Three pizzerias in SP are among the 100 best in the world; meet each one

It is no exaggeration to say that São Paulo is one of the pizza capitals of the world. There are about 26,000 pizzerias in the state, according to Apubra, the Association of United Pizzerias in Brazil. But the recognition has now come in an international award.

The 50 Top Pizza World 2022 ranking elected three pizzerias in São Paulo among the 100 best in the world.

The trophy was presented at the Royal Palace in Naples earlier this month. No Brazilian entered the coveted list of the 50 best restaurants, whose first place was divided between the Italian I Masanielli, located in Caserta, about 30 km from Naples, and the American Una Pizza Napoletana, in New York.

The first Brazilian house to appear is A Pizza da Mooca, by Fellipe Zanuto and Bruna Zanutto, in 77th place. Then comes André Guidon’s Leggera Pizza Napoletana, in 83rd place. Almost closing the ranking is QT Pizza Bar, by Matheus Ramos, in 99th place.

Learn more about each of them below.

Mooca’s Pizza

Created in 2011 in Mooca, one of the most Italian neighborhoods in São Paulo, the pizzeria has a funky atmosphere and recipes prepared with fresh ingredients and slow-fermented dough made with Italian flour. “It is an honor to receive the award and represent the country in such an important list for the world of pizza”, says Bruna Zanutto, a partner at the address. According to 50 Top, the caprese pizza, made with buffalo mozzarella, is the option that cannot be missed on a visit to the place.
Rua da Mooca, 1747, Mooca, east region, @apizzadamooca. Delivery via iFood

Leggera Pizza Napoletana

With a certificate of authenticity from the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, which certifies Neapolitan pizza recipes made according to the Italian standard, Leggera has been serving options with ingredients imported from Italy since 2013. The individual pizzas are opened manually and baked in a wood-fired oven, with natural fermentation masses prepared according to the technique recognized as intangible heritage by Unesco. The ranking considered the place’s marinara pizza a “masterpiece”.
Rua Diana, 80, Perdizes, west region, tel. (11) 3862-2581, @leggerapizzanapoletana. Delivery via WhatsApp

QT Pizza Bar

With a thin crust with crispy edges and a soft center, the last Brazilian pizzeria in the ranking serves round pizzas in an industrial-style setting. The menu prioritizes Neapolitan pizzas, which are made with the fermentation technique called “sourdough”, in which the dough is fermented with lactobacilli and yeasts naturally present in the environment and in the grains of the cereal from which the flour was made. Chef Matheus Ramos says that the goal now is to work to climb the rankings.
Al. Minister Rocha Azevedo, 1096, Cerqueira César, west region, @qtpizzabar. Delivery via iFood and Rappi