Pizza House

Police Station Pizza...That's what a lot of folks call it, because it's located next door to the former Ambridge police station. This pizza is one of the absolute best in the Pittsburgh area. It's kind of funny that my two favorite pizza places are both in Ambridge, the other being Franks. Franks has a thin, crispy crust with a bit of a sweet sauce while Pizza House is a bit thicker crust, but still airy and crispy. They bake it and add the toppings after it's baked like they do at DiCarlos. Pizza House is take out only and it's packed on a Friday or Saturday night, but the service is pretty fast. I know it's a bit of a drive from the city, but it's worth it!!!

Claudio's Pizzeria and Ristorante

Chef Claudio


My friend Tom has been talking up Claudio's since his first trip there a couple of weeks ago. While he went with a group that Claudio designed and prepared a special menu for, the regular menu includes panini sandwiches, soups, salads, and a nice variety of pasta dishes. In addition, they prepare pizza.

Stacy and I were visiting at Tom's house and of course he was able to convince me to go just to try the pizza! Off we went...

First of all, this place is in a garage. I mean it. As you walk in, there is a small bar area (byob) on the left and maybe six or eight tables. You can still see the garage door in the dining room, but don't let it bother you, this place is neat and clean! All the tables were taken (at 4:00 on a Sunday) so we sat at the bar and popped open a couple of cold ones that we had brought along. Almost immediately, Claudio came over and introduced himself and chatted, in between pulling fresh baked bread from the oven. He explained that his main business is catering, and that he had been the owner of the popular Abruzzi's on the South Side.

We were served some of that great homemade bread, and ordered some banana peppers to snack on. For pizza, they serve a Napolitano (thin round) and a Focaccio (thicker, square cut). While both looked great, we settled on a Napolitano (16" for $9.99). Pizza lovers all have strong opinions about their favorites, but let me tell you, this is good! The crust was thin and crunchy, with a slight burn on the bottom as if it came from a brick oven. The sauce was tasty and cheese and toppings were top notch. Now I'm not saying that this is my favorite (I'll stick with Franks!) but this is one of the best. I think that this pie will appeal to those that love traditional brick oven style with top quality ingredients. If you like il Pizzaiolo in Mt. Lebo, you should try this!

Claudio's is at 1883 Painters Run Road in the South Hills.

Pittsburgh's Best Pizza!

Click on the title for the link to Pittsburgh's best pizza.
I've talked a lot about pizza in Pittsburgh. My favorites have always been Harrys down at Donaldson's Crossroads, Pizza House (some call it Police Station Pizza) in Ambridge, and my all time favorite, Franks in Ambridge. Finally, vindication!

PIZZA!!! My filet mignon....

I love pizza. I also dislike a lot of pizza. As a matter of fact, I dislike pizza about 90% of the time that I have it. The fact that I rarely find really good pizza and continue to order it is some kind of indication of my deep desire to locate the next great pizza joint. Then again, maybe it just indicates that I'm not too bright...

I feel as though I've tried every pizza place in the Pittsburgh area, but of course I'm sure that I haven't even come close. Following are just a few that I've tried and a brief (very brief!) review of them:

Azzeria on Banksville-Pretty good, brick oven baked but not one of my favorites

Bado's in Mt. Lebo-OK

Bellissimos on Mount Washington-Near where I live so it's convienent. That's about it.

Beto's on Banksville-This pizza I really like and would rank it in the top five in the Pittsburgh area. This is thick crust, but it's not too doughy. It is a crispy crunchy crust with a good sauce and fresh cheese. Very good.

Capri Pizza in Homestead-Better than average

Cestone's on Mount Washington-Another better than average and convienent for me!

Cici's, everywhere-yuk

Domenico's in Cranberry-Nice variety and pretty good.

Domino's-yuk

Fioris Pizza on West Liberty Ave- Very good, kind of a sweet sauce and a thin crispy crust. You can order a pie and take it next door to the tavern which is nice.

Fox's Pizza Den, everywhere-Same old crap.

Frank's Pizzeria, Duss Ave. Ambridge-The Best. Ever. Anywhere. You can stop reading now, it dosen't get any better!

Giotto, South Side. One of the best, thin and crispy with a very good sauce. They also offer a variety of styles.

Harry's, McMurray on 19. Great, one of the best around. Thin crispy crust.

Juliano's, Stubenville Pike-Pretty good stuff

Little Chicago on the South Side-I ordered the Chicago style and didn't like it, but I'm going to go back and try the thin crust.

Luigi's, Lincoln Ave, Bellevue-This was always a pretty OK pie.

Michael's, Sarah Street, South Side-This is amazingly good pizza for a bar/restaurant. I don't hesitate to order it and it's a pretty good bar too!

Mineo's, Squirrel Hill and Mt. Lebanon-Considered one of the best in all of Pittsburgh, but not by me...Here we go, let the comments fly!

Monte Cellos's-OK chain pizza

Papa John's-See above

Pepperoncini's, Oakdale-Pretty good

Pizza Roma-OK for a chain, kind of like Monte Cello's

Police Station-In Ambridge. Excellent. Has a thick crust, which I usually don't like, but their's is very airy and crispy. One of the best!

Sir Pizza, off of Rochester Rd in the North Hills-very good and unique. Thin and cut into tiny squares

Tony R's, Sewickley-One of the best. Very fresh ingredients with the best cheese! Take your GPS!

Uno's-no damm good.

Vincent's in Greentree-Pretty good

Vincent's Pizza Park-Another that's considered one of the best in the city. I haven't tried it, but they have such a rep that I felt I had to list it here. I'll report back after I try it.

Vocelli, everywhere-OK

I always thought that pizza preferrence is really a personal thing. I mean, just about any steak lover will like any good steak house, but pizza is different. People either love it or they don't. Mineo's is very popular in Pittsburgh and is pretty good. They use very fresh ingredients and the pie tasts like it, but it's just not my style.

My favorite, without a doubt is Franks in Ambridge. It's a thin crust that is almost pastery like in texture (not it flavor!). This makes it very airy but still crispy...not mushy. They apply the cheese first and then pour the sauce over it. This way the cheese retains it's moisture. If you want extra cheese, they just add it after it comes out of the oven. When they close the box, the heat from the pizza melts it. YUM!!!