Pizza Strada — Restaurant in Tokyo

My fiancée and I were first in line when they opened at 5pm (we initially thought that they didn’t take reservations, but they do!) We happily reserved the earliest spot which was 8pm. When we arrived, we sat right in front of where the single Pizzaiolo pressed out the dough for a fully packed house. The confidence and finesse the chef exuded was evident as he layered each ingredient on top of his pies, in between singing to the fire by carefully placing cedar chips into the side of the oven where the fires originated. We ordered the Strada and Wagyu Pizza as many online had recommended to us. The Strada came out first and after my first bite, I couldn’t help but echo the sentiments of actors like Aziz Ansari and foodies alike who declare this as their favorite style of pizza. The pizza was lighter but firmer than an OG Neapolitan but had a richer taste from the extra olive oil the chef drizzled on the pizza before baking it. The pizza also had a salty kick, seemingly from the salt the pizzaiolo threw into the oven before placing the pizza in. We quickly devoured the Strada in a matter of minutes despite having a full tsukemen ramen dinner just 2 hours before. The Wagyu Pizza was fantastic as well, and had a interesting blend of cheddar + low moisture mozzarella. After trying two pizza joints on this trip, the other being a high quality Italian pizza shop in Akihabara, I have to sing the praises of Tokyo Neapolitan. It is truly its own art, still beholden to the classic Italian Neapolitan style, while at the same time exciting the palate with its lighter firmer dough, plus a saltier and richer mouthfeel. Do yourselves a favor and try this style of pizza when you come to Japan, if not here, at PST or another Kakinuma inspired pizza restaurant. This is a unique pizza style that will continue to evolve and I’m thankful to Pizza Strada for giving us such a...

Do I have a weird taste bud? I came out of the place more impressed with the fried chicken wing than the pizza hahaha

It's impressive that they were able to remove the wing bone and you are left with just the drum bone with all the meat. It's sprinkled with some magic dusts that tastes like dominos garlic powder but much tastier and not so artificial looking. It's juicy and well marinated. Truly finger lickin good.

As for the pizza... I liked the chewy dough and the crispy ends. Those who are not fan of pizza crusts, you will like it. Barely any crusts. I regret not getting the tomato based pizza because it seems that it was the most popular. Usually the tomato paste is a main differentiating point in terms of the pizza's taste. It would have cut through the pepperoni. I realise I ordered the cheese pizza. It was basil, pepperoni, cheese. It was alright. 1 pizza is enough for an adult male.

I think the main highlight of this experience was sitting at the counter watching the guy make the pizza. It was like a sushi omakase where you see the chef work it's magic. Part of the experience is the performance of making the food. This was indeed a performance.

Server is friendly and attentive! They try their best to speak some simple English to facilitate the order.

On another note, some might be irked by the majority foreign clientele. For me that's a good sign because the westerners...

Me and my wife arrived here on a Friday evening. We didn't have a reservation. 2 other couples had arrived with us at the same time. 1 of them before us in the queue and the other 1 was behind us. They gave seats to the couple behind us but refused us seating. I can understand a little Japanese and it was evident that the couple after us did not have a reservation either. However, we were denied a table. We offered to wait as it was fairly early in the evening and we did not mind waiting. However we were informed that they would not be able to serve us. We were in proper formals and so the dress could not be an issue. Even after being denied when we waited on the street opposite, we could see that there were many empty tables. However, mysteriously, the 2 ladies waiting at the tables refused us. The only factor I could see that differentiated us was the colour of our skin. We are not native Japanese but south Asian. This is not the first time we are dining out in Japan but this was the first time we were ever denied service, most apparently due to the colour of our skin. If they don't want people who aren't white, they should just place a banner outside so we won't waste our time traveling to this place. Travellers should avoid this...