By: Sarah Stone
When it comes to eating out, there’s one delicacy that we can all agree is a favorite go-to: pizza! And as we travel around the world, there are always opportunities to try local versions of this beloved pie. As it turns out, Cusco, Peru is just one of many destinations where you’ll easily find delicious pizza—let’s have a look at a few of our favorite pizza places in Cusco!
Via Unsplash
1. Nonna Trattoria
Sitting comfortably at the intersection of San Agustin and Maruri in Cusco, Peru, Nonna Trattoria is a perfect spot where hungry taste buds meet hand-crafted pizzas. Helmed by Mrs. Orieta Valdivia, Nonna is a warm and ambient dining joint that serves made-to-order pizzas made right before your eyes. Sitting across from the Hotel San Agustin and just down the street from the new Marriott, this dining joint encapsulates your senses with exciting flavors and mouthwatering scents.
Here, you get the chance to watch as the chef gently stretches a round of dough with a rolling pin and then sets it in the wood-fired oven, which is strategically positioned inside the main room. He then removes it and starts saucing and layering the bread with ingredients of your choosing until it turns into something with mounded beauty. Using the peel, the chef returns the pie into the oven, and as soon as it starts to heat up, the entire room is filled with an aroma that makes your mouth watery.
Hours: from 12:00pm to 10:30pm Monday—Saturday
2. Justina Pizza
Next on our list of the best pizza places in Cusco is Justina Pizza. Situated in a relaxed and ambient setting at Calle Palacio 110 in Cusco, just 0.2 miles from the photogenic Plaza de Armas, Justina is one of the best pizza restaurants in town. This pizza place is set in one corner of a courtyard at the back of a retro colonial house, which offers the perfect ambiance for family dining, candlelit dinner, or evening relaxation. Guests can savor decadent pizzas in the outdoor area or select one of the five dining tables inside the restaurant. Tucked away from the hustles and bustles of the vibrant Cusco City, Justina provides the perfect environment to recline and whet your palates after a day of adventure.
The main attraction is a wide variety of toppings and the high-quality pizzas that are sold at a more affordable price than most of the neighboring dining joints. As you wait for your order, you are served with tasty garlic bread, and once your pie is ready, it is served together with garlic mayonnaise and spicy salsa.
Hours: Monday—Saturday 6:00pm—11:00pm
3. La Cantina
Nestled in a rustic setting above the San Blas fountain in Calle Saphy 554, Cusco’s La Cantina is a top-tier restaurant and wine bar. This joint is renowned for its decadent, thin-crust pizzas, and a bountiful collection of wine bottles. Imbued in Italian vintages from floor to ceiling, La Cantina is ideal for those who want to linger as they devour top quality pizzas, as well as sample top-shelf wine bottles from Italy. Although it is primarily a wine restaurant, La Cantina serves wafer-thin crusts topped with fresh and high-quality ingredients such as prosciutto, authentic salami, arugula, a variety of cheeses, olives and more. Besides the pies, they also serve meat plates, tiramisu, and cheese for dessert. If you’re dying to bite your teeth into a flavor-filled pizza in Cusco, this is your ideal stopover.
Hours: 6:00pm—11:00pm Monday to Sunday
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4. La Bodega
La Bodega is a fantastic laid-back dining joint that sits just down the street from Justina in Herrajes 18 Cusco, Peru. This family-owned restaurant gives visitors an exciting dining experience with their homemade pizzas that feature a slightly different style of crust and distinct varieties of toppings. Whether you want to excite your taste buds with the Margarita pizza, which is prepared using delicious mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, tomato slice and tomato sauce, or the Valentino pizza, which features ingredients such as pepperoni, white onion, mushrooms, mozzarella cheese, and tomato sauce, La Bodega is your one-stop destination.
Hours: Monday—Sunday, 11:00am—10:30pm
Want to know more about Peruvian cuisine? Check out our guide to the pisco sour!
About the Author
As the editor-in-chief of Frayed Passport, my goal is to help you build a lifestyle that lets you travel the world whenever you want and however long you want, and not worry about where your next paycheck will come from. I've been to 20+ countries and five continents, lived for years as a full-time digital nomad, and have worked completely remotely since 2015. If you would like to share your story with our community, or partner with Frayed Passport, get in touch with me at sarah@frayedpassport.com!
Featured image via Unsplash.