In a previous post on cupcakes, I mentioned that I spent some time in New York; I came away from the city with a love for good cupcakes, but for great pizza as well. Pizza could be one of the greatest foods ever, but for all the good pizza that exists there is also terrible pizza. If you’re hankering for pizza in Saigon — once you’ve exhausted or are tired of all the wonderful street eating opportunities — one place worth trying is Japanese Pizza 4P’s, where you’ll find some of the best pizza in town.

And I thought there was only one P in pizza.

At the end of a long alley off of Le Thanh Ton — don’t stop at the Domino’s pizza outlet you’ll pass on the way — Pizza 4P’s sits behind a small wall of bamboo, all unassuming and sedate. The first thing you’ll notice when you walk through the doors is the fantastic wood-fired pizza oven that sits in the centre of the restaurant. The quality of the oven is one of the reasons that Pizza 4P’s stands out among the Saigon competition, baking the thin crust pizzas to perfection — not too crisp, not too soft. Plus, since the oven is the centrepiece of the restaurant, you watch the pizzas being made; the oven has a connected table where you can sit and eat.

I need one of these in my house!

The parts of the restaurant that are not the oven are nothing to scoff at either. The seating area has a chic, modern feel that runs from the ground floor, up the wide spiral staircase, to the other dining areas.

Such a big place for so few seats.

My pizza of choice is the margherita. Unlike other shops in town, at 4P’s they actually make it right: tomato and basil lies atop their delicious home-made mozzarella (140,000 VND). Other varieties include quatro formaggi, a four-cheese creation, and a chicken teriyaki, Japanese-fusion pizza. If you’re having trouble deciding, they also offer half and half pizzas where they go against convention and charge you half of each instead of just charging the more expensive price.

Sooooo good!

Besides pizza, they also have an a la carte menu of appetisers, salads, and mains, which all seem to focus on their home-made mozzarella. I’m a big fan of their caprese salad (95,000 VND), which is basically tomato and mozzarella. Their lasagne also looks pretty sweet, and I’ve heard positive things, but I haven’t been able to break myself out of my margherita and caprese routine.

It has tomatoes so it's good for you, right?

Pizza 4P’s is pretty new, but its reputation is growing fast. Even though the restaurant is three storeys tall, and it can be a little tough to find, space is limited, making a reservation a necessity for dinner.

Pizza 4P’s
Open Tues-Sun, 11:30-23:00
8/15 Le Thanh Ton
T: (08) 3822 9838
www.pizza4ps.com

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Tags: caprese, Italian food, pizza