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A pizza chef's guide to the best pizza in Naples

Neapolitan-born expert pizza maker Daniele Uditi believes that to understand pizza,apprendre a jouer au poker you need to eat it in the place it was invented. Here are his top places to eat pizza in Naples.

Neapolitan-born master pizzaiolo (pizzamaker) Daniele Uditi has lived in the US for more than 15 years. But, "it doesn't matter where in the world I am, I will always be from Naples," he tells the BBC.

Daniele Uditi is the owner of the LA-based Pizzana pizzeria chain. His newest venture as chef and owner of the Lele Dinner Club in Los Angeles' West Adams neighbourhood has been praised by LA Times food critic Jenn Harris as "LA's hardest reservation". His Instagram account features regular 'Is it really Italian?' segments, dispelling myths about "Italian" dishes found overseas.

(Credit: WeAreFactory)

Like Uditi, pizza was born in the famously chaotic seaside Italian city; its invention widely credited to chef Raffaele Esposito who is believed to have created the white, red and green dish in tribute to the colours of the newly unified nation's flag. Uditi, who served as a judge in Hulu's 2022 pizza competition show, Best in Dough, notes that though pizza is beloved – and found in many forms – worldwide, he believes you've never truly had it until you've had it in its birthplace.

"To understand [pizza], you go to Naples, and you eat pizza the way it's supposed to be, al portafoglio," says Uditi, referring to Neapolitan street pizza that is folded twice on its sides "wallet-style". "Eating a pizza in the place that it was invented with all the sounds of the city, seeing another Neapolitan eat it while on the phone and walking with an overflowing pizza in the box because it stretched too big."

Can pizza be too big? "It's not perfect," admits Uditi. "Neapolitan pizza is an artisanal product, so sometimes you don't find the perfect circle. I think it's a perfect representation of the city. Naples is not a perfect circle. Naples has good things and defects, but when you take a bite, everything makes total sense."

Here are Uditi's top six pizzas in Naples.

High up in Naples's leafy, green Capodimonte quarter, Pizzeria La Notizia 53, helmed by chef Enzo Coccia, is a magnet for visitors from every walk of life, says Uditi. "You can find a university professor, a lawyer, or you can find a student, you can find a couple they just want to enjoy themselves."

"Go to places where the menu doesn't look familiar to you. Even if it's difficult, try to speak with Neapolitan people 'cause we will do everything [we can to make sure you] understand."

Despite Coccia's reputation for inventive pizzas like one of his recent springtime offerings, topped with courgette, tomatoes and thyme, Uditi says the humble pizzeria's biggest draw is undoubtedly their classic Margherita. "You go there for the Margherita," he says. "The Margherita is special, because he has the perfect balance between the three ingredients… Everything comes together, nothing overpowering."

Website: http://www.enzococcia.com/

Address: Via Michelangelo da Caravaggio, 53, 80126 Naples NA

Phone: 081 714 2155

Instagram: @enzococcia_lanotizia

Antonio Starita, a historic pizzeria just outside the gritty Rione di Sanità neighbourhood, is what Uditi calls: "another staple in Naples".

But not just for its pizza – for its montanara.

Montanara – deep-fried dough topped with tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella and basil – is a beloved Neapolitan street food. Uditi loves Starita's: "the way he fries the dough, it's never oily. It's super light. And the sauce is cooked just right. On the montanara, the sauce has to be pre-cooked, right? So it's almost like a sugo [long-simmered sauce]."

"Also, the pizza he does is spectacular," adds Uditi. "And he's just a character. [When I was a kid], I used to see him behind the counter… he was one of the people that inspired me to be a pizza chef. He doesn't talk that much. He speaks through his product."

Uditi's hack for beating the beloved spot's oftentimes-long queues: "Go off hours. Don't go straight when they open up, because you're for sure not gonna find a spot. I'll go around early afternoon or late at night when they're almost about to close."

Website: https://pizzeriestarita.it/en/

Address: Via Materdei, 27/28, 80136 Naples NA

Phone: 081 544 1485

Instagram: @antoniostarita

Heading deeper into Rione Sanità, Uditi enthusiastically recommends the generational Pizzeria Concettina ai Tre Santi; now run by the original owner, Concettina's, grandson, Ciro Oliva: "Ciro Oliva is one of the youngest pizza chefs in Naples, but he acts like a seasoned one. You can tell that Neapolitan traditions are safe in the hands of this guy, because he's gonna take care of it, but also never make it boring."

Apart from the classics, the upscale pizzeria serves highly inventive pizzas like the Fondazione San Gennaro – a mammoth pie topped with salami, smoked provola cheese and crumbled tarallo 'nzogna e pepe (traditional Neapolitan lard-enriched, almond-studded crackers).

"He was the first one to think about not just the pizza itself, but [giving] you texture," explains Uditi. "Pizza can be a soft experience, right? He said, 'I'm gonna disrupt that a little bit. Why don't we put tarallo 'nzogna e pepe on pizza?' It worked."

Website: https://www.concettinaaitresanti.com/locations/

Address: Via Arena della Sanità, 7 Bis, 80137 Naples NA

Phone: 081 290037

Instagram: @concettina3santi

Just 100m from Concettina ai Tre Santi is Isabella de Cham, renowned for its pizza fritta – a deep-fried calzone, traditionally stuffed with ricotta, cicoli (pork cracklings) and black pepper – and her daring degustazione (tasting menu) of deep-fried appetizers.

"Everything you eat there is just unbelievable," says Uditi of the chic-yet-cosy eatery. "I like the fact that Isabella is a woman. Pizza fritta used to be made [only] by women; they would make it and sell it on the street. We need more women in this job; we need some gentle hands, some different approaches. That's what I find in Isabella de Cham's approach to pizza fritta. [She] makes one of the lightest that you'll ever have in your life. It's unbelievable. And then she always comes up with new flavours. I tell her to make me a classic pizza with cicoli, ricotta and pepper but then she comes out and, 'No, Daniele, you have to taste this.' And everything comes together so good that you wouldn't believe that you are eating a tasting menu of fried food and feeling so light."

Website: https://isabelladecham.com/

Address: Via Arena della Sanità, 27, 80137 Naples NA

Phone: 081 1863 9669

Instagram: @isabelladechampizzafritta

"Diego Vitagliano would be the fine dining approach to the cuisine," says Uditi. "But also the way he thinks about the dough."

"Always check the bottom of the pizza because that's the part people most overlook. It might look beautiful on top, but sometimes pizza can be burnt and that might give you a very bad experience. [So] when you go to Naples and they serve you a very simple Margherita, just check for a perfect brown leoparding [dark, slightly charred spots denoting a perfectly-baked pizza]."

Diego Vitagliano's pizzeria, found in Naples's romantic Santa Lucia neighbourhood with outposts in Bagnoli and Pozzuoli, embraces new textures with a nod to tradition, often topping pizzas with ingredients found in classic Neapolitan dishes like pasta e patate (pasta, provolone and potato stew).

"It's just about him telling the history of Neapolitan cuisine by using the pizza as a vehicle," says Uditi. "For me, that's the genius there."

But, notes Uditi, "His classic Margherita will be one of the highlights of his menu. Sometimes people forget. They go there and say, 'Yeah, I want to try these new things'. And then he does it on purpose. In the degustazione, he [brings out the] Margherita last, because he wants to remind you, 'Yeah, this is fun, but this is what you came for'."

Website: https://diegovitagliano.it/

Address: Via Santa Lucia, 78 - 80 - 82, 80132 Napoli NA, Italy

Phone: 081 1858 1919

Instagram: @diegovitagliano_pizzerie

Though pizza was invented in Naples, the city's dintorni (outskirts) are also well-distinguished in the art of artisanal pizza making. Take a day trip to the town of Caserta – home to the stunning Reggia di Caserta and Uditi's top overall pizza pick; I Masanielli, chef Francesco Martucci's gourmet pizzeria.

"Francesco Martucci is a nutcase!" says Uditi. "I used to go to school in Caserta and [I would eat his pizza after class]. I grew up with his pizza and now I'm a pizza chef as well."

Though the nostalgia factor is strong for Uditi, he is also an enthusiastic fan of Martucci's gourmet offerings.

"Sometimes he takes one ingredient and just that ingredient will be the highlight of the pizza," says Uditi. "For his 'five onion pizza', you have a pizza with onions treated in five different ways. It's one of the most delicious bites that you're gonna have in your life… [and] He was the first one to introduce three ways of cooking dough; steamed, fried and then baked. And then he used to make this pizza with scallops and, like, sea moss powder on the top. And pollen."

"On a pizza!" marvels Uditi. "On a freaking pizza!"

Website: https://www.pizzeriaimasanielli.it/

Address: Viale Giulio Douhet, 11, 81100 Caserta CE

Phone: 0823 741284

Instagram: @imasanielli

BBC Travel's?The SpeciaList?is a series of guides to popular and emerging destinations around the world, as seen through the eyes of local experts and tastemakers.

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