Tony’s Pizza Napoletana

Amazing!!! Finally had to try it and did not disappoint. Definitely get there early, gets busy. But they were pretty quick told us about 35mins and we got in around 20 mins. Pizza comes out even quicker. The Margherita is to die for but people who need the meat The New Yorker. OMG. Wish we would of ordered some more to take home. Next SF trip definitely eating there again. and again.and again

Get pizza. No, pasta. Don’t forget a salad. Well, get a salad and pasta. No, no — I mean pizza. Save room for dessert.
Hell! Get it all and bring the leftovers home. Don’t leave without tasting as much as you possibly can!

This place is sheer delight.
In the midst of the hustle and bustle of San Francisco’s Little Italy (North Beach) is this little island of Tony’s — a little patch with two pizza restaurants, what seems to be a school of Pizza, and a slice house.
Service was excellent, and the food even better. Good portions, authentic and tasteful.
We’ll get to the pizza in a bit.
The salad and pillows of pizza dough with a fill-​it-​yourself artichoke and cheese dip were tasty, crisp out and soft and chewy perfection within.
Tony’s runs 7 pizza ovens at temperatures ranging from 500 to 900 degrees or so, fired by gas or wood. These produce approx. 10 types of pizza so you will be confounded by choice though it is difficult to go wrong!
The crispy Italian and American styles were tempting but we missed these amid the enthusiastic ordering of a Margarita in the charred, soft and chewy high temperature style. Perfection again.
Finally, the thin and long 12″ x 30″ pizza in three styles came with 3 sections of tasty delights — prosciutto and Liguica based mixes and finally a vegetarian section with caramelized onion, ricotta, figs, etc for a mouthwatering mix.
Makes you wish you lived in SF! Don’t miss this place if you ever have a chance.

Ordered the Stromboli. Taste was good: stuffed with fresh cheese, pepperoni and topped with garlic. The service on the other hand was spotty. For the price, it was a bit overcharged for overall taste. The area is busy on weekends!
And they play bomb music.

Really wasn’t impressed with this place. Stopped in while passing through North Beach due to its Unilocal ranking and reviews but it was fair from pleasant. The hostess was rude, the waiter made a face at a menu substitution we wanted and all but one plate came out so we had s person in our party eating about 15 – 20 minutes after we were all done. The food was good, but not excellent. The manager did come by and apologize but the service for sure is why this is only a 3 star review. I wouldn’t come back unfortunately.

My friends and I walked for 1 hour to get to Little Italy, when we stumbled upon this place. We were so tired and hungry but this place did not disappoint. The menu is so interesting and honestly took me a little time to understand. They separated the pizzas to different sections since each of the pizzas are cooked at a different temperature with a different style.
We ended up ordering cheesy garlic bread, margherita pizza, New York pizza, and 2 pastas to share and it was just a little more than enough. The cheesy garlic bread was so delicious and huge! I would definitely recommend ordering them. The margherita pizza was just wonderful, and I especially loved the chunks of mozzarella. I didn’t get a chance to try the New York pizza, but the two pastas were perfectly creamy.
Overall, the food here is super filling and delicious. It was my only meal the whole day!

Was it worth the hype? Yes it was. Was it worth the one hour 15 minute wait? Yes it was.
What I got:
Coccoli with the spicy meat: 5 stars — this was my first time trying anything like this. Think of a beignet which you open to stuff meat which is grounded into almost a paste and then you shove arugula on top of it. Crispy and savory it was so good. You get enough for 4 people. I highly recommend if you’ve never tried coccoli.
The New Yorker pizza: 4.5 stars — what a great pie. I know I should’ve ordered the award winning neapolitana marguerita pizza but so many people were raving a bout this one. I wasn’t disappointed! Meaty, cheeses and lots of garlic made my mouth happy.
While I don’t mind waiting an hour plus, the service could be a bit more friendly.

Went back here last night. Had a negative experience with the host. We had put our name down for a table (which is usually a 45min-​1hr wait), so we headed to the bar for some drinks.
We finally got a text to get seated at our table, but when we went up to the host he said we couldn’t get our table anymore. We asked why and he claimed that once you sit in the bar area you can’t claim a table anymore ?? Wtf kinda bullshit. I had specifically asked if our name was still on the list and he had confirmed.
Service was lacking last night. Major lacking.
Also, the bartender seemed annoyed every time we asked a question. He was also speaking badly of some customers who had just left the bar. Do that on your own time, not during working hours. So unprofessional.

Finally made a stop at Tony’s Pizza Napoletana after hearing many good things about their pizzas. I think the first thing that caught my eye upon sitting down with our party of 6 was how serious Tony’s takes their pizzas. There is not only the napoletana style pizzas, but NINE OTHER styles too! They mention in the menu what type of oven and what temperature all of their pies are cooked. Our table ordered four pizzas:
(Napoletana) Margherita (only 73 made daily) — so freaking delicious. Fresh fior de latte cheese, San Marzano tomatoes, and pungent basil. The toppings and crust flavors are what every Margherita pizza fan dreams of. My only qualm — the bottom crust got a little soggy from the sauce.
(Classic Italian) Cal Italia — No tomato sauce on this one. The crust was thin & crispy and the toppings paired well and reminded me of something you’d see on a cheese plate — gorgonzola, prosciutto, fig preserves, balsamic reduction. I hate gorgonzola cheese/​blue cheese but the flavor was very nuanced and I didn’t mind it at all.
(Coal-​Fired) New Haven Lou — I didn’t get to try this pizza, but it did look very delicious (spinach, mozzarella, ricotta, red pepper flakes). It was not the favorite of the table, as we had the most slices of this one leftover — but don’t let it deter you if these flavors call to you.
**TABLE FAVORITE**
(Coal-​Fired) The New Yorker — This pizza tasted like it was hand-​delivered by pizza angels. And I’m not usually one to like multiple-​meats pizza, but this pizza does it RIGHT. Thin & chewy crust with crisp edges. Zesty & sweet tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella and THE RICOTTA (!!!), Italian fennel sausage, Calabrese sausage, and perfect crispy pepperoni (the kind that curls up on the ends!). Please, if you’re any kind of carnivore ORDER THIS YOU CAN THANK ME LATER. Not too much meat. Perfectly balanced between the sweet tomatoes, flavorful meats, savory ricotta.
We had an awesome visit with friends from out of town and enjoyed all of the pizzas we ordered here. Can’t wait to come back to try some of their other pizzas (and that NEW YORKER again, ugh!!).

Tony’s pizza is so good, my guy once brought me some home– and even cold, after a flight, three hours later, it was still damn delicious. Any pizza lover is guaranteed to find something they adore here, with over ten styles of pizza including gluten-​free options.
The classic Margherita Napoletana is a solid choice, and limited to only 73 pies a day– it was a World Cup Pizza winner in Naples (2007), so you know it’s legit. If you want something a little more modern, the California Style Tartufo is incredible too, with mozzarella, burrata, goat cheese, wild mushrooms, truffle oil, prosciutto de parma, piave, and arugula… the oil is kind of cheating but it’s such a fresh, savory pizza, and easy to leave off the prosciutto for vegetarians.
If you’re craving pizza anywhere near the area (and seriously, even if you’re not) stop by and indulge. It is so. damn. good.

My friend was raving about this place cause she heard it was good from friends or something so therefore we came here for dinner after our hike in the Marin Headlands. Sure, this place was highly rated with tons of reviews, but it didn’t impress me much.
We waited for 1hr & 15mins for a table. My friend ordered their infamous Margherita pizza, and it came out within like 7mins after order. Like really fast. My pizza, the American combo one, took forever like 1hr & 15mins. By the time, my pizza came, my friend was way done with her pizza.
Pizza was alright, but I’ve had better elsewhere.
The only good thing about this place is they have Mexican coke which I can get at Safeway anyways. Other than that, I don’t think I’ll be returning to this pizza joint.

05.26.16 | Bookmarked 10.07.10
Finally crossing this off my bookmarks!
I was with six others looking for a dinner place before the Beach Blanket Babylon show. We arrived around 5:30 PM and got seated without any issues. But I must say, they are STRICT on their seating policies. They only seat complete parties. They don’t allow additional guests to join your party due to their long wait. DON’T break the rules. You’ve been warned.
Sit outside. Get the meatballs. Get the famous margherita napoletana. Try the quail egg California. Do the coal fired New Yorker. Wash it down with some draft beers.
Total damage for seven: $ 152

Does this amazing hole in the wall even need more reviews?
I popped in with my housemate early on Friday night. The wait for two was 45 minutes-​long but not unreasonable given the fame of this place. However a spot for two opened up at the bar, so we got cozy together in the corner. The bartender was kind and took care of us quickly, and gave great recommendations to us newbies.
We went with the classic Margherita and Manhattan Calzone, and I couldn’t feel better about the choice. I am not a pizza connoisseur, but this was the best pizza I’ve ever had. So not only did we skip the 45 minute wait, but our pizzas came out in record time! That’s my kind of Friday treat

4.5 to be exact. Round up for the great service. Tony’s Pizza Napoietana is busy for a reason. The pizza tastes great! It is a task to find some delicious pizza that compares to the area where I live, but Tony’s is one that does it right!
I came here with some of my relatives that I was visiting and we waited an hour to sit at around midday. Once you come in and sit down, I can see some people become overwhelmed with the menu, as it is very extensive for pizza.
Before I get into the main course, we shared one of their «meatball gigante» with marinara sauce. There is a limit of 25 per day, and we came early enough to be one of those 25. This was delicious! There is a blend of veal, pork, and beef inside. It was a good shareable size.
Now to the pizza! The menu describes the many different types of pizza and some have descriptions about the temperature and how each style is cooked. They have American, Italian, Napoletana, California, Romana, New York, Grandma, Coal Fired, Sicilian, Detroit, and St. Louis styles! Yes, that’s A LOT of variety to choose from.
We decided to try three different types of pizzas. The first one we got was mainly for my little cousin to have since she is allergic to dairy. We got the Marinara pizza, an Napoletana-​style pizza. I had a bite of it and it was a well-​made pie. However, this was not the star of the show.
The second pizza we got was the Margherita pizza, another Napoletana-​style pie. The menu states they will only prepare at max 73 of these per day. It uses caputo flour and has San Marzano tomatoes, mozzarella, basil, and olive oil. This was pretty good. The menu also mentions that this was a World Pizza Cup winner at Naples, Italy, and from eating this I can taste why! The pizza was very well prepared and satisfying.
The star of the show for me though was the third pizza we got, the La Regina Pizza! This is one of their famous Sicilian pizzas that has soppresatta picante (pork) prosciutto, mozzarella, and arugula. This pizza also won an award, as mentioned on the menu with a Gold Cup Winner International Pizza Championship at Italy in 2013. This was a huge sicilian pie and I am glad this was a good size. My entire party that tried this pizza loved it. I enjoyed the crunchy edges and crust on this pizza. It allowed me to enjoy the nice texture of this pie and I would recommend this pizza if you are into Sicilian styles!
Overall this was a pleasant experience. The service was great and very accommodating to my party, and especially my little cousin who has a variety of food allergies. If I can afford to wait another time, I would look forward to returning here!

Hands down, one of the best pizzas I’ve had in SF!
They have tons of options. I ordered the New York 20″ pizza and took it to-​go so I can enjoy it at the park. Note: the slices are HUGE. My favorite was the meatball, ricotta and garlic pizza. It was definitely a crowd pleaser. It’s no wonder why they won so many awards. The crust was cooked to perfection and the cheese to sauce ratio was just right.

My partner and I eat a lot of Neapolitan pizza, and have tried many pizza places around the country and Europe. Since I’m vegan, I always get the marinara option (pretty much always vegan by default), which makes it pretty easy to compare from restaurant to restaurant.
In my Neapolitan pizza eating adventures, I learned that there are certifications which identify restaurants who make «True Neapolitan Pizza» (e.g., Vera Pizza Neapolitan, Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, etc.). So, as a rule of thumb, I only eat at pizza places on this list. However, since my boyfriend received a plethora of recommendations for Tony’s we gave it a shot.
Should have stuck with my rule of thumb.
First and foremost, as a waiter was clearing the table next to us, some of the plates slipped from his hand and he spilled tomato sauce all over my boyfriend’s brand new (and favorite) shirt. He just said sorry and walked away. I asked my boyfriend to drop it so that we could have a nice meal, but they really should have done more about that.
Second, my pizza had a strange taste. The dough was OK but not the best I’ve had, and the sauce was really off putting. My boyfriend also wasn’t impressed with his non-​vegan pizza. The service was really bad and overall it wasn’t worth the $ 70 we spent there for lunch. We won’t be back.
Vera Pizza Neopolitan Certified Restaurants*:
*These are certified restaurants that make DELICIOUS Neapolitan pizza.

Well we finally ate at this famous North Beach pizza spot. We braved the line concept, got there at 11:30, so only a half hour wait. We were seated in a nice booth by the bar. The hostess and servers were very friendly, and obviously liked their jobs.
We decided to go with the classic pizza, the Napoletana, the crust was very good. The kale salad had a really good dressing, and our side of garlic oil, spinach was so good. I had a glass of red wine, my husband had a Peroni on tap. The atmosphere was good, definitely will go back, even though it’s not in my hood.

I guess the hype played a part in the let down, or maybe I smelt the American style pizza while we walked there. It wasn’t that bad but it definitely wasn’t what I was expecting for the «best» pizza. Considering the wait, the cost and the taste I wouldn’t go back unless someone else suggested it.
The Margherita pizzas sauce tasted kind of like Campbell’s tomato soup accented by the flavor of burnt crust. The small pieces or mozzarella were nice reprieves of flavor from the rest of the mediocre pizza.

There’s a lot of pizza in North Beach, but Tony’s is a novelty that you must try and experience! Some people come with big expectations from all the hype and awards, then come disappointed from not meeting their expectations BUT it is actually good pizza and a good amount of their pizzas are worth the recognition!
Especially on a weekend, the wait is about an hour long, but on a week night, it isn’t too long and they still have a few Margheritas left (only 73 served each day). The Margherita is your basic margarita, but it is seasoned and cheesy to perfection. On the other hand, they have deep dish like pizzas such as the Regina which has arugula, prosciutto, and so much more. Those two alone can feed a group of 4 to 6 and highly suggest adding the chili oil.
Honorable mention goes to their meatballs and salads, but oh boy I will come back for Regina! They have this annoying rule to not seat your party until everyone is there, but other than that, the service and ambiance make it a great meal overall!

Parece que entrar a este lugar en general cuesta, por la fila de gente que se acumula en la puerta, pero nosotros tuvimos suerte y entramos sin tener que esperar un minuto.
La pizza Margherita de acá está premiada, o eso presumen en el menú, así que obviamente la probamos. Para los acostumbrados a comerla con toneladas de queso encima tenía aspecto pobre, pero no por eso puedo decir que no era rica. La verdad es que estaba muy buena, pero no fue la mejor que comí en mi vida. Masa finita, salsa abundante, poco queso: normal.
El calzone con meatballs también me pareció muy rico. Como acostumbran, te dan un pote con salsa marinara para que le pongas a tu gusto.
Es un lugar al que iría de nuevo, además el barrio en el que está es hermoso de noche.

Its been named «The Best Pizzeria in America» a couple of times now, but I seem to miss it on each visit to the left coast for some reason or another, well not this time. This time I got a chance to belly up to the bar, and have a bite of the heralded pizza pie.
Tony’s claim to fame is spot on interpretations, reproductions if you will, of famous/​classic pizza from all over the world, but I came for 1. The World Pizza Cup winner; the Margherita. Its a classic recipe, the caputo flour, the San Marzano tomatoes, a little Basil and EVOO. It only differs in the mozzarella. In Italy, and a few spots in NYC, they use the real deal Mozzarella di Bufala, Here, its a fresh made Mozzarella Fior di Latte, from cows milk.
I totally get why they do it this way. Its nice and creamy, has a ton of flavor, and a nice springy snap. But its also where it lets this pizza down. There’s too much moisture, and the center of the pizza turns a bit soggy, and undercooked.
The flavor, the crusty bits, the summertime flavor of tomato and basil, that’s all there. Its a very good pizza, not the best in the country mind you, but that’s a pretty high bar. Nice try though, would definitely be the best pizza in my town, and miles beyond.
B+

Loved the food hated the wait.
I visited here New Years weekend and my sis in law told me about this place. The hostesses told us an hour and half wait. Ok that was fine guess we can find something else to do.
An hour and 15 mins passed and wondered ok really there’s no available table for party of 2. Then I heard (I assume manager) say to the hostess what happened to table 28 and the guy just shrugged and laughed & sure enough right away they called our name.
But the food definitely made up for the wait!
We had the garlic bread sooo good and the New Yorker pizza w/​o feta cheese (not a fan of feta cheese) and it was unlike anything I’ve ever tasted! I can’t even describe it. Sooo good.

Revisit? Absolutely! Service was excellent! However, I will not be revisiting for their award-​winning Margherita. I had this place bookmarked on my Unilocal account for quite sometime after seeing an episode on Food Paradise on television.
It was the week of my birthday when my goddaughter and I dined at this restaurant for lunch on 12÷16÷15. It’s a beautiful story of how the Margherita became limited to 73 per day, but it was not mesmerizing for me. I wished it was great, but my palate said otherwise. What was amazing was the Italian Style Meatballs. I didn’t ask what was in the meatballs because I probably would not have eaten it if I knew the ingredients. The best meatballs I’ve had so far (don’t tell mama, okay?).
My goddaughter had the Manhattan Calzone for her lunch, and she said it was the best she’s had and rated it with 5 stars. The first time she had a calzone was with me a few years ago on her birthday which she rated with 5 stars, but she changed her mind after she had the calzone at this restaurant. Pizza Napoletana’s calzone is the best she’s ever had, but that’s subject to change.
See you next time Pizza Napoletana!

Awesome sit-​down pizza place!
I came here for lunch on a Friday (12:15pm) with a couple of my co-​workers. Highly recommend getting here when they open. There’s always a line of people waiting and it gets crowded very quickly.
All the dishes here, including the appetizers, are family-​sized portions! My co-​worker and I split The New Yorker pizza and Buccatini pasta. Would highly recommend the pizza, but I’m not sure if I would order the pasta again. The Buccatini is a red, meat sauced pasta that could be extremely delicious, but I thought it was a bit too spicy. The menu does warn you that it’s very spicy, but the spice almost masks the taste of the meat.
I also recommend getting things on the menu that are more classic and simple.
Overall, a great place to come with a group of friends!

Hands down the best pizza I have ever tasted in California. Found this place about 4 years ago while touring San Francisco for the first time.
Was lucky enough then to catch the place before it got busy so our wait was not long. Their New Yorker is my favorite savory sauce and perfect crust. Their garlic bread is just beyond amazing and I highly recommend it. I love garlic so this hit the spot for me.
Their staff is very friendly and welcoming, bar tenders will match your beer with food and also recommend things based on things you’re craving
I’ve made it a ritual to stop by every time I am in San Francisco. It is a MUST. After we eat I do a takeaway pizza for the road.
Show up early or be prepared for the wait. I’ve waited for as long as 1hr 45 mins to be seated. (Thank my gf for her patience) but absolutely worth it.
When I die serve Tony’s pizza at my funeral.

Love the food and the atmosphere here. We came in for lunch and ordered the Meatball Gigante (with wild mushroom, pancetta, and cream sauce) and the New Yorker pizza. I think they only serve a limited amount of the giant meatballs per day, so I’m glad we were able to order one. The meatball was huge and not something I would tackle alone. I would give the meatball 4.5÷5 stars. Super moist and flavorful. The New Yorker pizza is topped with mozzarella, pepperoni, Italian sausage, and ricotta. For sure one of the most savory pizzas I have consumed. Definitely expect a decent wait if you wander in during prime lunch or dinner hours.

¹¹⁄₁₀ would try again. High level summary is that they put care in to all the items on the menu and it shows.
Saw this place on an Esquire special and it shows up quite often on lists published by Food Network, Thrillist, and the like. We ordered the Caesar (solid), the limited Margherita (dece I wanted them to go HAM on the Basil), and La Regina (amazing).
One tiny complaint: as a graphic designer, their menu just kills me. It’s quite difficult to decipher what exactly is going on. I did a bit of pre-​reading on the Internet and yeah it’s gonna be hard to design a menu! They have 7 different ovens and 12 different doughs!
Other than that it was an all-​around good time and I’m looking forward to trying some other menu items.
La Regina was absolutely fabulous if you like crust. A great mix of cheesy goodness, salty prosciutto and pepperoni, and crispy arugula, all on that crispy fluffy crust.
Their cocktails were also great! They have a smooth rye old fashion and a fun spicy Matador that’s easy to drink and unique.
They also have their whole menu to go, and you can do the New Yorker by the slice.
Yes there’s a long wait, so just plan accordingly. Once you’re in they don’t rush you.

I’ve never had more delicious meatballs in my life. (that sentence could’ve turned out really wrong…) But for real, it was amazing. They were an after thought, we figured we wouldn’t feel full with the margherita pizza and added the meatballs in last second. AHHH I can’t stop thinking about them. MMMMM
So yes, meatballs alone are worth it. Pizza? Oh god, perfect pizza.
Everything everyone says is true. They food is great, the wait is long (even at 2pm on a Wednesday) and parking in the area is atrocious. I don’t ever use that word because it’s a serious word. That’s how bad the parking is. BUT all of that is worth it!
We forgot our leftovers on the table =****(I can’t wait to go back and have more meatballs and pizza!

Even though we’d gotten there around 5:30pm or so, our party of six still ended up waiting nearly and hour and a half! It’s that nutty, but I admit, their pizza was really good. They offer a pretty impressive array of all different styles of pizza, and we got: two napoletana margherita, the meat lovers’ deep dish, and a spaghetti and meatballs, which had the best al dente noodles ever! I also treid their Negroni cocktail, which was seriously good. Two takeaways: definitely worth trying and make sure you’re not totally starving by the time you get here.
STEPH JUDGEMENT: Really good pizza, but the wait is just ridonculous.

Since I’ve been in San Francisco, I’ve heard of Tony’s Pizza more times than I can count with both hands. I will say the pizza is truly excellent — There are multiple different types of pizza offered at Tony’s and instead of being great at only one style of pizza, Tony’s is great at all of them.
All the same, I am ambivalent about pizza and most Italian foods. Therefore, the only times I really eat pizza are at restaurants (in NYC, LA, PHX, Italy) that are infamous for making incredible pizza. Tony’s serves great pizza but it isn’t as mind-​blowing as everyone makes it to be. Maybe if I was waiting for a table for 2 – 3 hours and starving — yes. But I imagine anything would taste awesome at that point.
My point being, this is a great place to go at least once if you live in San Francisco. I probably won’t be a frequent visitor because I prefer many other cuisines (i.e. seafood) over pizza — much less waiting 2 – 3 hours for pizza! If you come at the off hours, there is unlikely to be any wait.
Cool tip: The menu lists the degree at which the oven is heated at and the type of gas they use for each style of pizza.
Negative: The waitresses are incredibly pushy here. This isn’t a place where you can sit and relax because they’re trying to turn tables quickly. It’s borderline rude especially when you’ve been waiting hours for a table — which is why I’m giving the place 3.5 stars… bumped to 4 because I’m feeling generous.

Pizza excellente. Tony mérite bien son titre! Nous avons dégusté la pizza Margherita, la pizza championne du monde. Quel bonheur! Une pâte si fine, le juste dosage des ingrédients… C’était parfait!
J’espère y revenir un jour

nothing special. dont believe the hype.