While visiting New York City, I ate at Di Fara and L’industrie, some of the most famous pizza shops in the country. These slices were especially delicious compared to the subpar Pittsburgh Pizza scene. With this in mind, I wanted to give some of the pizza shops in Squirrel Hill a second chance. Allderdice sophomore Mihyar Alsharaa and I reviewed some of the most popular places near the school: Napoli’s, Aiello’s, Mineo’s, and Pastoli’s. We graded them on a scale of one to ten, accounting for the crust, sauce, cheese, and overall flavor. To maintain consistency, we only tried cheese slices from each shop.

Napoli’s Pizzeria

Our first stop was Napoli’s. It is a tiny shop with a classic pizzeria layout, a counter in the front, and a few booths in the back across from the ovens. The price point at Napoli’s is among the best, at just under $7 for two slices and a fountain drink. When the pizza came out, it was hot and fresh. We were excited to dig into our first pie, and for the most part, it did not disappoint. The first thing we analyzed was the crust; my slice had little to no flop, which usually signifies high quality.

Mihyar’s was “A little over-floppy because there was a crack,” but without the crack, the flop would’ve been “solid.” Napoli's crust is their best quality. Mihyar describes it as “Very thin and crunchy.” It wasn’t overdone, had good flavor, and was crisp. However, the cheese was a major letdown. According to Mihyar, “You know the flavor (of the sauce) was good, but the cheese just overpowers it.” You could only get hints of the sauce because too much cheese blocked it. Overall, we both had similar feelings about Napoli’s–a good but not great slice with excellent crust.

Final Scores

Jack: 7.5

Mihyar: 7.6

Aiello’s Pizza

After Napoli’s, we decided to devote our next pizza day to Aiello’s and Mineo’s to settle the debate between the two competing pizza shops on Murray. Aiello’s does not share the classic feel of the other three pizzerias. A remodel has it looking much more bright and modern, something many don’t appreciate because it loses the feel of a traditional pizza shop. The price is reasonable at around $7-8 for two slices and a drink, but it is cash only, which can be a great inconvenience. After a short wait, our pizza arrived. When we picked it up, there was “literally no flop.” Visually, everything looked perfect, so we were hoping the taste would match. While there was maybe a little too much cheese, you could “Actually taste the sauce over the cheese.” The sauce was very sweet, which was a positive for us. Mihyar said the crust was “A little crispy, a little toasty.” While it may have been a little overdone, both of us agreed we preferred it well done. So, despite the underwhelming ambiance and annoyance of cash only or some Forbes and Murray pizza, it doesn’t get better than this.

Final Scores

Jack: 8.2

Mihyar: 8.0

Mineo’s Pizza House

Of course, the only place to go after Aiello’s was their famed competitor next door, Mineo’s. Mineo’s, like Napoli’s, had a traditional feel–lined with booths and walls covered in pictures of happy customers. The price point was similar to the previous two stops at $5 for two slices. The flop is when things start going awry. The poor flop stemmed from too much cheese covering the thin crust. The sauce tasted fine, but you could barely even get a hint of it due to how much cheese covered it. The crust on the pizza was surprisingly good as it was very thin and “not doughy or chewy at all.” Our rating of Mineo’s is more a testament to how we like our pizza rather than the actual quality. For many people, the extra cheese is why they come to Mineo’s; just be warned that if that is not your preference, Mineo’s will not be your go-to.

Final scores

Jack: 5.8

Mihyar: 6.5

Pastoli’s

The final stop on our journey was Pastoli’s, somewhere both of us had already been many times, and for good reason. Pastoli’s strength lies in its ambiance. The couches and TVs throughout the seating area make it a great place to go with a group. The walls are lined with sports posters, signs, and guitars; the overall feel of Pastoli’s is inviting. A weakness of Pastoli’s is that they don't sell slices (other than Sicilian style, which weren’t rated for continuity among the pizzas). So we had to get a small pie, which was still reasonably priced at around $9 for a 10’ four cut. This small-sized pizza resulted in a significant flop because of the wide slices, so we disregarded it in our rating.

The rest of the pizza, in Mihyar’s opinion, is “nothing special.” I would have to agree with this comment. The crust was decent, not really crispy, and relatively thin. The ratio of sauce to cheese was pretty good, but it felt like there was too much of both. One of Mihyar’s main issues with the pizza was that “it had so much grease on it.” While it did have some grease, it didn’t feel significantly more extreme than any other shop. All of this combines for a pretty mediocre pizza but a pleasant restaurant atmosphere.

Final Scores

Jack: 6.8

Mihyar: 6.5

Of all the spots in Squirrel Hill, we decided that Aiello’s was the best. If you are a cheese lover, try Mineo’. If you love a crispy crust, go to Napoli’s, and if you are in a large group, then Pastoli’s is a great fit. Pittsburghers who love pizza should try all these shops to decide their favorite.