The 5 Best Pizzas in Palm Beach County for National Cheese Pizza Day 2024

Pizza is mostly good, unless it's just plain bad. Thin crust, thick pizza, or pan-fried, unless it tastes like toasted cardboard, it's all pretty good. Don't we all crave that last slice in the pizza box? Or is that just a thing for newsrooms and election night?

Luckily for local pizza fans, the choice of pizzas has expanded in recent years. We have foldable New York style pizzas, Chicago deep dish pizzas, square Detroit style pizzas, and even Connecticut style. That would be the thin, oblong pizza that uses cheese as a condiment instead of a layer that needs to be melted.

There's pizza to suit every taste and appetite. Here are five of our local favorites.

Pizzeria in Palm Beach County: Yelp’s “Top 100 Restaurants in the USA”

Adrienne's Pizza Bar

The most memorable pizza I've eaten in recent months exceeded my expectations. I expected any pizza with the name “Original Sicilian” to come with a thick, spongy crust. But the “Original” pan pizza at 9-month-old Adrienne's Pizzabar in downtown West Palm Beach was anything but spongy.

What makes this 14-inch square pizza so perfect is its thin crust. But this isn't a thin pizza crust that's crispy like a cracker. Its crust is crispy, but still airy. The Original ($24) is cut into small, easy-to-grip rectangles and topped with a thin layer of tomato sauce and a layer of mozzarella, pecorino and parmesan cheese.

Because it tastes best when it's fresh out of the oven, the pizza is best enjoyed on-site at casual, friendly Adrienne's, one of a small wave of restaurants with New York roots slated to open at The Square Plaza in 2023. (The original restaurant is in New York's Financial District.)

Pro tip: Take your leftovers with you. Adrienne's original Sicilian cake reheats beautifully in the toaster.

Details: 378 S. Rosemary Ave., West Palm Beach, 561-834-0300,AdriennesPizzabar.com

— Liz Balmaseda, former food and dining editor

Joseph’s Classic Market

If I had to pick my favorites in West Palm Beach, the pizza at Joseph's Classic Market would definitely be one. How does their pizza taste? To me, it's the most classic New York style pizza you can get.

The dough is made fresh daily so the crust has just the right amount of crunch on the bottom and although it is thin, it is foldable thin and not crunchy. The sauce is also made fresh daily from imported vine-ripened tomatoes and is an excellent balance of sweet and savory.

Their cheese is a select blend of Grand Mozzarella from Wisconsin. Also, and I'm not sure how they do this, you never get (at least for me) the dreaded “cheese peel.” What is that? That's when you take a bite and not just a bite of cheese, toppings, and dough, but the entire slice of cheese and toppings fall off.

Details: 2751 S. Dixie Highway, West Palm Beach, 561-858-8819, josephsclassicmarket.com

—Eddie Ritz

Lynora's

The pizza menu at Lynora's Palm Beach County restaurants is wonderfully simple: The pizzas are baked in a wood-fired oven and topped with fresh, classic ingredients that transport you to Southern Italy, where Maria “Mamma” Abbenante hails from. Her quality control of ingredients, sauces and cooking methods at her son Angelo's hip local mini-pizzeria chain is Lynora's secret recipe.

The pizza impresses with a consistently aromatic dough, a beautiful crust on the thick edges, handmade mozzarella, freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano and Lynora's homemade Pomodoro sauce.

Pizza varieties include Bianca pizzas with burrata and prosciutto toppings, wild mushrooms, fontina and button mushrooms, and other tasty ingredients. Red sauce pizzas include a tasty Margherita, prosciutto and arugula, and a spicy cherry pepper and soppressata pizza. There are also cauliflower-crust pizzas and vegan pizzas.

Details: For Lynora’s locations and information visit Lynoras.com

— Liz Balmaseda

Hot cake

New York-style pizza that some New Yorkers describe as so good it's better than anything in the Big Apple itself? Can that be true? Yes, you can get it at Hot Pie in downtown West Palm Beach. Owner Johnny Ries jokes, “West Palm Beach is now considered the sixth borough of New York.” Using his grandmother's dough recipe that's over 80 years old, with homemade sauce and fresh toppings, these pizzas are baked thin and crispy in their coal-fired oven. Ries said it's actually a gas/coal hybrid oven, where the gas brings the temperature to 450 degrees and then the coal “boosts it to another 400 degrees.” Ries said this allows them to cook pizzas in 8 to 10 minutes, depending on the toppings. If you're not sure what to try, Johnny's New Yorker is their most popular. It includes fresh mozzarella, basil, parmesan and extra virgin olive oil.

Details: 123 S. Olive Ave., West Palm Beach, 561-655-2511, hotpiepizza.com

—Eddie Ritz

Anthony's Pizza from the coal oven

When my family is craving a hot pizza, we turn to Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza's specialty: Paulie's Pie. The flavorful pizza is topped with house-made meatballs, Italian sausage, ricotta cheese, and a choice of hot or sweet peppers. We like ours best with sweet peppers. There are many specialties to choose from at Anthony's, and you can create your own version. Each pizza is baked in the restaurant's coal-fired oven at 900 degrees. The crust is crispy, bubbly, and slightly charred around the edges. Perfection.

Pro tip: On National Cheese Pizza Day (September 5), Anthony has this special offer: a large cheese pizza for $10, to be eaten in the restaurant only.

Details: Anthony's locations and information can be found at acfp.com

— Laura Lordi

This article originally appeared in the Palm Beach Post: Pizza near me West Palm: Adrienne's Pizza Bar; Joseph's Market; Lynora's