Ancora Pizzeria and Salumeria

Why We Love It: Ancora’s custom-made 6,000-pound, $16,000 wood-burning pizza oven built by a third-generation Neopolitan oven-maker got more attention than the pizza when they first opened in 2011, but this Freret Street pizzeria and salumeria has lived up to the acclaim and settled in comfortably as one of New Orleans top pie shops. Be sure to get a spot in the dining room facing the oven: you’ll want to watch as the pizzaiolo rips through pies in the 850-degree oven in 90 seconds flat while you sip from the restaurant’s impressive list of Italian wines or craft cocktails. The menu's "anti pizza" section is worth a visit alone for its selection of house-cured meats and local cheeses.