Pizzeria Sorbillo

Gino Sorbillo is the 19th of 21 children, all born to pizza-making parents, who were themselves born to pizza-making parents. When your family tree is basically a dough recipe, you don't have a lot of career ambiguity. The Sorbillo dynasty has been making pizza on Via dei Tribunali since 1935, and Gino — charismatic, outspoken, and frequently in the press — has turned the family name into arguably the most recognized pizza brand in Italy.

His flagship pizzeria sits on Via dei Tribunali, the ancient decumanus that runs parallel to Spaccanapoli one block north. Unlike the purist minimalism of Da Michele, Sorbillo offers a full menu of creative toppings — but the base remains sacred. Long-fermented dough, San Marzano tomatoes from the slopes of Vesuvius, fior di latte mozzarella from Agerola, and a wood-fired oven that hits temperatures most home ovens can only dream about. The cornice comes out tall, blistered, and almost impossibly light.

In January 2019, someone detonated a bomb at the pizzeria's entrance in what was widely interpreted as a Camorra intimidation attempt. Sorbillo reopened three days later to a crowd of supporters, and the incident only amplified his status as a folk hero standing up for honest Neapolitan business against organized crime. He's spoken publicly about refusing extortion payments and has become a symbol of resistance.

The queue here rivals Da Michele, but the atmosphere is completely different — louder, more chaotic, more social. Sorbillo himself often works the room. The eternal Naples question of "Michele or Sorbillo?" is essentially a personality test: do you prefer silent perfectionism or showmanship? Either way, you're eating the best pizza on earth.