reasonable, and delicious. Perhaps it was a little pricey for lunch but I enjoyed my meal. I ended up taking half of the sandwich home because with the side salad it was too filling.

We came on an off night…
We ordered a small but a large was brought to our table, and it was burnt. I complained after the fact, but the waitress didn’t seem to care.
The only saving grace was the salad.
it was my idea to come here because I wanted to try a new place. I will stick to Cane Rosso on Commerce St.
Oh! And the my dinner companion was so dissatisfied he wanted fries from mcds!

When I walk into Olivella’s Napoletana pizza University Park I am instantly transported back to my time in Italy. The smells overwhelm me, my mind wanders back…
Jump to Piazza de Spagna, near the Spanish Steps where there are open-​air dining areas, near the legendary Trevi Fountain & Via del Corso, Pantheon, Piazza Navonna, the Piazza Del Popolo, across from the Palazzo Medici, around the corner from our Hotel, Fontanella Borghese, where my hubby & I had the best pizza experience of our lives.
Sorry for the Italian style directions, when in Rome! lol
I was in Paris, hubby was in Rome filming a commercial for his company that broke early. I hopped the train to Rome from Paris so we could take that extra time, go north & tour Tuscany together. When I got to Rome the palazzo was packed so we wandered inside into this little café next door, ordered a pizza & 2 glasses of champagne. They brought out this little bowl of tiny fresh strawberries for the champagne. Delightful. The sweetest strawberries that has ever touched my tongue.
We have NEVER forgotten this or that PIZZA! Thin, crispy, light as a feather with just the right amount of toppings & that tomato sauce?! Absolute light, fruity perfection that created a perfect memory that will last our lifetime.
This is Olivellas. There is no other place that does real Italian pizza like Olivellas.
The magic of Italy is transported right here to Dallas daily through the hands of Alonzo, Olivella’s very own Italian Stallion.
You can see Alonzo weekly tossing dough into the air & into that gorgeous old brick wood burning pizza oven that was imported straight from Italy.
Olivella’s style & namesake was initially created by Chef Salvatore Olivella, a native of Naples and veteran of the New York pizzeria scene.
Presently, Edgar, General Manager & his team, follow that Neapolitan method, baking the pizzas in that gorgeous one of a kind wood-​fired oven to create a classic Neapolitan style crust that is 100% Italian.
All the pizza dough is made on site & hand rolled out every day. The toppings they use are super fresh, top notch ingredients like Pancetta, Gorgonzola, Prosciutto, Sopressata, arugula, walnuts, pears, etc., all topped by their super fresh house made mozzarella & executed with Italiano amore! Thanks to Alonzo, Edgar & his team! Perfetto!
They only use tomatoes grown in the Sarnese Nocerino area of Italy. Truly distinct in flavor, they simmer their house made pomodoro sauce in a secret process with only the best San Marzano tomatoes.
Mama Mia! :)‘
Additionally they offer a small menu with other Italian fare like salads, lasagna, meatballs & a limited beer & wine list with a very good chianti that is a personal fave. After all, that’s all you need in a tiny pizza parlor, USA TODAY agrees, as its their number one choice in Texas ;)
I could go on & on about this place how fantastic it is. But, since I was just there & brought some pizza home with me, I’m kinda busy right now going down memory lane stuffing my pie hole! Yummy :)‘
Yes, the place is beautifully quaint & romantic just like in Italy & the parking is a nightmare, just like in Italy.
And that oh so memorable, unforgettable day for us in Italy, what turned out to be 4 glasses of champagne one small pizza & a bowl of strawberries, came out to $ 150 USD. Again, Olivella’s prices are just like in Italy.
Olivella’s, the best money we ever spent, just like in Italy ;)