Pizza in Palo Alto

Palo Alto takes pizza more seriously than its size suggests. California Avenue alone has a certified Neapolitan pizzeria and a Detroit-style square pie shop a block apart. University Avenue has a midnight slice counter and a chain that puts tandoori chicken on a crust. El Camino Real has a family slice shop with competition trophies and two delivery kitchens that run past 2 a.m. Midtown and south Palo Alto keep the old-fashioned pizza parlors that host Little League parties.

Our Italian food and pizza guide covers the sit-down Italian restaurants. This page sorts the city's pizza by style so you can pick by craving. Every place here was confirmed in October 2026 through its own site or a verified page in our business directory.

Pizza styles at a glance

Neapolitan pizza

Terún at 448 South California Avenue opened on February 8, 2013. Three founders born in southern Italy run it and it is certified as a Verace Pizza Napoletana restaurant, which means it follows the traditional rules for true Neapolitan pizza. The dough is naturally leavened, the tomatoes are Italian and the flour comes from the Italian mill Petra Molino Quaglia. Every pie goes through the wood-fired oven. Book through SevenRooms, since the restaurant strongly recommends reservations for dinner and weekends. Its covered Terrace seats up to 49 for groups.

Pizzeria Delfina at 651 Emerson Street is the Palo Alto branch of Annie and Craig Stoll's San Francisco pizzeria. The company calls its pies Neapolitan-inspired, drawing on both New York and Naples. The menu splits into white and red pies, from broccoli raab to a clam pie and a pizza alla vodka. A gluten-free crust is offered on both and a Vegan Pie comes with three vegan toppings. A 5% surcharge is added to all checks. It books through OpenTable.

Slices: New York and California style

Pizza My Heart at 220 University Avenue is a surf-themed chain that began in 1981 on Capitola Beach near Santa Cruz. You order at the counter by the slice or the whole pie. The best known pizza is the Big Sur, topped with 40 cloves of roasted garlic, pepperoni, sausage, portobello mushrooms and green onions. The Little Sur is the vegetarian version. The pesto contains almonds. The shop is open from 11 a.m. to midnight every day, a block from the Stanford Theatre.

State of Mind Slice House at 3850 El Camino Real is a family-run shop from the team behind State of Mind Public House in Los Altos. The family says it won World's Best Non-traditional Pizza at the 2017 International Pizza Expo and has kept competing in the US and Italy since. The dough is slow proofed, each pie is hand stretched and baked in a high-heat electric oven and the tomato sauce is organic. Pies come round, pan or gluten-free. A canned list of California craft beers fills the fridge. Its website lists hours from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. Sunday to Thursday and 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

Detroit squares and curry pizza

Square Pie Guys at 369 California Avenue bakes Detroit-style pizza: a thick, airy rectangle baked in a steel pan so the cheese at the edges turns crisp and dark. The Bay Area chain lists six locations. It took over this space from Local Kitchens, where its pies kept selling out. It now runs a full kitchen for dine-in, pickup and delivery. Named pies include The Pepperoni, The Big Von and a Lemon Pepper Pie. Wings, a kale Caesar and crispy Brussels sprouts round out the menu. Pies can be made gluten-free or dairy-free for an upcharge. It opens from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day.

Curry Pizza House on University Avenue belongs to a chain founded in California in 2012 that blends Indian spices with American pizza. The Indian side of the menu includes chicken tikka, tandoori chicken, shahi paneer, achari gobhi with cauliflower and aloo chaat with potato. Classic pepperoni and Hawaiian pies keep picky eaters happy. The company says its curry sauces are made fresh daily. It stays open until 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.

Family pizza parlors

Howie's Artisan Pizza at Town & Country Village is chef Howie Bulka's neighborhood restaurant. Nearly everything is made in house, including the sausage and ricotta. The pizza dough is just flour, water and starter, so it is vegan. Howie's does not take reservations and seats about 60 inside plus about 30 on a heated patio. The bar serves the full menu and is open to all ages. Frozen meals and pizza kits are sold to take home. It is open from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.

Mountain Mike's at 3918 Middlefield Road in south Palo Alto has served pizza the same way since 1978, the chain says, with its crispy, curly pepperoni as the signature. The location page lists a party room, an arcade, patio seating and big screen TVs. It also lists very late hours, until 2 a.m. Tuesday to Sunday, so call before counting on a late pie. Rick's Ice Cream is a few doors along.

Round Table Pizza at 702 Colorado Avenue in Midtown is part of a West Coast chain founded in 1959. It offers carryout, delivery and curbside pickup and books party rooms through its website. Our kid-friendly restaurants guide has more ideas for families.

Delivery and late-night pizza

Palo Alto goes quiet early, but pizza is the exception. These are the latest kitchens in town, according to each company's own store page:

Papa Johns and Domino's are delivery and carryout kitchens without dining rooms. Late hours change with staffing, so call before a very late order. Our late-night food guide covers the rest of the after-dark options.

Gluten-free, vegan and dairy-free pizza

• Gluten-free crust: Pizzeria Delfina, State of Mind Slice House and Square Pie Guys. None of them claims a certified gluten-free kitchen.
• Vegan: Howie's dough is vegan, Pizzeria Delfina has a Vegan Pie and Pizza My Heart lists vegan specialty pizzas.
• Dairy-free: Square Pie Guys makes pies dairy-free for an upcharge, though it warns its gluten-free dough contains trace dairy.
• Nuts: Pizza My Heart's pesto contains almonds.

If you are planning a pizza crawl between California Avenue and downtown, the two districts are one Caltrain stop apart. Visitors staying a few nights can compare hotels near downtown Palo Alto and walk to most of the counters on this page.

Frequently asked questions