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The Story of How we found the Best Pizza in Italy!

There are many restaurants in Italy claiming to sell the best pizza in the entire country. And there are many food bloggers claiming to have found the ultimate pizza in Italy. And today we are doing the same. Because we really think we found the perfect Italian Pizza in Tuscany and we will tell you why. Are you ready to find the best Pizza in Italy?

This article is a bit different from the other ones on our website. Why? Well, because this is more of a story then a blog filled with lists and guides etc. Don’t worry, we will definitely give you the name and location of the restaurant that, in our humble opinions, sells the best pizza in Italy.

A warning: read this as a nice story. Don’t expect many pictures to liven things up. We are gonna serve you a simple but honest story, which is fitting with the vibe of the tale we are about to tell. Here we go.

Also check out our article on how to spend a perfect day in Lucca, Italy
Tuscany Italy Travel
Tuscany Italy Travel Lucca

The story starts in the year 2014

2014? Yes, we go all the way back to the year that Tim and I started dating. Tim was still a student, so he didn’t have a huge travel budget. We found some really great and budget friendly accommodations on AirBnB in Italy for the summer. One of them was this amazing newly renovated farmhouse in a tiny village, called Torre, just outside of Lucca in Tuscany.

This was our first time visiting Tuscany, and we only saw just a glimpse of it and promised to return one year to explore more. We did that ten years later. This time not only limiting ourselves to seeing the beautiful city of Lucca, but seeing many more of the highlights.

But it is the fact of us coming back to the same region ten years later and revisiting the same pizza restaurant with which we fell in love back in 2014, and remembering how much we loved the food on our first time visit.

We ended up in the wrong restaurant

If we have a chance, we always ask a local for some tips for restaurants to check out. We did the same in 2014 with the owner of our bnb, She told us about an amazing restaurant further up the hill. We couldn’t miss it since it was the only restaurant and we would bump into it automatically.

So off we drove. Uphill. On the lookout for a nice restaurant. After a few kilometers we so a sign that said “Pizza’s” so we thought: this is it!
We parked our car. The restaurant looked very simple on the outside. But never judge a book by its cover, so in we went.

We were a little surprised by the interior. Our friendly bnb-owner said that it would be a very nice restaurant. But the place we just walked into was super simple. A few simple table and chairs, not much decoration. It looked more like a canteen than anything else.

But we always love eating in places where locals eat. These places always serve the best local flavors and dishes. So we sat down at a table. Of course still having that recommendation in our mind.

A friendly lady came up to us and handed us the menu. Pizza was their main focus, but they also served pasta dishes. So we decided to go for the pasta. The food was really good. Great flavors. Simple but that was what made it so tasty. But here comes the twist….

We needed to go back the next night!

The main course was great, but the surprise was in the dessert. We discovered our favorite Italian dessert right then and there: the Torta della Nonna. A creamy custardy pie with a crumble on top and some powdered sugar and pine nuts. This version was served warm and it was simply to die for.

Torta della Nonna, translated into Grandma’s Pie, is a popular regional dessert in Tuscany. And we were instantly sold. Of course a Tiramisu is amazing, but this was up there with the classic.

The next day we thanked our BnB host for the great recommendation and we found out that we ended up at the wrong restaurant. She meant the place a little bit further uphill. She never thought about the restaurant we ended up in, since it was more of a canteen for locals. Just like we thought.

So curious about the restaurant she meant, we went uphill again the second night. We found the restaurant with ease, it was a literal case of bumping into it. Gorgeous place, crowded, great location, nicely decorated, great staff….. but…. And here comes the huge but…. We were not impressed by the food…. At all.

I think we were spoiled with last night’s food still in our heads. So guess what we did. After we had finished our main courses, we decided to not order dessert and get right back into our car. We drove a few kilometers downhill and went back to yesterday’s local restaurant for dessert.

When we walked in the nice lady was happy to see us again. We asked her if it was okay to only order a dessert. She laughed and swiftly brought us two amazing Torta’s della Nonna. We couldn’t be happier.

Tuscany Italy Travel Lucca
Tuscany Italy Travel Lucca

Fast forward to ten years later

Ten years and many travel destinations later it was finally time to return to Italy and especially Tuscany.

We had said to each other that we would try to check if our beloved restaurant would still be there and if so to have a nice meal there. Needless to say we also had our hopes set on tasting that Torta della Nonna once more.

Yes, we found the restaurant and it was still open. We walked in, excited as teenagers to be back at the same place as on our first big trip as a couple back in 2014.

The place had not changed much. Still a very simple interior with little decoration.

To our surprise we recognized the friendly lady that helped us ten years ago right away. But it wasn’t only us that remembered her, she also recognized us and laughed her cute smile at us. We had such a nice talk with her and explained why we needed to come back.

She told us right away that they didn’t have the Torta della Nonna that night. Since they specialize in Pizza’s they get their cakes and other desserts from a local bakery they collaborate with.

We would be lying if we said we weren’t a little bit disappointed. But for us being back at a restaurant that we had talked about so much over the years was worth it.

We both chose a pizza out of the menu and that’s when it happened.

We found the best Pizza in Italy right then and there.

The pizza’s we got were absolutely amazing! Definitely the best we tasted during our 3 week road trip in Tuscany. But why do we claim it to be the best? Here is why:

First of all the flavors were absolutely amazing. The crust was perfectly thin. The sauce and toppings were spread out all over and we were not left with thick dry crusts at all. It had a nice charred bottom. The balance was truly perfect. A perfect Italian Pizza.

But what makes it the best one in Italy for us is the fact that this is such a local restaurant. Not discovered by any tourists or bloggers promoting it all over the internet, making it into a new hotspot with people lining up outside. The owners, a sweet couple, are so friendly and they have such passion for the food they serve. It is not about anything else but the quality and the flavors. What more can we wish for.

So will we reveal the name and the location of this perfect pizza place? Will we risk it becoming the next touristy hotspot and it losing its charm? Yes we will.

Because it is located about 20 minutes by car outside of Lucca, we think not many people will take the effort to drive uphill. And since our blog is not that huge, we want to share this amazing food experience with our loyal readers that maybe one day plan a trip to Tuscany. Another reason for sharing is that we really want to support the owners. They have a special place in our hearts and deserve the best. So here are the details you need if you are ever in the area of Lucca, Italy.

Pizzeria al Casone
Click here for the link on Google Maps
Adress: SP 1, 27 – Loc, 55064 Monsagrati LU, Italy

Also Check out our list of things to eat in Genoa, Italy

Want to see the visuals that go with this story?

Of course we also made a video of us revisiting our favorite Italian restaurant 10 years after our first time. Do you want to see us taste the amazing pizza’s? Check out the full video below.

We hope you enjoyed reading this little story. If you liked it, let us know. We have so many more travel stories, we might just write up a few more.

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