Pizza Shed Bree — Restaurant in City Centre

Visited in December 2024. South Africa. Capetown.

Intrigued by photos showcasing perfectly charred, puffy crust and a generous topping bounty, we ventured to Pizza Shed to sample their Neapolitan-style pizzas – a style we hold dear. The restaurant itself is modestly sized; we opted for a table al fresco. Their apparent focus on delivery service translates into a somewhat limited number of dine-in seats.

The Food: The menu is surprisingly extensive, boasting a wide array of pizzas alongside a selection of antipasti and signature desserts. Our initial choice, a mortadella pizza, proved unavailable, necessitating a tactical readjustment. We settled on two pizzas: a truffle pizza (with a requested substitution of white for red sauce), and a red sauce pizza Diavolo featuring sausage and caramelized onions. The pizza dough was exceptional – expertly fermented, yielding a delightfully springy yet airy crust that held its shape beautifully. The subtle, unsweetened flavour of the dough itself was a pleasure, even enhanced by the occasional slightly charred bubble and crisp base, imparting an authentic wood-fired grill note without overwhelming the palate. The truffle pizza, however, fell short of expectations; despite a generous helping of mushrooms and other toppings, the promised truffle flavour remained elusive. The sausage pizza, on the other hand, showcased a vibrant, assertive red sauce, perhaps a touch too dominant, slightly masking the flavour of the succulent sausage. Caramelized onions provided a pleasing counterpoint. Our dessert ambitions were thwarted by the unavailability of the tiramisu – a small, but regrettable, disappointment.

Service: Service was friendly and attentive, if a little slow. Pizzas arrived within a reasonable 10-15 minute timeframe.

In conclusion:

In summary, Pizza Shed is a worthy addition to Cape Town’s pizza scene. The commitment to using properly fermented dough and baking in a genuine wood-fired oven is evident. Having sampled many Neapolitan pizzas across the city, we can confidently attest to the quality and authenticity of Pizza Shed's offerings. We wholeheartedly...

This is the best pizza in Cape Town! If it’s not busy, you will have an amazing time - AMAZING food, friendly service, and great atmosphere! 5/5 stars!

But, if it’s busy, do be aware of the following: You cannot make a reservation, so you are going to have to wait in a long line (approx 30m-1hr) They also take lots of takeaway orders, so that means the sit-down customers have to wait a very long time for their orders (approx 45m-1hr from when you order) The above 2 points do impact the atmosphere at the restaurant: the customers sitting down get annoyed because they have to wait so long for their pizza (due to all the takeaway orders), and in turn, the customers waiting for a table also get annoyed because they have to wait so long for the customers sitting down to get their pizza, eat and leave.

But… there are some workarounds: Go to their Observatory store instead: you can make reservations there and there’s a lot more seating! Put your name on the waiting list, and then go next door to Appretief and have a drink whilst you wait for your table at Pizza Shed (they’ll call you when your table is ready) Place your order as soon as you sit down at your table, or even before your table is even ready

The pizza is definitely worth the wait!! Just be aware of the above so you don’t end up being hungry...

Amazing pizza! The dough is very tender and thin which makes for an amazing pizza. The sauce was great too. I can say that this pizza is the real deal and I have had pizza in Italy.

Update Oct 2023: Came here for lunch and the pizza is just as good but the service was not there anymore. It was very disappointing. We saw on Instagram that they had vegan pizza options so we came with my sister who is vegan. They did not have vegan cheese. They suggested truffle but she didn't want to pay for the whole thing if it did not come with cheese. So we opted for the artichokes which we had asked the waiter if there was cheese in it and he said no. It came topped with cheese but they changed it. We were surprised to see that they charge R10 for chilli oil this time. We had 2 waiters who were saying separate things. On the final bill they charged for the oil even though we didn't get any. We asked her to remove it and she ended up charging the card for it anyway. So very disappointed this...