With the annual pizza challenge in full swing, one in which members of the public get to vote for their favourite pizzeria and stand to win great prizes, the Lifestyle team tested three Gauteng pizzerias that feature on the top 20 leader board of votes received and spill the beans, with just 13 days until voting closes.
OSTERIA ROSSA, BEDFORDVIEW
Bedford Village, Van Buuren Rd, Bedfordview
011-455-5911
Osteria Rossa is somewhat of an institution in Bedfordview. And if there’s one thing its known for, it’s pizzas.
In 2021 and 2022 Osteria Rossa and Piccola Rossa in Edenvale, which are run by sisters Claudia Lau and Cristina De Almeida, made the top 10 of the Porcupine Ridge Pizzeria Challenge. Clearly, the pair are doing something right.
Deciding to investigate for ourselves, we visited Osteria Rossa. It didn’t take long to clock the stream of customers collecting takeaways, mostly pizzas, as part of the Tuesday night special of three large offerings for the price of two.
Settling in for a cosy dinner over a bottle of Porcupine Ridge shiraz (R188) on the terrace, we started with a caprese salad (R110) and zucchini fritters (R58) as we studied the extensive pizza menu.
You’ll find pineapple on a Hawaiian pizza and chicken alongside mushrooms and avocado (one of their best-selling pizzas), but the toppings are mostly authentically Italian.
The pizzas come standard with a tomato base and mozzarella, and are tray baked in a gas oven. As Lau explains, the way nonas do it in Italy. Not everyone has a wood-burning pizza oven attached to their home kitchen, after all.
Deciding on two large pizzas (so we could pick two different toppings for each), we went for a standard regina (ham and mushrooms), the messico (bolognese mince and chilli), pancetta (pancetta, potato and rosemary) and the luganica (Italian sausage and mushrooms). A large pizza of eight slices averages R160.
These are edge-to-edge pizzas, meaning they have no crust and only four ingredients are used in making the dough — 00 pizza flour, yeast, salt and water, which undergoes a cold rise for 72 hours to produce a light, thin, crisp base that doesn’t leave you feeling bloated.
We couldn’t resist a nibble of their Gorgonzola pasta, which was rich and flavourful. We finished our meal with top-notch cappuccinos and the most deliciously light limoncello cheesecake and tiramisu made with cookies that haven’t been soaked to death to produce an overly boozy taste.
Serving quality, tasty food with impeccable service to boot, it’s not hard to understand why Osteria Rossa is a neighbourhood favourite that’s been going strong since 2009, managing to survive Covid with Lau’s inventive ideas, such as selling frozen pizzas to match their baked pastas.
After a hearty meal I’d be happy to come back for, it would come as no surprise if Lau and her team bag a top 10 spot again this year.
Overall score: 8/10 — Sanet Oberholzer
DINO'S, LONEHILL
Lonehill Shopping Centre, Lonehill Boulevard
011-465-3409
Pizza, as defined by The Oxford Companion to Food, is “a simple Italian dish associated especially, but not exclusively, with Naples, [and] has become almost ubiquitous”. The global spread was started by Italian emigrants who took it to America, from where it developed into an international food, as is the case in South Africa where hundreds of pizzerias have become much-loved pit stops for South Africans.
And that’s what Dino’s is, a much-loved eatery on the main drag that's been owned by Manfred and Lillo Skrabl since 2002. The original opened in 1992, so it's a true neighbourhood legend. The owners have retired to the Cape, but left the pizzeria in the capable hands of affable Rodrick Munyaradzi and his team. The décor, I’m sure, hasn’t changed since 2002, but as Rodrick told us, patrons say they love it because it feels like home. And it does. The service is good and friendly, and the food has a retro feel. We tucked into an artwork of a salad, the Dino’s Special (R115), which came with a centrepiece of iceberg lettuce shaped into a tower and secured with red onion rings. With that finished off with carrot sticks, it also featured tomato, avocado, cucumber, cheese and nuts, and sure harked back to the 1970s, Rodrick proudly told us it was one of the venue's most popular salads.
Then the pizza taste test, a choice of 14, from a basic margherita to the popular bacon, feta and avocado and a Greek pizza featuring cheese, tomato, spinach, feta, olives, garlic and chilli. This, with the Dino’s special of salami, onions, peppadews, green peppers and olives, was my choice. We'd stumbled on what to choose, but Rodrick shared that regulars love to select two pizza flavours as one pizza, a half of each. OK, I know purists would cringe, but locals love it, as we did.
My husband Peter's combo was a Four Seasons and Mexicana, the latter made up of bolognaise, onions, peppadews, green peppers and chilli.
The pizza are hugely generous — just what South Africans love — on a good, thin crust and the combos make an interesting artwork. They are very cheesy, another uniquely local spin on the original, and come laden with ingredients. Prices range from R105 for the Margherita to R145. Of course, half and half is half price of each.
All very tasty and enjoyable, with lots to pack up and enjoy as brekkie the next morning. We soaked up the vibes with Porcupine Ridge merlot and though we were miles from our ’hood, felt just like the locals who were enjoying the same and looked ever so comfortable on a cold evening that didn't involving straying too far from home.
Overall score 8/10 — Hilary Biller
PS: Dino's has, for years, run a popular half-price Monday special on pizzas.
Lucio’s Pizzeria — Randburg
231 Beyers Naudé Drive, Blackheath, Northcliff, Johannesburg.
011-678-0042
Lucio’s is one of those beloved and trusted neighbourhood restaurants. No wonder, since it’s been around for 36 years. It started as a cute little place with only seven tables. Now it seats up to 150. Having not been there for about 15 years, and living nearby, I often passed it and wanted to go back. I’m so glad I did.
The minute you walk in you can tell it’s one of those authentic Italian bistros with a family vibe. You are welcomed by smells of fresh garlic, grilled tomato and all the good stuff to get the stomach rumbling.
“Lucio's is a truly local, authentic Italian pizzeria and we use only top-quality and fresh ingredients to bring out the authentic flavours,” says owner Bimba Merlo.
It’s not only a place to grab a family meal, but also one at which to have a date night. There’s a fountain in the middle of the restaurant — think of a piazza in Italy — next to which we were seated. It could have been schmaltzy, but it’s a cute addition.
Lucio’s has a wide and diverse menu focusing on Italian standards (there are several different types of lasagne), but it is best known for its pizzas. The venue was voted one of the country’s favourite pizzerias in the Porcupine Ridge Pizza Challenge in 2021 and 2022, and is in the running again this year.
We tasted for ourselves.
Whenever we get pizza, my partner always orders a Mexicana (R110 medium, R130 large) as he says you can tell a good place by its chilli mince. Under no duress, he said this was one of the best he had ever eaten. He was mostly impressed with the generosity of the toppings. There is no skimping here. The cheese is ample and creamy, the bolognese sauce rich and spicy (but not too spicy) and all of this goodness is filled right to the crispy edges of the deep-pan dish. There were no bitty, burnt, crusty edges left on his plate. The deep-pan base is obviously Lucio's secret weapon — it has just the right amount of cheesy crispiness on the edge. You can order banting and gluten-free bases (large) at an extra R35, half and half at no extra cost, or a calzone (folded pizza).
I always go for the regina (R105 medium, R130 large) as I enjoy my pizza as uncomplicated as possible. I chose the thin base and it was excellent — crunchy, cheesy and with no skimping on the ham and mushrooms.
We washed it down with a Porcupine Ridge, which was a good accompaniment to the meal. My partner ordered sauvignon blanc (R145 a bottle, R52 per glass) and I had the merlot (R155 a bottle, R55 per glass).
We will definitely be back. I am eyeing the Lucio Special Calzone, which features a tomato base, double cheese, onion, olives and salami. Cannot wait.
Overall score 8/10 — Jennifer Platt
VOTE FOR YOUR FAVOURITE PIZZA
The third Porcupine Ridge challenge ends on September 30. All you have to do is vote for your best eatery to give it a chance of being chosen as South Africa's favourite. Give it your thumbs up via the website, www.votepizza.wine, and stand a chance of winning some fabulous prizes too.
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