Five of the best pizzas to tempt your tastebuds

Who doesn’t like to tuck into a cheesy slice of pizza any night of the week? And it seems most eateries offer gluten-free options too, writes MERYL NAIDOO

Cugini co-owners Marco Giusti, left, and Alfonso Giusti with a family-sized Caponata pizza, featuring eggplant, capsicum, fresh tomato, onion, ricotta, basil, garlic and cheese. Picture: MATT THOMPSON

Cugini - 34 Cambridge Rd, Bellerive Quay

Cugini on Hobart’s Eastern Shore serves up traditional Italian dishes, such as pizzas, homemade pasta and calzone. The oven in this popular restaurant does overtime to keep up with demand for the 20 pizzas listed, which are made and cooked to order using loads of quality toppings, which are hand-cut daily. They grate their own cheese, slice the ham and bacon, roast chicken legs and then slice them to perfection. The pizza sauce is slow-cooked for six hours.

Solo Pasta and Pizza - 50B King St, Sandy Bay

This funky trattoria offers a dining experience in an energised and contemporary setting.

The Sandy Bay institution turns out authentic Italian pizzas to the masses, with long queues of customers often waiting for tables and takeaways. A big menu offers everything from pizzas to antipasti, sides and salads, calzoni, meat and fish, pasta, risotti and dessert. For a hit of spice, try the Robustelli, which has salami, mushrooms, olives, jalapenos, onion, garlic and cracked pepper.

Ristorante Da Angelo - 47 Hampden Rd, Battery Point

Beloved by locals and a tourist hotspot, Ristorante Da Angelo in Battery Point is home to authentic Italian food, with an extensive dinner and takeaway menu. A great location right along bustling Hampden Road and excellent customer service round out this Italian eatery. In true Italian fashion, just about everything is freshly made on the premises. Pizza offerings such as Primavera, Caporelli, Italian Classico, Peperoni and Fraraccio are popular. In February, this popular restaurant celebrated 25 years since opening.

A family-sized Caponata pizza, featuring eggplant, capsicum, fresh tomato, onion, ricotta, basil, garlic and cheese, available from Cugini at Bellerive Quay. Picture: MATT THOMPSON

Ti Ama - 13 Castray Esplanade, Battery Point

Charry, crisp and with that signature chew, the Neapolitan-influenced pizzas at Ti Ama are some of the best around. Each comes hot and fresh out of the wood-fired oven. The sour dough pizza is spread with Italian tomatoes and topped with simple, tasty toppings. The small seven-pizza menu changes seasonally, with classics such as Margherita (mozzarella, basil, extra virgin olive oil) and Pepperoni (cacciatore salami, oregano, garlic, provolone, parmesan, mozzarella) remaining constant. Disco balls hang from the ceiling at the rear of the restaurant, and a colourful mural covers the entire back wall. The loos also have a disco touch.

Metropolitan Pizza - 154 Elizabeth St, Hobart

The newly opened Metropolitan Pizza follows the rail tunnels of the underground. It seats up to 78 people, between the departure lounge, platform bar and beer garden. The pizzas at this tunnel-styled eatery have a lot of interesting flavour combinations. Try the Metropolitan, which has Neapolitan and pesto sauce, red onion, shredded chicken, cheddar cheese, sage sausage, king prawns, jalapeno and chilli. Their same-day hand-stretched dough packs a punch.