Closed Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky pizzerias preserved as part of the local pizza record.
Dedicated to the memory of some great slices.
This is more than a graveyard of closed restaurants. These pizzerias remain part of the archive because they help explain the evolution of the Cincinnati pizza scene - from neighborhood institutions to short-lived craft projects and once-familiar names that helped define the city’s pizza culture.
The archive includes every closed local pizzeria that I reviewed or scored at some point. Inevitably, that leaves out important places I never had the chance to try, including Zino’s, Scotti’s (the first Cincinnati restaurant documented as putting pizza on its menu) and Capri Pizza (Cincinnati’s first dedicated pizzeria, which opened in Hartwell in 1948).
Address: El Camino Baking Company, 5915 Hamilton Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45224
Years: 2023–2024
Since opening in August 2022, College Hill’s El Camino Bakery has been one of our favorite spots in the city for coffee, baked goods, and Gustave Doré inspired decor. More recently, El Camino has started hostin…
A oval-ish New Haven style apizza from a coal-fired oven, featuring double pepperoni and an artfully charred crust. Really quite good and reminiscent of what you’d get at say @frankpepepizza.
Some of my favorite slices in Cincinnati come from bakeries (see the focaccia at @brownbearbakery & sfincione at @allezbakery). Pizza is mostly bread & bakeries tend to be extra thoughtful on how they craft the…
This might be America’s best-named pizzeria (with the possible exception of @joespizzanyc). Let me explain: Neapolitan pizzaioli strive to achieve a "leopard-spotted crust". That, of course, refers to a pizza c…
We visited this Pendleton pizzeria this last week, pairing it with some art via @otrfinalfriday & @pendletonartcentercincinnati. Razzo (Italian for “rocket”) bills itself as a Roman style pizzeria. I’m a big fa…
Address: Address not yet documented
Years: Cold Spring: before 2016; Fort Thomas: 2016–2017
Historically, it has been difficult to find the kind of New York-style pizza in Cincinnati that you might get on say Bleecker Street. Plenty of places claim to make New York pizza, but the crust is of…
This divine looking pie is from @daughterspizzakitchen in Milford, which I recently visited to celebrate our first Midwest Pope. Daughter’s is a Sicilian-style spot that takes its craft seriously, focusing on t…
Pomodori’s has a sprawling menu, but unlike many restaurants that try to do too much, everything I have tried has been good. It is also one of Cincinnati’s original wood-fired pizzerias, offering the…
Years: 2010–2018
This place makes very good artisan pizza. The 16-inch pies are dense and generously loaded with cheese and toppings, with everything made in-house by Jean Paul. It is also a bakery, and the cannoli we…
A Hyde Park taproom with intense New York style pizza. To me, this pizza was reminiscent of that enjoyed by the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Flexible/floppy (not at all crisp) crust and an extreme amount of ch…
Fred & Gari's pizza is a little like Papa John's, except everything is better. The crust is thin, with an excellent balance of crispness and chew, while the cheese and toppings taste fresh and flavorful.
Northslice serves New York-style pizza, though its version is a little thicker and more substantial than the typical New York slice (this is the midwest after all). The crust is still thinish and fol…
ZZ’s has recently reopened in its distinctive angular corner building on Gilbert in Walnut Hills. The restaurant has plenty of character, and the menu offers a strong selection of artisan pizzas with…
M Wood Fired Oven is located in East Hyde Park, next to the beloved Hap's Irish Pub. Lest one not believe the pizza is actually wood-fired: flames burn atop pedestals outside the entrance, while a pro…
Cincy by the Slice is located on Main Street in Over-the-Rhine, next to Mayberry and across from the Drinkery. The pizzeria occupies a long, narrow storefront with a small bar in the back, where a friendly guy takes your…
Address: 3715 Madison Rd, Cincinnati, OH 45209
Years: 2008–c. 2011; reopened (Oakley Kitchen) 2023–2024
Because every Mexican restaurant inexplicably has an hour-long wait, my friends and I end up celebrating Cinco de Mayo at a former Mexican restaurant: Chi-nnati’s in Kenwood. Chi-nnati’s occupies the old Jalapeño’s building, forme…
Years: c. 1995–before 2012
Fast-casual pizzerias have been appearing across the country, as entrepreneurs race to become the “Chipotle of pizza.” To me, this seems like an excellent business model: Neapolitan pizza can cook in 90 seconds in a suff…
Address: 8945 Governors Way, Cincinnati, OH 45249
Years: 1985–2019 (brand and food trucks continued)
Aponte’s describes its pizza as “New Jersey style.” On the back of the menu, founder Tony Aponte explains the designation: “I’m from New Jersey. It’s the kind of pizza we made.” Fair enough. Honestly, it remind…
Years: 2012–2017
Address: 414 Central Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45202
Years: 1906–2019 — Pizza added to the menu later
Cincinnati Magazine recently held a Pizza Madness tournament, and the winner is the only pizzeria in the field I have never tried. I have not even heard of Comet’s Pizza in Mason. Still, any place capable of harvesting t…
Whether it’s maturity transformation, risk free asset creation, or just plain old fashioned liquidity supply, America (and indeed the world) loves banks. So it peaked my *interest* when this pizzeria opened in…
Years: 1998–2018
Years: 2009–2020
Germantowne Pizza Haus is an old neighborhood pizzeria in Latonia, just south of downtown Covington. It has been around since 1970, and the restaurant looks the part: a small, German-themed place that…
Years: before 2010–2016
