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Three of the best pizzas in Ireland, and where to eat them

Our food experts Corinna Hardgrave, Lisa Cope and Ali Dunworth reveal their favourites

Perfect pizza: the ’nduja pie from Little Forest. Photograph: Lisa Cope

Corinna Hardgrave
Lisa Cope
Ali Dunworth
Wed Nov 10 2021 - 06:00

"What's your favourite restaurant?" is a question food writers are asked regularly. We'll reveal our top 100 here on Friday, November 12th. But what about our favourite dishes? We're answering that question in this series. Today: pizzas. Here are the ones that Lisa Cope, Ali Dunworth and I will travel for, and will order regardless of what else is on the menu.

Marinara at Little Forest
€12; 57 Main Street, Blackrock, Co Dublin; littleforest.ie
Reggie White's approach to pizza making is uncompromising, and his wood-fired marinara lays bare the quality of a few carefully chosen ingredients. His recipe for his 48-hour-fermented sourdough bases took 30 attempts to perfect, the crushed Sicilian tomatoes have just the right level of sweetness and acidity, and slivers of garlic, fresh basil, oregano and extra virgin olive oil add aromatics. Deliveries now available within 5km. Corinna Hardgrave

Seamus Heaney at Grá Pizza
€12; Newtown Inn, Maynooth, Co Kildare; grapizza.com

A Seamus Heaney from Grá Pizza

Ryan Lally started out in lockdown making pizzas from his back garden. He has progressed to a shiny new pizza truck in Maynooth, serving and selling out of pizza every weekend. The Seamus Heaney is my go-to order: it features San Marzano tomatoes, fior di latte, chorizo, 'nduja, basil and honey on 24-hour-fermented dough blasted in the wood-fired oven for perfect charring every time. This is the local pizza everyone deserves to have. Ali Dunworth

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Little Forest's 'nduja, ricotta and honey pizza
€16; 57 Main Street, Blackrock, Co Dublin; littleforest.ie

Perfect pizza: the ’nduja pie from Little Forest. Photograph: Lisa Cope

The only pizza outside Naples that's ever made me emotional was Reggie White's margherita at his former restaurant Pi. After tasting his 'nduja and scamorza pizza, I spent almost every weekend trying to re-create it at home. He's now running the kitchen at Little Forest in Blackrock, where the dough and resulting crust are in an All-Ireland league of their own. He's surpassed himself again with his 'nduja, fresh ricotta and honey pizza – a white pie (no tomato) with Grana Padano, Parmigiano Reggiano, garlic and basil. Back to the kitchen I go. Lisa Cope

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