Greenville, South Carolina, has a lot to offer, whether you’re looking for a regional getaway or a new place to call home. The city’s downtown revitalization began 20 years ago, and the success of that revitalization continues to today. In the years since, Greenville has served as a model for other cities seeking to breathe new life into their downtown cores. Neither a big city nor a small town, Greenville hits a sweet spot in between.
Here are the best best pizza places in Greenville, SC:
- Sidewall Pizza Company
- Stone Pizza Company
- World Piece
- Pizza and Then Some
- Barley’s
If you’re looking for the best pizza places in Greenville, SC, you’ve come to the right place. I’ll be your local guide to all the best local pizza joints around this remarkable little city. Below you’ll find both old-school and new-school recommendations, from greasy indulgence to modern, healthier interpretations. And no national chains here: all the pizza places recommended here are local or regional businesses. You can feel good about supporting local business, no matter which restaurant you choose on the list below.
Sidewall Pizza Company
Sidewall Pizza Company is a relatively recent local success story, and it’s my favorite place for pizza in Greenville. Started by two friends with no real experience in pizzas or restaurants, Sidewall Pizza has captured an array of unique flavors I’ve not experienced elsewhere.
And I’m not the only one who’s impressed: The first location opened in nearby Travelers Rest somewhere around 2015, and they’ve already expanded to six locations, plus a barbecue joint. Each restaurant is unique to the community. The original restaurant opened in an old tire shop (hence the name), and the downtown Greenville location converted an old gas station into the coziest spot possible.
Offering pizzas, salads, ice cream, and a wide array of local craft and microbrewed beers, Sidewall doesn’t stray far from typical pizzeria categories. But everything they offer is just several notches higher in quality and originality than your run-of-the-mill pizza joint. They seek to serve a wide range of dietary preferences, too, with vegan cheese and house-made gluten-free crust available. Featuring local-when-possible ingredients and nitrate-free bacon, you can feel good about what you’re eating at Sidewall.
My personal menu recommendations: the Greenville Goddess pizza, with bacon, artichoke hearts, fresh basil, fresh mozzarella and goat cheese, is a delight. And the smoky salad with house-made basil dressing must be experienced to be believed.
Stone Pizza Company
Stone Pizza Company opened up a few years ago in a space that was occupied by a pub for something like 50 years. Located just outside downtown at the corner of Stone and Park, Stone Pizza Company has breathed new life into a building that’s one of the few in town from its era.
Stone Pizza Company’s claim to fame is its authentic Neapolitan wood-fired pizza oven — the only one in the region as far as I can tell. They are proud of this oven, so much so that they built it into the exterior wall so you can see it from the road. And they’re serious about it, following Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana specifications. They import their tomatoes and hand-craft their dough daily.
If you’ve never had authentic Neapolitan style pizza, be aware that it’s a little different. Almost soggy in the middle, or even a bit doughy — but this is on purpose, and man is it delicious.
Stone Pizza Company also offers a 10-inch cauliflower-based gluten-free crust as well as a traditional gluten-free crust. If Neapolitan style isn’t your thing, they also offer a New York-style pizza. They also make an array of starters, subs and pasta dishes.
World Piece
Greenville’s downtown revitalization is bursting at the seams, and the Westone development on Stone Avenue is proof of that. The Stone Avenue corridor used to be a weird mix of high-end historic homes and, well, dumpy businesses. But the road-front businesses are transforming almost as an extension of downtown.
The Westone development is one example of the Stone Avenue revitalization, and that’s where you’ll find World Piece. (No website yet, but trust me — worth the risk.) World Piece and its next-door neighbor, Coffee on Stone, are run by the Coffee Underground team, their first forays outside of downtown.
(Coffee Underground, in case you’re not familiar, is a local coffee, music, improv, and poetry institution that itself dates to close to the beginning of the downtown rebirth. But more on that in our Best Coffee guide.)
World Piece offers a wide range of modern and traditional pizzas, including numerous vegetarian and gluten-free options. Besides pizzas, the restaurant also offers wings, burgers, salads and several surprisingly complex desserts. Coffee Underground fans will understand where the dessert skill originated.
My recommendations: I just love it when folks really care about what they do. For that reason, I recommend the John Dough: tell them anything you don’t like, and they will improvise a custom pizza that avoids those ingredients. You can get something different every time! But if you’re looking for a little more predictability, try the Philly.
Pizza and Then Some
The recommendations thus far have all been pretty new-school pizza joints. But let’s be honest: sometimes you just want a good old-fashioned greasy pizza! If your idea of a great pizza involves less arugula and more meat and cheese, then Pizza and Then Some might be more up your alley. You won’t find high aesthetics or locally sourced microgreens here, but you will find a wide range of fairly traditional pizzas that are fairly delicious.
With locations in Greenville and nearby Easley, Pizza and Then Some is your traditional carryout and delivery joint. In addition to pizzas, they offer Stromboli, calzones, pasta, hot subs, breadsticks and salad. But just like with the pizzas, the salads are more your traditional pizzeria fare: decidedly un-fancy.
Pizza and Then Some has a gluten-free crust as well, and it’s perhaps surprisingly my favorite in terms of texture and taste. It even beats out Sidewall, if I’m honest.
My pizza recommendation here is the Cheeseburger Pizza. Made with a delicious mayo-mustard sauce, I’m sure this thing is terrible for me. But man does it hit the spot! (My salad recommendation is … don’t come here for the salad.)
Barley’s
Located just off Main Street on Washington, Barley’s is an excellent choice for pizza and beer if you want to stay in the downtown core. Formerly known as Barley’s Tap Room and Pizzeria, the establishment has recently rebranded and expanded its menu. Barley’s has been serving downtown Greenville for over 15 years now, and locals know it’s a real gem.
The menu here is extensive, including a wide range of appetizers, pasta, salads, calzones and sandwiches. Barley’s offers both traditional New York-style pizza as well as a wide range of inventive and higher-end “Speciality Pizzas.” The Aloha, for example, isn’t your standard ham-and-pineapple. It features a tomato-basil cream sauce topped with prosciutto, pineapple and jalapeños.
My recommendation: If I had to pick just one, it’d be the Thai Chicken Pizza. You may have had something named this before, but I doubt you’ve had one this good.
Wrapping Up
If you’re looking for the best pizza places in Greenville, SC, it’s hard to go wrong with the establishments included here. Whatever your reason for visiting Greenville, I hope you can find time to visit one or more of these great local establishments.
