March Madness pizza edition: Who's got the best in Brevard?

Rob Landers, Florida Today
Updated ·6 min read
Brevard's Sweet 16 of pizza for March Madness. Vote for your favorites below.
Brevard's Sweet 16 of pizza for March Madness. Vote for your favorites below.

While basketball aficionados are putting together their brackets for March Madness, we’ve decided to create a bracket of our own. But instead of college teams, we’re challenging you, our readers, to help us crown the best pizza in Brevard. From style of crust to sweetness of the sauce, from quality of ingredients to the quantity placed on top of the pie, our sweet 16 represents a variety of pizza spots across the Space Coast.

How did we come up with our top 16 pizza places?

We asked the 61,000 members in our 321 Flavor: Where Brevard Eats Facebook group to name their go-to place for pizza and requested that they avoid, for the most part, the chains. Within 24 hours there were more than 198 comments and even more reactions to posts.

We tallied up the number of establishments mentioned and took the top 16. And then using the super scientific method of writing numbers 1 through 16 on slips of paper, the matchups were determined by random draw.

Below are specifics on each matchup. And rather than share our reasons why the restaurants are in the top 16, we thought we’d let the people who nominated each place do that for us.

Voting will remain open until 5 p.m. Thursday. Look for our Elite Eight on Monday on floridatoday.com.

FM Pizza Oven vs. Doghouse Pizza

In our first matchup, FM Pizza Oven in the Eau Gallie Arts District faces off against Doghouse Pizza in Melbourne off Eau Gallie.

The specifics:

  • FM Pizza Oven, 1437 Highland Ave., Melbourne (321) 241-4890

  • Doghouse Pizza, 4451 Enterprise Court, Suite K Melbourne (321) 610-3050

The comments:

“We love FM Pizza on the corner of Eau Gallie and Highland Ave. They have a special pot pie pizza that’s Ah-May-Zing! Pizzas are woodfired, and FM is veteran owned.” - Peg Twitty

"Doghouse Pizza-Melbourne - it’s my favorite because the crust is the thin Chicago style, tons of toppings and everything is made from scratch! Big Cat for the win!!!!!" - Cari Burrows

Puzino’s Pizza vs. Mr. Delicious Pizza

Next up is Satellite Beach’s Puzino’s pizza. The beachside eatery is squaring off against Viera’s own Mr. Delicious Pizza.

The specifics:

  • Puzino’s Pizza, 1107 South Patrick Drive, Satellite Beach (321) 777-4744

  • Mr. Delicious Pizza, 1950 Viera Blvd. Suite #101, Rockledge (321) 655-6555

The comments:

“Mr. Delicious in Rockledge/North Viera. Their pizza has the right amount of sweetness in their sauce, with the complimentary amount of "tang." Their dough holds up well to whatever toppings you load it up with.” - Brian Bomser

“Puzino's Pizza in Satellite Beach. Love the Puzino's Special. The ingredients are always fresh and I think it tastes so good.” - Rhonda Moore

Times Square Pizza vs. Michelli’s Pizzeria

Slot three sees Suntree’s Times Square Pizza facing off against West Melbourne’s Michelli’s Pizzeria.

The specifics:

  • Times Square Pizza, 7777 N. Wickham Road Unit 20, Melbourne (321) 622-6909

  • Michelli’s Pizzeria, 145 Palm Bay Road N.E., West Melbourne  (321) 953-8488

The comments:

“Times Square Pizza on Wickham in Suntree is my favorite. The dough has a yeasty smell, the sauce and cheese are in perfect ratio to each other. I love their Cheese Pizza!” - Ronnie Macmahon

"Michelli's Pizzeria in West Melbourne. It is a NY/NJ type pizza which is my favorite. The flavors make the pizza." - Chris Parks Allebaugh

Genna Pizza Company vs. Grumbley's Pizza

With an overwhelming response, Melbourne’s Genna Pizza Company easily made our top 16 and faces off against our one north Brevard contender Grumbley's Pizza in Titusville.

The specifics:

  • Genna Pizza Company: 4301 N. Wickham Road, Melbourne (321) 242-3003

  • Grumbley's Pizza: 3241 Garden St., Titusville, (321) 268-5999

The comments:

"Genna Pizza Company — Wood fired and made to order. You can watch them make it and fire it as you dine. Crispy crust and great sauce. They have various specialty pizza that are all delicious. Try the Godfather." - Bethany Moats Kulig

"Grumbley's pizza is by far the best pizza ever! So many topping choices, the crust just melts in your mouth! If you haven't tried it, it's a must!" - Cassie M. Peabody

Mister 01 Extraordinary Pizza vs. Pappagallos

Next up is smaller chain Mister 01 Extraordinary Pizza in downtown Melbourne facing off against long-time beachside establishment Pappagallos Restaurant.

The specifics:

  • Mister 01 Extraordinary Pizza, 635 E. New Haven Ave, Suite 101, Melbourne (321) 455-5058

  • Pappagallos Restaurant, 1769 State Road A1A, Satellite Beach (321) 773-7272

The comments:

"Mister O1 Extraordinary Pizza! We love the atmosphere, the unique pizzas, and the humongous salads!" - Elizabeth Nguyen

"Pappagallos beachside: Great food, great views! They are right on the ocean. Owners are amazing, staff is amazing! The pizza and garlic knots are bomb! Authentic Italian dishes! "- Ashley Prosser

Alfredo’s Paradiso vs. Pozzy Bros. Pizza

Next up is Alfredo’s Paradiso Kitchen. The Merritt Island eatery is facing off against local chain Pozzy Bros. Pizza. Even though there are three locations, Cocoa is the most mentioned.

The specifics:

  • Alfredo’s Paradiso Kitchen: 217 Crockett Blvd., Merritt Island (321) 453-6119

  • Pozzy Brothers: 4000 U.S. 1, Cocoa (321) 735-7049

The comments:

"Alfredo's Paradiso! Authentic. Delicious. Can’t beat it!" - Kayleigh Lawson

"Pozzy Bros. Pizza Cocoa they also have Viera and Merritt Island locations. Pizza is fresh, cheese is top quality and their salads are always fresh and full of toppings." - Terri Boggs

Leaning Tower of Pizza vs. Mangia & Bevi

Facing off in slot seven is Melbourne’s Leaning Tower of Pizza and Cocoa Beach’s Mangia & Bevi.

The specifics:

  • Leaning Tower of Pizza, 681 N. Wickham Road, Melbourne (321) 259-6100

  • Mangia & Bevi Pizzeria Napoletana, 218 W. State Road 520, Cocoa Beach (321) 613-0691

The comments:

"Leaning Tower of Pizza on Wickham in Melbourne. I've been eating there for over 40 years. Their 'all the way' pizza is a work of art." - Joel L. Kelly

"Mangia & Bevi, Cocoa. Beach Love the margherita pizza, it is spot on. They import all their goods from Italy, the cooks and servers are Italian and the owner, Luigi, makes you feel like family. Truly authentic." - Tabitha Braddock

Brooklyn Pizza & Pasta vs. Chef’s Corner Pizza

Rounding out the top 16 are Rockledge’s Brooklyn Pizza & Pasta facing off against the Chef’s Corner Pizza located inside the Melbourne Beach Market.

The specifics:

  • Brooklyn Pizza & Pasta, 5410 Murrell Road Suite 211, Rockledge (321) 633-7003

  • Chef’s Corner Pizza in Melbourne Beach Market, 302 Ocean Ave, Melbourne Beach (321) 914-0959

The comments:

"Brooklyn Pizza & Pasta has the best crust, delicious ingredients and (not sure if this is part of the specs, but worth mentioning) great customer service." - Sarah Svati

"Chef’s Corner Pizza in Melbourne Beach Market. Huge slices, always hot and fresh….my go to is the cheese but I also love their white with ricotta and spinach." - Christin Luzzi

Honorable mentions

We did have five spots that garnered honorable mentions because of the number of times they were mentioned:

  • Wagon Wheel Pizza, 1760 Palm Bay Road N.E., Palm Bay (321) 724-4769

  • Odyssey Pizza & Subs, 1424 Clearlake Road, Cocoa, (321) 632-7222

  • Lello’s Ristorante & Pizzeria, 2025 Murrell Road, Rockledge, (321) 305-5933

  • Oceanside Pizza, 300 Ocean Ave. Suite 6, Melbourne Beach, (321) 312-4516

  • Ferreri’s Pizza, 3589 Cheney Highway, Titusville, (321) 848-4443

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Best pizza in Brevard? Vote in our March Madness pizza edition