It’s not news that Portland is a serious Pizza city, a pizza destination, even by some ratings the best pizza city in all of America! Whatever the national hype is, Portlanders know how good the pizza is, and the chefs in town know to come with their A game. This post is by no means an exhaustive, or even comprehensive list of the best pizza in town. It is instead a list of the best pizzas I have had in the last year (and that I have pics of). Photos are in chronological order, starting with the most recent.

First up is Prettyboy Pizza. They are new and just opened up a few weeks ago in the Little Beast brewery on SE Division. They make “grandma tray” style pizzas (don’t call it Detroit style lol). Square cut, cheese on bottom then topped with toppings and sauce. I had this this weekend and it was a very good pie. Their weekly special, it had pepperoni, jalapenos, pineapple and hot honey. The toppings were on point and the edges were perfectly crispy. A very worthy, and unique addition to the Portland pizza scene. Ultimately I’m a sauce on bottom type guy, but I appreciate pizza diversity.

Next up is a tavern pie from Red Sauce Pizza. Red Sauce has been around for a decade now and they make exceptional pies. Their new specialty is “tavern pies” which is a new term to me, though I’ve had similar thin crust pizzas before, they just weren’t called that. You can make any of their pies tavern pies from Monday-Thursday. I like this style as an option. The crust is thin, crunchy and delicious, and it’s all about those toppings! This is their “It’s Me Nummy” with pepperoni, fresh pineapple and jalapenos. Not every pizza on this list will have these ingredients I swear! But they are one of my favorites. If you’re someone who doesn’t think pineapple “belongs” on pizza I’m sorry there is no joy in your life.

The Hail Mary from Dimo’s Appiza. Soppressata, rosemary, Calabrian chili, tomato sauce, tomato confit, castelvetrano olives, garlic confit, oregano, chili flake, provolone, mozzarella, grana padano, pecorino. Dimo’s is making some of the best pizza in town, as well as incredible pastas, salads and hoagies. Coming from the New Haven tradition, they are making the dough (and pretty much everything else) in house. Although at first it looks like a fairly standard soppressata pizza, once you read through the ingredient list you realize the complexity and attention to detail. You really tasted all those ingredients individually and as a whole. The olives were perfect. This is one of the best pizzas I’ve ever had in my life.

Calzone from Apizza Scholls. Apizza Scholls is legendary, and is a big part of the reason Portland is on the (inter)national pizza map. Now 20 years in, and the pizza is still just and incredible as always. I remember when I moved to town one year after they opened and they had this mystique and near-cultish fandom around them. People would show up and hour BEFORE they opened just to get in line! I thought that was crazy at the time, yet still totally justified. Nowadays it’s much easier to get in thankfully, though still bustling. At some point they started doing calzones and they are a revelation! I love calzones because I don’t always want a whole pie, and they tend to always be a good deal economically, especially with pizza prices continually rising. Take this bad boy, a hefty calzone for just $16, that’s a killer deal! This can either feed one large, very hungry person (me) or possibly 2 smaller humans. Ricotta, fresh & aged mozzarella, julienned sopressata, pecorino/grana padano blend, EV olive oil & light black pepper with tomato sauce on the outside (and of course a side of it too for dipping). This was a fantastic calzone, one of the best I’ve ever had. It also made me pine for Eddie’s Flatiron pizza on Killingsworth, where I used to eat their calzones weekly. Those will always be the gold standard for me.

Special from Pocket Pub. Pocket Pub has been my favorite pizzeria in town since they opened up 9 years ago, partly because I’ve lived a block or two away from them for 6 years now, partially because their pizza is really THAT good. I love all their pies, and they always have a delicious weekly/seasonal pizza. This one was from last summer and has Bacon, Charred Fresh Pineapple, Red Onion, Jalapeno, Smoked Provolone, Mozzarella, Red Sauce. Pineapple and jalapeno, big surprise I know. What can I say, they are delicious toppings. Pocket Pub has long been a neighborhood favorite, but for some reason has never gotten the city-wide (let alone nation wide) accolades for their pizza and food. Take it from me though, Pocket Pub is right up there with Apizza Scholls and Ken’s. Everything on their menu is killer, and their salads are some of the best in town. Plus a cute little spot that is great for either date nights or casual get togethers and two really awesome women who run the joint. If you take anything from this post (besides how much I love pizza), the main takeaway is that you should check out Pocket Pub!

Next up is another newcomer, Whit’s Pizza Pies, which is posted up in Living Haus Brewery. First off, I love this tradition of breweries bringing in pizza makers for their kitchen. There is no greater combination on this earth than pizza and beer. Living Haus makes very good beer, and Whit’s makes very good pizza! They make smaller 12′ pies, which is perfect for me. This is the Sausage & Peppers pie: red sauce, basil, pecorino romano, mozzarella, Italian sausage, roasted red peppers, fresh jalapeños. Chef’s kiss, so good! Their crust is super flavorful and is worth special mention.

And what kind of pizza post would it be without mentioning Ranch? The pizzeria that made me fall in love with ranch sauce (when homemade that is). Their ranch is like crack, I’m addicted, I can’t get enough! I’m dipping my pizza in ranch like an American madman. Started in 2017, Ranch has spawned a mini-empire across the metro area with 9 locations. I remember the OG days though, when they were slinging out slices out of Poison’s Rainbow. Those were the halcyon days. No slice was ever better than those original slices from 9 years ago. Though I wax nostalgic, Ranch still kills it. Those massive square slices cut diagonally loaded with delicious toppings. Their Hawaiian is one of my favorite pizzas of all time: aged mozzarella, red sauce, bacon lardons, fresh pineapple, roasted jalapeno, red onion, pecorino romano, basil. It’s perfect every time. I don’t know how all the outposts compare, the locations I’ve been to are the Dekum, NW 21st and SE location at Baerlic Brewing (where this photo is from) and for whatever reason, the SE location has always been the best, most consistent and closest to the original bar location. Plus, it’s in a brewery, and we know that’s always a winner!

Phew that was a long post, but honestly I could talk Portland pizza for days. Other locations that aren’t mentioned in this post but are favorites are: Ken’s (duh, obviously, though they don’t need any press help from me), Assembly (RIP), Pan Con Queso, Ruse, Baby Doll, and I’m sure others I’m blanking on right now. Ones on my list to check out are the Turning Peel and Hapa Pizza in Beaverton. Happy eating!