la piazza al forno

this is a small italian restaurant is historic glendale that serves up the best pizza in the metro phoenix area. the pizza is certified by the italian government and uses the correct formula for an authentic neapolitan pizza. they handmade the cheese here and use certified tomatoes. this restaurant has been featured on diners drive inns and dives but don't hold that against them because the pizza is really great! i've been here a bunch of times and posted many of the photos up there. thistimewe started with a tasty eggplant appetizer special. the eggplant was very thin and cooked nicely it was stuffed with cheese and had a delicious tasty sauce on it.. my husband enjoyed a tasty pizza and i had a really big calzone. the calzone was stuffed with cheeses, and i added spinach and calabrian peppers for a little kick. had the delicious cheesecake for dessert. the cheesecake might be the best cheesecake that you can find anywhere in the valley. service is always great.

thistimeexcellent. i usually get the margherita d.o.c. everytimei come here because i love the high quality certified house made cheese and the certified delicious san marzano tomatoes on that light but structured chewy pizza dough. my review won't be helpful but it will be truthful. i find the pizzas range from excellent to so-so from my visits. my two pictures i posted of the same pizza show you how they can vary and my previous review explains what i had last time. i can say thistimemy pizza was excellent with delicious flavor and very good texture. when you get a well made pizza here you are getting the best pizza in glendale!


-----24 jul, 2013-----

inconsistant. i've been here a bunch of times and i do think some of the pizzas i had here were the very best you can get anywhere. i love the highest end ingredients that they use. i also like the neapolitan style of the pizza being so light and doesn't sit heavy in your stomach. besides the tasty pizzas the popular dish is the spaghetti pie. but my last pizza here might not be typical of what you normally get as a margherita as it was very wet and soggy so it wasn't as enjoyable as others i had here before. i say give them a try and see what you think.

this place never fails on delishness! always on point and never disappoints. bigtimeprops to the owners and staff!!! ur the best!!


-----18 feb, 2012-----

pizza at its simplest! this pizza embodies all that is the italian way of life . these guys lets the ingredients do the talking as well as their killer oven. salvatore pizza is my favorite and try the spaghetti pie, it's fantastic. the real gem has to be the cheesecake. you taste that and you will feel like you're in the big apple. feel free to let your guard down and splurge. you deserve it!

the best. went there for the firsttimethe other night, this place is truly wonderful. from the staff to the food. it's a mom and pop and it feels like one. i think everyone working there is family? the food was wonderful, i've never ever had pizza that good. we will surely be going back.

never again. my wife read good reviews so we tried this place tonight. we arrived at 6:00 p.m., and put our names on the list. they told us that there would be an hour wait. that hour wait was spent standing on the sidewalk since they don't have any significant waiting area. an hour later we checked on our status, and they told us that it would be another 20 minutes. 30 minutes later we checked out status again. now the story was that they didn't really know when we could get in. my wife said that we really needed to know when we would be seated. they suggested that we should leave if we couldn't wait an unknown amount of time. i had been totally quiet for the entire hour and a half, but decided it wastimeto inform them that their treatment of customers was total bs. we then went a block down the street and had a nice mexican dinner. you couldn't pay me enough money to ever try la piazza again.

incredible food, great price. the az rep got this one right! while the decor may not be that of a 5-star, stuffy restaurant, the wait staff treated us with great respect and were very personable. when i requested a suggestion, the family matriarch (grandchild was in a highchair towards the back), took thetimeto understand our tables' likes and dislikes before making a recommendation.

her suggestions were right-on! we started with the amazing stuffed shrimp and garlic bread. all seasoned perfectly where you could taste the food, not a bunch of salt and spices. we then followed it up with a combination of pizza and the family specialty (i have never seen it in another restaurant), the chicken pesto lasagna. we actually ordered two pizzas, both diverse from the other, and each incredible in its own manner. i loved the italian stallion (meat pizza), while my wife enjoyed to perfect blend of cheeses and garlic, olive oil and basil on the white pizza.

while the beer and wine list was not extensive, the options complimented the menu very well. and by dessert time, our heads were spinning. once again, grandma made a few recommendation for our table, and after her previous success, we cashed in again! the cheesecake was simple yet elegant and wonderful, while the cannolli's where exactly what i expected and more (again, i preferred the standard while a friend of ours absolutely loved the chocolate version).

bottom line, the food at this family restaurant beats anything that scottsdale can offer without the snobbery. meanwhile, the price was the most reasonable i have experienced in some time. we will go out of our way to eat at la piazza al forno. well done!