On May 23rd, at the 50 Top Pizza Italy 2019 announcements in Naples, legendary Pizzaiolo Franco…read morePepe suddenly found himself tied for first, the name Francesco Martucci of I Masanielli in Caserta suddenly occupying the same rare air that Pepe in Grani had breathed alone for the previous two years. Known best as the home of Mozzarella Di Bufala, Caserta is the capital of the province of Caserta in the Campania region of Italy, and located just 30 minutes by car from Napoli I Masanielli can be found at Viale Giulio Douhet 11 where Martucci operate two ovens responsible for producing some nine hundred Pizzas per day in addition to Salads and Fritti. Not to be mistaken for similarly-named I Masanielli da Sasa Martucci, also in Caserta and owned by his brother, Francesco Martucci's Pizzeria is a large space with good lighting and a sizable Bar near the door, a collection of local Beer and Wine offered at fair prices to compliment I Masanielli's culinary creations. Beginning as a young boy at his uncle's Pizzeria in Caserta, first running errands before learning to shape Dough as a teen, Martucci can still be found on the line daily with his staff, this day stretching Pies and also expediting orders that entail approximately one Pizza leaving the kitchen every sixty seconds. Opened in September 2017, the Pizza style self-defined as "very mine," it is while waiting that guests are invited to snack on fried items including faultless Rice Balls and housemade Pasta, even the €1 Cheese Stick far better than usual thanks to locally produced Provolone. Contemporary from start to finish, and using a long-fermented blend of Flour to create Pizzas "a canotto," one will quickly notice a slight nuttiness and hints of smoke from Martucci's Crust, it's lightness largely unrivaled despite nearly-Montanara crispness that is best-appreciated simply with fresh Tomatoes, Basil and local Mozzarella.. Nothing short of a rags-to-riches story, I Masanielli's success continues thanks to creativity and obsessiveness, every Pizza including the now-famous "Riccia di Mammà" accounting for balance, but perhaps none more than Pizza "Pink" with Gorganzola Fondue and Fior di Latte laying the groundwork for drapes of Salame Rosa and crispy Zucchini added after exiting the oven.

I Masanielli is located in Caserta. The city is not charming in any way. As we made our…read morereservations months in advance, we were the first party called. Franceso Martucci, the pizza chef, is known for applying advanced culinary techniques. A large portion of the pizzas on his menu has dough that is fried, steamed, and then cooked in the oven. Did it make a lovely, light crust? Yes. Is it better or more tender than the pizzas we had elsewhere that had only been fried or had only been baked in an oven? No. APPETIZERS: FRITTATINA VEGETARIANA: Crispy potatoes sautéed in Normandy butter with red peppers, Salina capers, sun-dried Caiazzan olives, fondue and 28-month aged Parmigiano Reggiano Bianca, Buffalo milk cheese, béchamel scented with cubeb pepper, and fresh basil. This was just a single bite. POLENTA FRITTA. Corn polenta, wild garlic, cubebe pepper, pecorino cheese; served with onion mayonnaise (no eggs, with soy milk). Everyone at the table liked this, PIZZAS: UNA VOLTA Fior di latte cheese, Semi-aged Agnone Caciocavallo cheese, blue cheese by Fattorie Garofalo, marinated Scottona beef top round with garlic, olive oil and parsley, lime mousse, Sichuan pepper, cubeb pepper. The toppings were the star on this one, and it was not overly blue-cheesy. ASSOLUTO DI POMODORO: Roasted cherry tomato cream, piennolo tomato sautéed, yellow tomato sautéed, San Marzano PDO tomato mousse, dried piennolo cherry tomato, chips of red datterino, Piennolo tomato jam, extra virgin olive oil Matilde Misuraca. This was a tomato-forward pizza. Did I enjoy it? Absolutely. Was it better than a plain Cosacca that I had later that week at Pizzeria Salvo? No. VIA EMILIA  Fior di latte cheese, Mortadella Bologna PGI, flakes of 28-month-aged Parmigiano Reggiano made from Bianca Modenese cow's milk. Although my wife ordered this pizza, this was my daughter's favorite. It had the best bake of the pizzas we tried, probably because the toppings were added post-bake,

The location and restaurant are very nice and the staff is very kind and professional. I had a very…read morenice mozzarella and prosciutto appetizer and the olive oil was delicious also. The reason I gave a 3 is because my Tagliatelle was undercooked and many were clumped or stuck together. I understand the pizza is really good and many people around me had the pizza. Perhaps if I had the pizza my review would be better but the pasta prevented me from giving a better review.

We ate here two nights in a row it was so good. The appetizers and pizza were outstanding. Had a…read morebottle of proseco on both nights that was excellent and fairly priced. As Americans we are used to eating diner at 6:00 PM. This Resturante doesn't open for diner until 7:300 PM. By 9:00 PM it was bustling.

We drove south from Rome to Caizzo on a Thursday. It's a small hillside town. We arrived about 20…read moreminutes before opening (7 pm). The doors opened unexpectedly and Franco Pepe poked out his head and shouted out "Buenaserra!". Before they started calling out the reservations, a large wedding party was ushered in for a reception! It was an unexpected surprise that only added to the joy of eating at this establishment for the first time. Fried appetizers are common at Naples' pizzerias. They were uniformly good everywhere but these were the best we had on the trip ROCCO: Cone with 12-month Grana Padano DOP fondue, pecorino cheese,Piennolo del Vesuvio DOP tomatoes, dried Casertano pork sausage, chili pepper, pecorino chips, basil. CIRO: Cone with 12-monthGrana Padano DOP fondue, rocket pesto, dehydrated Caiazzo black olives. As a side note, most pizzerias did not have any salads or vegetable sides. Now for the pizzas. PORKASERTA: San Marzano tomatoes, fiordilatte cheese, smoked scamorza cheese, dried Casertano pork sausage, oregano and EVOO. This is the pizza that will haunt my dreams. The aroma of the pizza was indescribably porky, and the flavor was the most porky thing I've ever eaten. The "dried sausage" had wonderfully soft fat, and the slices were a little less than a ¼" thick. MARGHERITA SBAGLIATA: Campana DOP Buffalo mozzarella cheese, purée of "riccio" tomatoes, basil reduction, EVOO. This is the pizza that Franco Pepe is known for. It was good and I'm glad we tried it, but I did not find it to be a major improvement over a normal Margherita. LA PICCANTE: Fiordilatte cheese, San Marzano tomato, spicy salami, oregano and EVOO. This was my second favorite pizza that we tried here. RICOTTA E PISTACCHIO: Cheesecake al pistacchio della pasticceria Pepe. It was the perfect way to end the meal. The waiters at most of the pizzerias we visited were extremely knowledgeable about the technical aspects of pizza. I found out that they use a custom flour, the dough ball weight is 281 grams and the bake time is about 2 minutes (which I verified by watching their kitchen cam TV on the dining room wall). The pizzas all had more cheese than I was expecting. The crust was extremely light and it was not salty like Da Michele. I'd estimate it to be under 3%. They do use a bit of old dough as part of their fermentation process. Getting to meet Franco Pepe was the cherry on top. He's not a schmoozer, but he did briefly visit all the dining areas. This was our overall favorite pizzeria we visited and it's very possibly the best Neapolitan pizza in the world.

Continues to be the go-to pizza lover spot. Can't say enough of the memories created here.read more

Amazing flavors at Pepe Nero Stratham,NH. Since they have opened, about 2 weeks ago, the take out…read moreline has been very busy because of their homemade breads and spicy mixtures. The pizza is amazing as are the Shawarma items. Dine in is available. The location is very accessible to 4 points of the outlying Stratham neighborhoods: 33 north and south, 108 towards Newmarket,NH and Winnicut road towards the east. Well done to the staff and owners of Pepe Nero, I encourage all to check out their menu online or in the restaurant, an amazing line up of delicious Greek/Lebanese flavors.

It doesn't look like much from the out side, but inside is a different story. This restaurant is…read morebrightly lit and the decor is kind of eclectic and modern. It's the perfect place to go for dinner with friends. We got here around 8:00pm which was perfect, because 30 minutes later, people were pouring in. The food was pretty good! The pasta, steak, and pizza tasted as good as they looked. I gave this place a 4- stars instead of 5 just because what our friends ordered wasn't so good. I do not recommend the Big Buffalo. The menu was misleading. It said american hamburger, but came out as just the meat patty on top of french fries. -_-

Best pizza of my life. Nduja, mozzarella, black olive powder, pesto, garlic, olive oil. My wife…read moregot the margarita and we split them. They were both the best pizzas of our life. Caserta is filled with amazing pizza and Sasa is right there on Top. Nice beer selection. Fantastic service. A memory that is going to stay with me.

I died and went to heaven. Pizza with a crust SO light, sauces and condiments such high quality! I…read morehad Parmigiano, he had DOC. We started with Frittatine, hot and crisp. The servers are young and perky, multi-lingual, too. The room is crowded and abuzz, just like a pizza place should be. AND I GOT TO MEET SASÁ!

Homely feeling in this small restaurant. Not much English spoken here which is fine because pizza…read moreis phenomenal. Great beer and pizza in Italy, how much better does life get?!

Pizza is amazing, perfect dough. We ordered a large pizza (between 2) and it was more than enough…read more If you order a large you can divide it up into three lots of toppings, essentially trying three different pizzas. Staff were very friendly and patience. Reasonably priced as well. (Close to the palace of Castera)

We were in Caserta only to have an appointment at the immigration office, so we can stay in Italy…read more We arrived too early and walked around to find lunch. This place is HUGE. Beautifully decorated, with impeccable service. I had a delicious artichoke and we shared some mixed fried antipasti. If we were in the area more I would come here again.

Came here for a wedding welcome party and overall had a really great experience. Since it was a…read moregroup event, we had a fixed menu, which honestly worked out perfectly. Everything came out smoothly and was well-paced for such a large party. The highlight for me was definitely the pasta which was perfectly cooked. The pork was also tender and really well-prepared. To finish, they served a rum-soaked baba that was super unique and delicious, rich, boozy, and a perfect end to the meal. Service was attentive without being overbearing, and the atmosphere felt lively and perfect for this occasion! Would happily come back to this historic restaurant next time I'm in town!

We got pizza for take out. Good. Standard Napoli style…read more Conveniently located near our AirBnB flat.