Best Pizza in Durham

-Originally written for Durham Guidebook

If you really want to get a taste of the local flavor, nothing beats a good old-fashioned slice of pizza. Luckily, the Durham pizza scene is guaranteed to dazzle your taste buds. Whether you’re just passing through or you’ve lived here for years, here are the pizza places you need to check out when you’re in town.

Local Pizza Favorites

Hutchins Garage

Have you ever dreamed of eating pizza in an old garage? I know I have!

Hutchins Garage is a local pizzeria that specializes in classic pizzas and light bites. With a large outdoor space for outstanding patio dining and massive garage doors (of course) to create a seamless indoor/outdoor space (weather permitting), this is a great place to enjoy a slice of ‘za with a cold beer.

Locals love the laid-back atmosphere and entertaining neon lights saying things like, “Hot” and “Pizza Made Me Do It,” which is something we’ve all felt from time to time. Plus, it’s only a hop, skip, and a jump from Duke University, adding to the college town charm.

There’s plenty of dishes to explore on the menu, but the pizza is the real draw. Hutchins Garage specializes in traditional Italian-style pizza with a nice flaky crust. While you can’t go wrong with any thing on the menu, the white pizza is a definite must-try!

Sofia’s Restaurant & Pizzeria

Sitting in a refurbished 1930s gas station off Angier Ave in East Durham is one of the most delectable pizza places in the city called Sofia’s Restaurant & Pizzeria.

Locals love Sofia’s for its full menu. You can grab anything from salads and apps to lasagna, subs, and, of course, awesome pizza! Enjoy the historic building and traditional pizzeria décor while sipping a local beer.

If you’re in a hurry and don’t have time to hang out, Sofia’s also sells pizza by the slice. Grab a quick piece of delicious local pizza and go about your day with a smile and a happy belly.

Randy’s Pizza

Spread across eight different locations all around the Triangle, Randy’s Pizza has been dazzling customers for over 25 years. In fact, they were even voted as the Best Pizza in the Triangle by both the N&O and the Durham Herald Sun!

Each location of Randy’s Pizza has a slightly different menu that caters to the local flavor, but no matter which one you visit, you’re guaranteed to have a good time. Randy’s uses only the highest-quality ingredients to make its authentic New York-style pies and prepares all the dough daily in-house.

For extra hungry visitors, you can get a whopping 30-inch pizza that’ll satisfy even the biggest eaters in your party! They’re known for having the biggest slices in Durham.

Best Pizza in Downtown Durham

Mellow Mushroom

If you’re ever wandering though the historic American Tobacco Campus in downtown Durham and get a craving for some great pizza, you can’t go wrong with Mellow Mushroom.

Mellow Mushroom is a unique pizza chain that specializes in artsy décor, homemade crusts, and stone-baked pizzas. It’s hard to miss with all the psychedelic mushrooms popping out of the side of the brick industrial building! And the beer-tap fountain is always good for ‘gram-worthy pictures.

Whether you want to eat a mushroom pizza in a mushroom-themed restaurant or prefer something a bit more unique, there are tons of creative topping and sauce combinations to choose from. Many of the pizzas can be made vegan or gluten-free. They also have plenty of apps, burgers, salads, and sweets to satisfy any flavor palate, along with 16 draft beers on tap with many from local breweries.

Pie Pushers

What started as one of Durham’s favorite food trucks is now a brick-and-mortar pizzeria!

Pie Pushers started serving New York style from the back of a truck in 2011, which immediately became one of the area’s favorite pizza stops. After years of success, they were finally able to open a permanent location right on Main Street in Durham. Just head through the door to the left of Pinhook and follow the giant flashing “Pizza” sign up the stairs.

From there, you can either build your own pizza from their long list of toppings or order one of their numerous specialty pies. Pie Pushers has something for any time of day, so you can have pizza for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a late-night snack! I highly suggest you check out their brunch pizza that’s topped with bacon, sausage, potato, and a runny egg!

You can enjoy these awesome pizzas in the dining room or by grabbing it off the street from the sidewalk pizza window. The Pie Pushers food truck still makes rounds around the city, so you might even be able to catch it while you’re out and about. Keep an eye on their website for updates.

Best Fancy Pizzeria

Pizzeria Toro

Eating pizza doesn’t have to be an informal affair. If you want to wear your nice going-out clothes to enjoy a slice of wood-fired pizza, head over to Pizzeria Toro in downtown Durham.

Pizzeria Toro offers tons of specialty pizzas in a more upscale atmosphere. Instead of the “standard” toppings you’d find in any old pizzeria, Toro offers all kinds of high-end options like Sam Marzano tomatoes, spicy lamb meatballs, and olive oil. Even the tried-and-true pepperoni pizza comes with crescenza, and grana!

They also have an extensive wine list with friendly, knowledgeable staff who can help you pair the perfect wine with your pizza. Who said you couldn’t have a classy date and eat pizza at the same time!?

Neapolitan Style Pizza

Pompieri Pizza

Pompieri is Italian for “firefighters,” so it would only make sense that a pizza place with the same name would be in an old firehouse!

Pompieri Pizza is one of the favorite Neapolitan-style pizzerias in downtown Durham. What makes them so good? They make everything they possibly can from scratch! All the pies are handmade with seasonal, farm-fresh, locally sourced ingredients to ensure the best of the best when it comes to delicious pizza.

As if the outstanding pizza wasn’t enough, Pompieri also offers homemade gelato, appetizers, and salads to suit any taste.

Families are also welcome with plenty of seating for big parties, a play area to keep the kiddies entertained, and lots of fish tanks.

Cugino Forno

Cugino Forno is originally a Greensboro, NC pizzeria, but it recently opened a new location in the Golden Belt neighborhood of Durham.

This incredible pizzeria specializes in Neapolitan-style, wood-oven pizza and other Italian food favorites. What really sets Cugino Forno apart from other pizza places on this list is that they import most of their ingredients straight from Italy! That’s right, you can eat a real, authentic Italian pizza right here in Durham.

All their pizzas are cooked to 900 degrees in handmade ovens made from stones taken from Mount Vesuvius. Talk about authentic! Because of the incredibly high heat, most of their pizzas come out in under two minutes.

You can find Cugino Forno right off Taylor Street next to the ever-popular Hi-Wire Brewing and Two Roosters Ice Cream. What more could you ask for in one place!?