As many of my readers know, I am a huge pizza fan who grew up in NY. Thus, I'm a big fan of traditional NY style pizza but also love the thin crusts coming out of coal and wood-fired ovens all over South Florida.
The following list includes all types of pizza. I wish the list was longer so I will keep searching the tri-county area.
**When I refer to dough, I am talking about the portion under the cheese and sauce. "crust" to me is the edge of the dough that you fold. I believe that is technically referred to as cornicione. I suppose you can simply call the entire dough the crust and the edge the upper crust. Whatever!! I like calling it pizza dough and crust. No idea if that is proper terminology or not but it's always been mine.**
I also attempted to make the list "lean" like the tower of Pisa but that failed...
MY FAVORITE PIZZA SOUTH FLORIDA-
Mauro's (Downtown Hollywood)- Huge authentic NY style slices. Perfect dough, sauce and cheese ratio which is something I look for and is very important to me. Their sauce skews slightly to the sweet side. As good as it gets in South Florida.
Cafe La Buca (Pompano)- NY style/thin crust hybrid. Fantastic tasting dough with a nice chew that is not overly charred. The cheese and sauce is top notch and perfectly proportioned. Pizza is cooked in a wood-fired oven imported from their hometown of Naples, Italy. Five tables, daily changing verbal menu. Get a small pie so you can try one of their fresh housemade pastas. Hidden gem and a must visit.
Kings County Pizza (Aventura)- Another recent find that opened within the last year or so. They are serving authentic NY style pies including stellar Sicilian and grandma pizza. Sauce skews on the spice (basil/oregano) side. On a side note, the wings and baked ziti are even better.
Macalusos Market (South
Beach) - I'm a big fan of Macaluso's, the restaurant and was very happy
when he opened the market next door. The Market features great
appetizers including their legendary meatballs, heroes and pastas. They
also serve fantastic pizzas. Kill two birds with one stone and order
the meatball pie.
Racks (Sunny Isles)- I must admit that I wasn't a huge fan off the bat but it was good enough early on to get me back and they have really won me over. I don't think I was off early on. I think they have improved. Regardless, their pizza is another NY style/coal-fired hybrid. The underlying dough is on the thin side but the overall flavor is all NY style thanks to the great sauce, gooey cheese and great tasting dough.
Harry's Pizza (Miami) I really struggled over where to place Harry's. I initially had them on the BUST list because I was disappointed with the baseline
matzoh margherita
pie I tried. It was super thin and overly crispy. BUT I knew going in
that Harry's wasn't about a traditional margherita pie. Chef Schwartz's
pies are topping driven and the stars of his pizza. He combines great
ingredients with interesting and flavorful pairings that really work. I
know a lot of people that will love what is coming out of
Eismann's his wood-fired oven. Leave your NY state of mind at home and go with an open one. I think you will leave happy.
HONORABLE MENTION-
Steve's (North Miami)- This is a place I really want to love but always
falls just short for me. It's very good but the sauce is just too sweet for
me to rank above the honorable mention bar.
Spris- (South Beach) An underrated spot over on Lincoln Road that features some interesting topping combinations. Always leave satisfied.
Anthonys Coal Fired Pizza (Multiple Locations) Anthony's seems to have a real love/hate following. I'm on the love side of the fence but do find their pizza to be on the overly salty side and their toppings tend to weigh the pizza down. Regardless, they serve unique and tasty pies.
Papa Juan's- ha-ha just making sure you're paying attention.
Alternative Pizza's I like-
Michaels Genuine- (Design District) Love the breakfast pizza on the brunch menu.
Sustain- (Midtown Miami) Big fan of the Green Eggs & Ham pizza on their brunch menu.
TO EAT LIST-
Tuccis Pizza (Boca)
Pizzeria Oceano (Lantana)
Kitchenetta (Ft. Lauderdale)
Frankie's (Miami)
Timo (Sunny Isles)- Have fond memories of the Black & White (shaved black truffles) but it's been a while.
Pucci's (South Beach) I was a huge fan of the prior incarnation back in the early to mid 90's but that was back in my partying days. Most slices were post clubbing and/or nursing a Rebar/Velvet/Chili Pepper/Groove Jet/Chaos hangover...very fond memories though)
Really Miss-
Pizza Volante