Elite 8: Vote now for the best pizza in Volusia, Flagler
Votes are in for the Sweet Sixteen competition after hundreds of voters stepped up to support their favorite pizzerias in Volusia and Flagler County. Did your favorite spot make the cut?
Top 16 voting ended last week, and now it's time for the Elite Eight — another round of head-to-head matchups. Voting starts now with the polls closing at noon on Friday, March 15. Weekly voting restarts each Monday through Friday and will conclude with finals taking place March 25-29. The winner will be announced Monday, April 1.
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Elite 8 voting guide
Voting starts at 12:01 a.m. Monday, March 11, featuring winners from the previous round, and ends at noon, Friday, March 15.
Best pizzeria championships dates
Elite Eight: March 11-15
Final four: March 18-22
The finals: March 25-29
Winner announced Monday, April 1.
Alberto’s Pizza Shop vs. Sergio’s Pizza Kitchen and Italian Restaurant
Alberto’s Pizza Shop: Alberto’s Pizza Shop is a community go-to that knows a thing or two about variety. The popular pizzeria offers everything from classic, thin-crust New York-style pizza to deep-dish, Sicilian round, white and Western pizzas. Pizzas are hand-tossed and stretched “to create the familiar size, shape and taste that New York pizza is famous for,” and use made-fresh-daily dough, real mozzarella and homemade sauce. Alberto’s offers 14-, 16- and 18-inch pizzas like the taco, white Buffalo and pickle pizzas. 4036 S. Nova Road, Port Orange; 386-238-9261, albertospizzashop.com.
Sergio’s Pizza Kitchen and Italian Restaurant: Located within the Shoppes at Beville Road, Sergio’s Pizza Kitchen and Italian Restaurant feels intimate, inviting and straight off the streets of New York. The popular pizza joint opened its doors several months back, bringing its Italian roots and Long Island flare to Daytona Beach with a variety of homemade pizza styles ranging from stuffed and Sicilian to thin crust, gluten-free and Mediterranean. The eatery offers made-fresh-daily slices using homemade dough, 100% mozzarella and a nearly 60-year-old tangy sauce recipe. 1500 Beville Road, Daytona Beach; 386-317-4777, Facebook.com.
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Giuseppe’s Steel City Pizza vs. Nonne’s Italian Restaurant and Sports Bar
Giuseppe’s Steel City Pizza: Giuseppe’s Steel City Pizza is a name known across Port Orange and a cult-favorite pizzeria for locals. The family-owned-and-operated shop makes every pizza from scratch daily, using homemade dough and sauce. The expansive restaurant, seating over 225 people indoors, is known for its family-friendly atmosphere and hand-tossed, brick-oven-baked pizzas ranging from the Giuseppe’s Special and fried chicken-layered Steel City Slayer to the Hawaiian, white and meat lovers pizzas. 3658 S. Nova Road, Port Orange; 386-761-4717, giuseppessteelcitypizza.com.
Nonne’s Italian Restaurant: Nonne’s Italian Restaurant & Sports Bar is a laid-back local favorite that keeps things simple, and makes a consistently delicious pizza with a crust that's never too thick and doughy nor overly crisp. The eatery’s pizza selections use scratch-made-daily dough for a soft, golden-brown crust and a secret, homemade sauce that’s neither spicy, nor overly sweetened. Pizza options range from the gluten-free cauliflower and meat lovers pizzas to the Floridian and white pizzas. 5901 S. Ridgewood Ave., Port Orange; 386-675-6066, nonnesitalian.com.
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Genovese’s Italian Café vs. Panheads Pizzeria
Genovese’s Italian Café: Genovese’s Italian Café has been serving the Daytona Beach area for over 40 years, offering an array of homemade dishes, with arguably the most loved being its authentic, New York-style pizza. The eatery boasts the use of “only the freshest ingredients” with made-fresh-daily, hand-tossed dough and sauces passed down through generations. Whether dining in or placing an order to-go online, Genovese’s has something for everyone offering 10-, 13- or 16-inch pizzas as well as Sicilian deep-dish, with choices that include the spinach Alfredo, veggie combo and clam pizzas. 183 E. Granada Blvd., Ormond Beach; 386-677-3222, genovesesitaliancafe.com.
Panheads Pizzeria: This Guy Fieri-approved, family-owned shop serves up some of the best specialty pizzas in New Smyrna Beach. All pizzas are made fresh, in-house using homemade red sauce and dough, as well as their own delicious cheese blend. The lively little shop also slow smokes its own meats and creates its own rubs and seasonings creating vibrant, flavor-packed pies with a thicker, doughy crust. Whether opting for a pizza flight or single pie, options include the roasted chicken and ranch layered Sweet Home Alabama and the pepperoni-, sausage- and ham-decorated Nothing But a Good Time pizzas. 113 S. Orange St., New Smyrna Beach; 386-428-8738, panheadspizzeria.com.
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Bronx House Pizza vs. Pagano’s Pizzeria
Bronx House Pizza: This beloved local chain takes New York-style pizza to the next level. The popular pizza shop serves made-fresh-daily, New York-style slices and prides itself on its meticulously prepared pizza dough — created using a “multi-step fermentation process” — that promises light, crispy, golden-baked pizza whose subtle crunch, depth of fresh flavors and authenticity leaves a lasting impression. The eatery uses whole milk mozzarella for its New York Pizza, with other options ranging from the Buffalo chicken to the Detroit pan pizzas, Beast of Burden and the build your own. 1290 W. Granada Blvd., Unit 200, Ormond Beach; 386-888-6699, bronxhousepizza.com.
Pagano’s Pizzeria: A true taste of up north, Pagano’s Pizzeria is a South Daytona crowd-pleaser known for its New Jersey-style pizza. The casual, themed eatery mirrors the very ones I, like many, frequented on Ocean City, Wildwood and other Jersey Shore boardwalks. The eatery offers keto, personal, medium, large and extra-large thin-crust pizzas with homemade options ranging from the Philly, veggie, and cheese lovers pizzas, to the New Jersey Boardwalk pizza, meat lovers- or veggie-stuffed pizza and Jersey plum tomato pizza. 1945 S. Ridgewood Ave., South Daytona; 386-767-3635, paganospizzerias.com.
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This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Who has the best pizza in the Daytona, NSB, Flagler area? Vote now
