Peppino’s Neapolitan

This is real pizza, not that stuff you get from a chain. Pizza is so light it takes less than 2 mn to bake. All ingredients are fresh, grass fed, organic. The top is when you ask for oregano: the pizza guy actually comes with the dried herbs and spreads it over your pizza! Amazing taste.
We tried the other Peppinos across town and I will admit the food was great but service was one of the worst I ever had. This place is different. It has Joey! He is the reason we dined there. He explained the pizza like he is talking about bringing a child to life. He is so authentic I thought that was his shop! I only come once a year but will definitely come back and recommend it.
Ask for Joey.

I have so much to cover in this review that I simply might not get to it all. Let me first start by saying this is authentic and delicious Neapolitan-​style pizza. If you are unfamiliar with this style of pizza, you must go and try it. It is truly delightful. This is definitively different than NY-​Style pizza. So if that is your frame of reference, you need to readjust your expectation. You need to appreciate this style of pizza for what it is, and neither expect nor wish for it to be anything but what it is. I have read some of the negative reviews and I have to call these people out. To those people: All your reviews exhibit is an extreme lack of pizza knowledge, and an extreme narrow-​mindedness with regard to differing culinary interpretations of pizza.
Food: We ordered their award-​winning specialty pie (Called the PS2? Maybe?) with several cheeses and several meats (including two types of pepperoni and sausage). I love Neapolitan-​style pie. As mentioned above, this is different than traditional pie. It is fire-​baked in an ultra-​hot, 700+ degree oven to the point where small dustings of the dough have a charred appearance and flavor. For me, that is an excellent contrast. I love the fire-​singed dark spots. Yes, they can be bitter; but when you take that perfect bite with a little char, the sweet and natural flavors of the tomato sauce somehow make it pleasant! This contributes to a tender, yet slightly chewy crust with small splotches of crispy char. Amazing. (Dough: ⁵⁄₅)
Cheese & Toppings: Not only does the cheese get ultra-​melty and develops the beautiful light brown flavor spots, but if you get meats on the pie, they get this delicious sear along the outside creating a delectable crispy morsel. The pepperoni, sausage, and other similar meats all exhibit this quality — and it is awesome. (⁵⁄₅)
Sauce: THE highlight of the pizza. A perfect blend of tomatoes and herbs. The freshness of the tomato and the natural sweetness coaxed-​out by Peppino’s is what lifts this pizza to a whole new level. I am not usually one to like more than one topping on a pizza because typically that results in a massive imbalance of flavors. This pie was master-​crafted to achieve and strike a remarkable balance between all the major tastes (sweet, salty, savory, etc.). The sauce brings it all together. (⁵⁄₅)
Final Food Score: ⁵⁄₅
Service: This was the extraordinary element of our experience. On a hot summer day, in the mid-​afternoon, while wearing a suit … my party and I were walking in downtown Syracuse following a wedding because my wife and sister decided that it would be a brilliant idea to go bar hopping a couple hours prior to a wedding reception (a wedding reception that offered an entirely free and open bar, mind you … fools). After several stops of that nonsense, my father, brother, and I decided to split-​off and go chill somewhere while they went off and foolishly wasted money on something that would be free in the very near future. The trio of us walked by a few restaurants and stopped to look at Peppino’s menu.
We were going to continue on, but one of the pizza chefs approached us and suggested that we stop-​in and try their pie. After some indecisiveness, we decided to give it a shot. The guy was so friendly, and we were just looking for a quick snack to satiate us until the wedding reception. While inside, the guy chatted us up, recommended their award-​winning pie, and proceeded to be a respectful and gracious host. This dude sold us on the pizza and the whole experience. Absolutely wonderful.
Service: ⁵⁄₅
Atmosphere: Love the vibe in here. Upscale pizza shop with a see-​behind counter and quality furnishings abound. Everyone we came in contact with was pleasant. We even got a smile and a ‘hi’ from an employee coming in for their evening shift. That is rare. For me, when I worked in a restaurant/​retail, I didn’t even want to look at people for the first couple hours of my shift. This place felt like it had a ‘family vibe’ going on. I felt welcomed and very valued.
Atmosphere: ⁵⁄₅
Price: For what we paid for an 11-​inch pizza, it was well worth it. The quality is unmistakable and the price is completely warranted. I feel like I got more than my money’s worth here. Additionally, the guy behind the counter generously gave us two punches EACH to a loyalty card. Way above and beyond and definitely built the value.
Price: ⁵⁄₅ (4 +1 for the added loyalty card value and service provided)
Final Thoughts: Like I ranted above, if you want quality NEAPOLITAN pizza, this is your spot … period! If you are some whiney New Yorker (and I can be too, sometimes) who thinks pizza can only be made a certain way and anything that deviates from NY-​Style pizza is wrong, then do yourself a favor … and do the business a favor, and go to your favorite local NY-​Style Pizza joint. This is legit Neapolitan pizza with extremely high quality ingredients and master-​crafted pies. ‘Nuff Said.

I was surprised by the quality and superior service. Don’t miss this place if you are looking for a real pizza.

I love this place! Their pizza crust is unbelievable as is the creativity in the menu. I’ve always had great service and enjoyed a clean atmosphere. I can only recommend the Hot Date pizza and the Ancient Grains salad. I keep wanting to try others but those are so delicious that I always go back to them.

Delicious pizza! And made so fast! Love their marinara sauce. Looking forward to their upcoming pasta station!

Tried their goat cheese and dates personal pizza and it was scrumptious, with a wonderful compliment of garlic butter on top, and an excellent crust and toppings. Delivery was very prompt, my order arrived earlier than expected.

I’ve been to build-​your-​own pizza places before, and this is the first place where I was charged extra for mushrooms ($ 1) and for onions ($ 1), and when I saw they didn’t put much cheese and asked for a «little «more, they charged another $ 1.25. That’s ridiculous. Crust was good, but the pizza I had was just overpriced. How do you «build» a pizza without ingredients? Base price should be $ 5 (not $ 7.95)
if they’re going to charge for onions, for goodness sake. I’ll stick to a traditional pizza next time, or go to another build your own.

Had a not so edible experience and a restaurant nearby, so we popped into Peppino’s for 2 pies to go.
I’m not a sausage fan, but I had to try the Award Winning pie. Took it home (so it was a little cold by then). Omg flavor explosion. No wonder this pie won a prize. Totally amazing flavor all the way. Creamy goat cheese or ricotta dripped on top. Amazing amazing taste.
Can’t wait to go back and eat it in house fresh from the oven with a craft beer.
Excited thinking about it.
We miss La Taq, but we will simply just drive to Cicero. Peppino’s neopolitian is awesome

Visited midday which can be a hardship for some places. Not so here. We were greeted warmly and ordered pizza and side of greens. Cannot recall name of pizza but it had chicken, kalamata olives and cherry tomatoes and was drizzled with olive oil. So so good as were the greens. Enjoyed two local beers also. Service was friendly and look forward to returning soon to try more!

Why doesn’t every town have a pizza place like this? It’s like they figured it out. The pizza is just like I got in Naples AND you get all the toppings you could ask for (unlike Naples) AND it’s ready faster than a cheeseburger (as it should be). If this place wasn’t in Syracuse (and instead in Ithaca) there would be a line out the door until closing.

This is the place downtown for a pizza. Super fast depending on the time of day and made right in front of you. Be careful what you order. The margarita pizza is way overpriced given it is just tomato and crust. They skimp on the cheese. If you go with the Quattro carne you will love it. Toppings go great together and I feel like I am getting a decent value. They have been known to undercook the crust but they were very accommodating when I asked to put it back in for a few seconds. I have even seen them remake pizzas.

I did a drive by of Peppinos in the hopes of finding parking nearby and I noticed that while no street parking was available, no customers were in Pepppinos. An empty pizza joint is not a good sign. Ignoring this notion, I found a spot a few blocks away and walked to my destiny with pizza.
I read the glowing, gushing, piping hot, crisp, thin crust with a proper char, authentic New York reviews and the accolades of 5 stars generously heaped on top of each review. How could I not go here? And so I did…
Peppinos schtick is that you create your own pizza. This is in addition to the already dozen or so specialty pizzas offered. All this amounts to is an ever so slightly different view you obtain while you watch them put the ingredients on your pie through the protective glass at their counter. Pardon my lack of amazement, however, I have seen pizza being made a few times prior despite my youth and inexperience. If you haven’t sen this before yourself, you can even go to many pizza places to see your pie being made. This is not an amazing, radical ground breaking concept. It is a marketing gimmick. If it works for them and people find it interesting, then I am glad for them.
One enters this establishment with dark wood tables and a low black ceiling and proceeds to their wall mounted menu, follows the ropes (like a TSA line), and proceeds to the first counter to order (you keep your shoes on). Keep walking a few more feet and you’re standing in front of the pizza prep area. Proceed two more feet and order your drink which includes 5 or 6 beers on tap and pay your debt. Then, they will bring your pizza to your table when it is ready. Nice people with pleasant overall service. In fact they came to my table twice to inquire about the pizza. I ‘m not the type that usually complains and I didn’t mention my disappointment.
I felt special on this day and I went with their even more special Quattro Carne: «All Natural Italian Tomato Sauce & Ricotta Crème, Mozzarella, Local Chorizo, Aged Pepperoni, Prosciutto Di Parma, Capicola, Sweetie Drops». Besides, I am too lazy too pick a creative mixture of toppings. I’ll pay, I won’t have to think and, of course, someone else does the work. «Sweetie Drops»… I thought would be some form of pepper. It is the mutt of the pepper world and it’s named sweetie for a reason.
I watched the initial assembly of this 11″ pie, took a few pictures, paid for the forthcoming pie and took a seat. I had to clean the table and arrange the chairs as they were quite out of order. They have an old fashion meat slicer (deli slicer) on display in the center of the small dining area, which to me, was quite a treat to see. I don’t know if a real cutting blade or a dummy was installed but, we’ll read about it in the news when a young kid finds out the damn thing works !
My pie was delivered and I set my eyes on it. Who ordered the marshmallow and cherry pizza? It was quite pretty, while simultaneously puzzling, as it defied my pizza loving visual expectations. I expected the ricotta cream to be baked with the pie. It appeared to be dolloped on top after cooking. As I dug in and pulled the my first slice, I immediately noticed the crust was rather soft and floppy and not as thin as NYC thin crust pizza. My first bite of the outer crust revealed a slight crust crispness, and a char on the crust with a burnt, acrid and an almost unpleasant note. The crust offered no resistance or had no chew factor. I would describe it as soft, very moist and cake like. On my next bite, I tasted the ricotta cream and, as suspected, it was placed on top after the pie was withdrawn from the oven. Cold ricotta cream on top of the four meats and hot mozzarella? This really cooled down the whole pie and suppressed the flavors of the other ingredients. The meats were present in nice quantities. I struggled to pick out any real flavor contributed by the meats except for some slight hint from the pepperoni. The real prize was awaiting my third bite. Those «Sweetie Drops» actually had an almost candy like sweetness to them. They had no place on a pizza or within 50 miles of cured meats. I plucked the others from the pizza as fast as I could.
My experience, much to my chagrin, was unlike my fellow Unilocalers. I am glad they enjoyed and received much better pies than I received. As a result of my experience with cold pizza, flaccid crust, cold creamy topping (the stay puft marshmallow man wants his progeny back) with a candy red sweet topping, meat with no flavor and a 700 °F oven working at 585 °F = I won’t be back. If my Bay Ridge friends knew I did this to myself, I’d be saying «Please, not in the face, OK?» while on a boat.

Best pizza in Syracuse! Have been there for couple of times and everything I tried was delicious. The most recent time I was grabbing late night pizza as a treatment to recover from mid-​terms, and got half vege– half cheese steak. Finished two pieces on the way home and ate up the rest in just ten mins! I don’t feel shamed of saying this because their pizza is just so good. The super thin wheat crust and melting cheese coupled together with tender toppings, omg I need to run back and get more

What a great find. Finally a healthy pizza place. Loved the sprouted grain crust option. Loved the variety of vegetables. Loved the no cheese option. Really loved the free range chicken. Excellent and friendly service too. Oh, and it was delicious.

Tasty pizza and friendly staff. Great for a quick afternoon pizza with the kids. The crust was yummy and cooked perfectly.

Solid olde-​world style pizzas, excellent crust and ingredients. Service was very friendly, quick & efficient… so you’re not waiting long for them to assemble and cook your customized pizza. Prices are very reasonable as well.
I’ll definitely be returning!

Today we checked out a new pizza joint that is really a step above all other ones. It’s basically a build your own pizza and they make it in minutes (they have some of their own creations). You first get delicious fresh dough that’s been rising and they apply the sauce of your choice and toppings. Then they cook it in their brick oven over an open fire! Let me tell you what… probably one of the best pizzas I have had. Very much like traditional new york pizza. Go there guys. you wont regret it.

As the other review noted. Vegan pizza!!! I’m not vegan but sometimes I enjoy eating vegan foods (I’m sensitive to dairy). So when I came here I wanted to try it. Def the best vegan pizza option in Syracuse (oh yea you can get it gluten free too). Not many places to get a fresh brick oven fired vegan za. I choose my own two toppings of spinach and roasted cherry tomatoes. It was amazing. Not too heavy, but definitely enough! The crust was crispy on the outside but warm and soft on the inside. The sauce you could tell was homemade with visible chucks of tomatoes. I enjoy take out pizza at the other Peppinos location on the Northside often. I love that they offer grub hub ordering. Friendly helpful staff for my first visit. This is a nice quick option for lunch especially if you want more than a «slice and a soda». I want to come back and try a speciality pizza since I created my own this time.

Was so excited to hear that Peppino’s Neoplitan Express in Armory Square had vegan cheese as an option for their personal pizzas! At the moment, Strong Hearts (which I absolutely love) is the only eatery in Syracuse I know that has daiya available on their pizzas. Finding out their is another vegan pizza joint in the downtown area is very exciting – and it was delicious. You could build your own pizza and the price was certainty reasonable. Now we just need some imitation meats and this place will be even better!