The city where the pizza was invented and where it remains, in its most perfect form, available for £1.86.
1. PIZZERIA DI MATTEO (The Street Pizza) Via dei Tribunali, 94, Centro Storico Open: Monday-Saturday 9am-midnight Order: the pizza a portafoglio (the pizza folded in four, eaten standing in the street — the original Neapolitan street food format, the pizza not designed for a table but for the Tribunali pavement). The margherita: San Marzano tomato, buffalo mozzarella, fresh basil. €1.50-2 / £1.29-1.72 for the portafoglio version.
2. SORBILLO (Sit-Down Pizza) Via dei Tribunali, 32, Centro Storico Open: Monday-Saturday noon-11pm Note: The most celebrated pizza restaurant in Naples — the Gino Sorbillo name, the 100-year family tradition, the queue that arrives at opening and stays until close. The pizza al metro (the pizza sold by the metre): the party format, the full table covered. The standard pizza: the margherita con bufala (the buffalo mozzarella rather than the fior di latte) at €7-9 / £6.03-7.76. Queue strategy: arrive at noon for the lunch opening. The Saturday evening queue: 45-90 minutes.
3. LEONE (The Classic Alternative) Vico San Nicola alla Dogana, 3, Porto area Open: Monday-Saturday, lunch only Note: The pizza without the Sorbillo queue — the neighbourhood pizzeria serving the port district workers, the prices at the pre-Sorbillo-fame level, the quality identical. Find by walking the lanes parallel to Via dei Tribunali and looking for the plastic chairs and the locals.
4. PIZZA FRITTA (FRIED PIZZA) De’ Figliole, Via Giudecca Vecchia, 39, Spaccanapoli Open: Monday-Saturday noon-5pm Order: the pizza fritta — the dough folded over the filling (ricotta, salami, cicoli) and deep-fried in lard. The original pizza of Naples, predating the wood-fired version. €2.50-3.50 / £2.16-3.02. Note: Also at Concettina ai Tre Santi (more famous, longer queue) — but De’ Figliole is the correct neighbourhood version.
5. PESCHERIA AZZURRA (Fish) Borgo Marinai, Santa Lucia waterfront Open: daily 9am-9pm (food from noon) Note: The Borgo Marinai fishing village at the base of the Castel dell’Ovo — the freshest catch from the morning haul, the grilled octopus, the sea urchin on the shell, the frittura mista (the mixed fried seafood). The Neapolitan waterfront eating that the tourist restaurants on the Via Caracciolo approximate at three times the price. Price: €15-25 / £12.93-21.55 per person for a full seafood meal
6. SFOGLIATELLE ATTANASIO Vico Ferrovia, 2, near the Central Station Open: Monday-Saturday 6:30am-7:30pm Order: the sfogliatella frolla (the smooth-pastry version, the ricotta and semolina filling, the short pastry exterior) and the sfogliatella riccia (the shell-shaped pastry with the multiple filo layers — more work to make, the definitive Neapolitan version). The sfogliatelle at the station are the correct station food — eat at the counter before or after the train. €1.50-2 / £1.29-1.72 each.
7. GAMMARDELLA (Cuoppo) Via Toledo area Note: The cuoppo — the paper cone of fried seafood (the octopus tentacles, the anchovies, the squid, the mixed vegetables) from the Via Toledo area vendors. €6-10 / £5.17-8.62 per cone (a meal in itself).
8. FRIGGITORIA FIORENZANO (Fried Things in General) Piazza Montesanto, 1 Open: Monday-Saturday 8am-8pm Order: the potato croquette (crocchè), the mozzarella in carrozza (the mozzarella in the fried bread carriage — the Neapolitan version of a fried mozzarella sandwich), the pasta fritta (the fried pasta — specifically Neapolitan, the leftover pasta from yesterday bound with egg and fried in oil). The highest density of calories per euro in Naples. Price: €1-2.50 / £0.86-2.16 per item
9. CAFFÈ MEXICO (The Neapolitan Coffee) Piazza Garibaldi, 72 (Central Station) and other locations Open: daily from 7am Order: the caffè (the espresso, called simply “un caffè” in Naples — the Neapolitan espresso is darker, hotter, served in a pre-warmed cup, and consumed in 2-3 sips standing at the counter). The caffè sospeso (the suspended coffee — the custom of pre-paying for a coffee for an anonymous future customer in financial hardship): ask for it by name. Price: €1-1.30 / £0.86-1.12
10. THE MERCATO DI PORTA NOLANA (Fish and Produce) Via Sopramuro, Porta Nolana area Open: daily 7am-1pm Note: The Porta Nolana market serving the eastern city — the fish from the Gulf of Naples, the tomatoes (the San Marzano and the Vesuvian varieties), the vegetables. The least tourist-affected of the Naples markets. The specific purchase: the fresh buffalo mozzarella directly from the produce vendor (not the supermarket): €3-5 / £2.59-4.31 per piece, the quality calibrated to immediate consumption that afternoon.
