America's 9 Best Cities for Pizza

There’s no arguing that pizza is one of the most delicious and popular foods in America. But which city serves the absolute best? We set out to investigate, and based on our annual ranking of America’s best pizza, we’ve come to the conclusion that while one city stands apart from the pack, many others aren’t far behind.

America's 9 Best Cities for Pizza (Slideshow)

There are dozens of different pizza styles to be found across the country. Some harken back to the original way of making pizza in Naples (the classic Neapolitan style), but most are the products of the cities in which they can be found. New York, Detroit, St. Louis, New Haven, and of course Chicago all have their own trademark pizza styles, and other styles, including bar pie, grandma, and Sicilian-style, are popular from coast to coast.[related]

What makes the perfect pie? Considering the varied pizza styles, that’s a loaded question. Suffice it to say, no matter your pizza denomination, the following is true about the ideal pie: a nuanced sauce, neither too sweet nor salty; quality, well-distributed cheese; quality and well-paired toppings; a flavorful, savory crust; and a judicious, well-balanced, and pleasing ratio of sauce, cheese, toppings, and crust that maintains a structural integrity no matter the style.

America's 9 Best Cities for Pizza

To name the best cities in America for pizza, we consulted our fourth-annual ranking of the 101 Best Pizzas in America, which started with 800 pizzerias from every corner of the country. These pizzerias were assembled into a survey which was then taken by culinary authorities as diverse as Bizarre Foods’ Andrew Zimmern, Los Angeles Times food critic S. Irene Virbila, food writer John Mariani, and chefs Elizabeth Falkner and Wylie Dufresne. Read on to learn which nine cities are home to the highest amount of pizzerias on the list.

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Additional reporting by Arthur Bovino.