Pick Up The Fork

A Serious Eater's Guide to Buenos Aires and Beyond

The Best Pizza in Buenos Aires: Siamo Nel Forno

Posted on 54 Comments

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Surprising to many locals who have a life-long devoted loyalty to their favorite dish, Argentina is known by many to serve some pretty awful pizza. Some have even go far to say that it’s one of the worst pizza in the world. Oh, but how can you go wrong with dough + cheese + grease, might you ask? Well, I’ll tell you: Despite the large Italian influence, and love for the cheesy pie, most pizza in Buenos Aires consists of rubbery cheese, tasteless cardboard dough, no sauce with very little flavor and odd topping choices.* Fortunately, one pizzeria stands far above the rest with their true napoletana style pizza. Thanks to Siamo nel Forno there is no competition anymore, this pizza is simply the best.

Siamo nel forno pizza close up

People always overuse the words the best to describe food, “I had the best <insert something that is probably not that good ever in my life> it was TO DIE FOR.”  But in this case, you can hold me to my pizza declaration: for those who are not fans of Argentine style pizza, long for something a bit different, looking to ditch the puddles of grease on a cardboard tasting crust to change it up for a lighter version, get your culo to this Palermo Hollywood pizzería.

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So what’s so great about this pizza that makes it so damn good? Owner and the total Italian pizza making grosso Néstor Gattorna brings the true Italian pizza experience by serving high quality ingredients, mostly imported from Italy, with fresh toppings, a carefully worked dough, and beautiful flavor combinations. Tomato sauce made with care in a world of pizza sauces that consist of canned tomato puré, high quality olive oils, wonderful cheeses and an interesting selection of toppings.

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The magic is in the baking. Pizzas are cooked for only about one minute in a wood-fire oven that has been heated to 450 degrees C. It comes out slightly burnt and crispy on the outside, yet still has that soft, chewy and pliable consistency. Really perfect doughy texture with those airy bubble blisters.

For those who have simpler tastes, try the cheeseless option: sweet tangy tomato sauce, oregano, garlic, basil and sea salt. Ask for some red pepper flakes or spicy chili oil, and you have simple perfection.

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My personal flavor and go-to pizza that never fails, the Margherita: fior de latte mozzarella, tomato sauce and basil.

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The potato pizza is also a winner, with thin slices of potato and Parmesan cheese.

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For dessert, the nutella specialty is a must order: nutella + pizza, you say?? Dreams are made of this shit. Unlike most Buenos Aires pizzerias, Siamo Nel Forno does not deliver, but you can order your pizza to go – and if you bring your own tupperware (ahem, like me) bring home a caprese salad or burrata too.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Z_darAhauo&fs=1&hl=en_US]

Siamo nel Forno 
Costa Rica 5886, Palermo Hollywood
Tel. 4775-0337
Tue – Sun: 8pm – close

*While good pizza does exist in Buenos Aires, you can’t just walk into any pizzeria and expect to be served a piece of the good stuff. Pizza has a bit different definition and the good pizzerías offer something similar to a Chicago deep dish. If you want to try Argentine-style pizza, aka a cheese-onion fugazetta bomb, here is my Buenos Aires pizza guide on the Latin Kitchen.

Author: ForkYou

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Comments

  2. Alright, so this blog is quite addictive. Now Having grown up in both Baires and NYC, my thoughts on who makes the best pizza is a little askew. My family originally came from Italy and Denmark to Argentina (Neuquen to be precise), so I grew up having really good Northern style Italian food and a hatred for pickled herring. I think that the best way to approach this is to accept the standards that each culture brings to the table. For Argentine pizza, the cheese I think is called something other than mozzarella (maybe cremoso), so it tends to have have a higher moisture content than USA commercial moz, hence the glistening(-ization) of it – a bit more runny. When I was teenager and traveled back to Vte. Lopez from NYC, I would order a plain pie and demand extra-salsa, something that the La Esquina Pizza on Avenida San Martin could not wrap their mind around, needless to say, it gave it a bit more flavor. Also, remember that the majority of pies made in Baires are basically pan style pizza, where the dough may be pre-cooked prior in a little pool of oil in a pan, not to different from Chicago pies(which I really do love). American style pies are put in the oven with a little bit of flour, like a bread, nice and dry. Now that I live in Brooklyn, I love Lucali’s, which is a fantastic interpretation of a Neapolitan pie. Also, the best pizza I ever had in Argentina, was in Neuquen at Franz & Peppone, can’t remember the address, but if you find yourself there, try the Rockefort pie.

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  5. Chicago huh. I can’t argue with you on that one. Dan from Saltshaker once made me a Chicago style pizza here in BA and it was fantastic. It’s nice to get a little slice of home once in a while.

    I also agree on Siamo. For me, it is the best pie in the city.

    And although I have also grown fond of some local pizzas like Alan has, I could never really get too excited over them. I mean, if I were to leave Argentina tomorrow, I am pretty sure that pizza would not be one of the things that I would miss. That little hole in my heart would be occupied by empanadas, dulce de leche, grilled steak, choripan, wine, ice cream, fresh pasta joints, fruit and veggies in season, etc.

    Oh, and by the way, I also happen to like the pizza from Albamonte. This place is not a typical touristy spot.
    http://azucar-y-especias.blogspot.com/search?q=albamonte

    Great post Allie!

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    • Albamonte is so good as siamo nel forno…real italian pizza , and el cuartito s real porteños pizza and very good !

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  6. Well..I would say the best “Pizza napoletana” (that’s different from a “standard” pizza) in BS, not the best pizza in general.
    Try to eat a pizza at Piola and let us know .

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    • Well, i’ve just seen your review of Piola so you have already tried it.
      What can I say..it’s a matter of personal taste . I, as a Rome guy, prefer Piola’s pizza (even if the Mozzarella that they use is far light years from the Italian one)

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  7. So who has the best in the world then expert ? Living in California, very difficult to find a good pizza. I still say BA has better pizza than here.

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  8. Definitely agree… been here for over a month and i still i cannot find a pizza that tastes or looks like a proper italian pizza…. i actually had given up, but i will make the trek to Palermo and taste Siamo. I live in Barrio Norte and there is literally a Pizza place in every corner, but they all look like the same… fat pies of dough with white rubber on top. Any suggestions? Thanks. Just started reading the blog, recommended by one of your readers Jeatala, and am really enjoying it.

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  9. I must agree, pizza is terrible down here. I´ll try this one.
    Anyone knows where to find something like the pizza in Roma, thin crust, light…
    Thanks for your reviews, they are very helpful for a picky eater !

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  11. I definitely enjoyed the pizza in Buenos Aires. But we are probably talking about the globalisation of tasteas well. People have come to expect a certain taste from what they know as pizza. Buenos Aires pizza recipes in my view are closely related to the original pizzas from Naples before they were adopted by the rest of the world. And yes of course we have had not so interesting pizza,but bad ? No. Don’t forget prices too. Affordable pizzas are hard to make with cheese prices having gone up. Cheap only for foreigners. Must try La guitarrita and Siamo next time.
    And lol , I must be mad too. I would give a lot for a muzzarella and a beretta housewine right now.

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  12. I don’t know… personally I would say that the pizza at Siamo nel Forno is great, and the pizza at El Cuartito is great. It’s just a shame that they are both called pizza, because besides from the name and the fact that they both contain dough, cheese and tomato, they are completely different things, and thus difficult to compare directly.

    It’s a bit like saying that a certain dish at Tandoor is better than a certain dish at Sudestada. They both might use similar ingredients (rice, meats, vegetables, spices), but the styles are too different to easily compare.

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  13. I have to say that it is most certainly the best pizza in Palermo, but there are others of very good quality also. “Los campeones” in la boca is amazing not neopolitan but the best porteno pizza imo

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  14. You do have a point Oscar about the lack of enthusiasm of locals to try new foods…but still I meet loads of people who have tried pizza in Italy, and elsewhere, and they would still say: “nowhere like Buenos Aires’ muzzarella”. That’s the mistery to me, if it is so bad.

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  15. I had heard foreigners’ opinions on porteño pizza before (the dough, the little sauce, the cheese, etc), and I thought it was a matter of taste…what struck me was to learn that there is consensus that it ranks among the WORST in the world (and that I’m nuts!, but that is no surprise, lol).

    It’s really a mistery: I think of all those people standing in line outside of Guerrin or La Mezzetta on Satrudays, without knowing they are queing for the worst pizza in the world. All of us porteños victims of mass delusion…

    I’ve been doing an experiment with friends over the last few days, and when I tell them “there’s consensus in the world…” I always get the same response: “Queeeee???” And it’s not a matter of gastronomic nationalism, because once one start talking about for example coffee (better in Italy) or beer (better anywhere else practically), you do find varied opinions .

    But no local I know endorses the assertion about pizza, even people who have travelled, they really love the porteño pizza…maybe it’s a matter of names? What we call pizza is some kind of cheese and tomato pie from a foreigner perspective.

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    • I’m a portenho too, I still think pizza here is pretty nasty, I’ve been to La mezzeta too cause they told me pizza there is really good, and again I felt frustrated, how can people recommend a stinky sweaty place where all they do is throw a pound of cheese and onions on ONE slice (not jk, that’s how much cheese they put on it) and call it the best pizza? And this is a well known ‘good’ pizza place we are talking about/!

      average portenos can’t really taste anything else than their own food, I was in Rio de janeiro, about a year ago, where food is amazing and you can get tasty goodies anywhere in the city, still, my porteno hostel roommate kept going to mcdonalds every single day because, according to him -he couldn’t find any food that he likes there so he just goes to the best place he knows, mcdonalds!-

      That’s just one example of how portenos only like porteno food and can’t and won’t try different food calling me -vos estas loco- whenever I suggest something ‘adventurous’ like indian

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  16. I can see that this is a controversial and sensitive subject for Porteños, but I have to agree that the pizzas here are worse than store bought frozen pizzas…and that is saying a lot.

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  19. I had the opportunity to eat at this place on my last vacations in Buenos Aires, and I must admit it was amazing! Like Conrado I had the luck of traveled around the world, and without a doubt this is one of the best that I ever tried in my trips. During my trip in this amazing city I also lived an incredible experience that made my travel completely unforgettable, I book online El Viejo Almacen Tango Dinner Show trough BsAs4U, and it was something remarkable. This tango house shows something really intimate and traditional show was an incredible presentation in which I felt the passion of the country reflected on the stage.

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  21. I agree – Siam Nel Forno is my favorite pizza place (by a long shot) in Buenos Aires. Nestor (the owner) is also super cool and speaks near-perfect English.

    Just stick with the Margahrita and you can’t go wrong. Perfect for a late Sunday afternoon after a long Saturday BA night.

    BTW – love your blog. :)

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    • Glad to see another Siamo fan! I don’t usually give such positive reviews, but this place really does have the best pizza by a looooong shot.

      Another good place is La Guitarrita in Las Cañitas, which I actually found thanks to BAdelivery. I’d def be in trouble if Siamo joined the delivery crew…

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  22. The worst pizza in the world??? According to whom? I have worked in a pizzeria in Florence, Italy (ate a lot of it), travelled around that country from North to South, tried it also in London, Paris, New York…call me nuts, but I still prefer a slice of Muzzarella and Fainá at Las Cuartetas, or a slice of Fugazzetta at El Cuartito!

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    • I will call you nuts! You prefer Las Cuartetas and El Cuartito to pizza from Italy and New York?! Those two are better than cualquier pizzeria in this city, but still there’s no comparison.

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      • This is cultural. In Argentina we grew up eating Argentinean pizza. In USA you grew up eating something I will never call pizza, but oh, well. It’s what it’s. I found the pizza in ALL the USA, even N.Y, the worst pizza ever. How do you call “Domino’s pizza” pizza? Cultural. Only in a real good italian restorante you can find the real thing. I want to try Siamo nel Forno, but now I have doubts, would I spend 60 pesos on a pizza that a person who loves USA pizza recommends…? I’m thinking, I’m thinking…

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        • You are right Daniela, it’s cultural, and everyone is entitled to their own preferences. I have to agree with the chorus of foreigners who come to Argentina and give the pizzas here, a major thumbs down. Inferior cheese, little attention paid to the quality of the crust, and no appreciation, whatsoever for the importance of sauce in the all important cheese-crust-sauce triangle. If you are even mentioning Domino’s in a serious discussion of pizza, than it’s hard to imagine you’ve really tried good, authentic New York pizza. Buenos AIres vs. New York, hands down NYC, in my opinion – Argentina hardly rates on the world pizza map, due to the problems mentioned above. Flavorless crust, tons and tons of bad quality cheese, virtually no sauce, does not a good pizza make, at least to my taste. There are a couple of exceptions – Guerrin, Angelin, which both produce pizza that can be pretty good, if you catch them on a good day. Oh, and if we are talking about cheap generic Porteno delivery pizza vs. Domino’s – I’d choose Domino’s in a heart beat. Sadly, I tried Samo nel Forno, a few times, and perhaps it was just bad luck, none of the times I gave it try, I was particularly impressed – soggy centers, each time. This leads me to conclude that…. Buenos Aires still does not have a truly great pizzeria, that can hang with the best pizzas of places like Chicago, New York, New Haven, Philadelphia, and, of course, hundreds of pizzerias in Italia. In places like New York, Italian Americans celebrate and revere their heritage, they are crazy about their cuisine, and keeping traditions from the old country, alive. Best ingredients are imported from the old country to make sure that the right flavors and subtle notes persist in their cooking. Here in Buenos Aires, Italian culture has been lost and consumed by meat and potatoes, and the incredibly narrow spectrum of the Argentine pallet (when was the last time you even saw pepper on a table in a restaurant here?). Italian pizza, if every it existed here, has gotten lost under mountains of crappy greasy cheese. Maybe it’s the result of long distances, and isolation, and government taxes making it prohibitive to import ingredients, the fact that the best produce of the country is exported, or the pressure to become Argentine, rather than to continue to celebrate your roots. Who knows.

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      • a lot of things right? You just named shit food (I love french fries and ice cream) but a lot of things right? They get a lot of things wrong. They screw over their industry and economy, but thanks for the cheap meat government! Oh by the way, almost no parilla cooks their meat correctly, which is a shame since meat here is pretty good. They rarely bother to salt and sear their steaks properly.

        Pastas are god-awful, chef boyardee makes better.

        Salads – what kind of chef asks you for what lettuce and veggies you want in a salad, then hands you olive oil and vinegar? Really? A restaurant and your menu is supposed to be your vision of food, but if you lack the talent, which a lot of chefs out here do, then yeah, I guess it makes sense to ask me how to make a salad.

        Drinks? Virtually every bar here can’t make a good drink.

        If you’re lazy, like a laid back attitude, a country that has way too many holidays and prides itself on doing great work, sure, BsAs is a great place. The city is completely style over substance.

        There are good restaurants out here, they’re just way too few and outnumbered by all the shitty ones.

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    • I’m with you, Conrado. I don’t think the pizza in Buenos Aires is the worst in the world! I really like the pizza in Buenos Aires, definitely different than anything I have had back in the USA. Actually, recently when I went back to the USA over the holidays the only pizza I liked there were the gourmet pies. I think it is just a matter of opinion, and it is a shame that so many people call porteña pizza the worst pizza in the world, when really they are disappointed because they didn’t get what they expected…which I guess is a pizza from Italy. Obviously pizza is going to be different in every city, state, and country. What fun would it be if all pizzas were the same “classic” pizza? My favorites in the city are Guerrin and Napoles. I haven’t been to Las Cuartetas, but I’ll have to try it!

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  23. Yep, this is our favorite too. Get on the email list, because they often have interesting specials and promotions. It’s about as close to the real thing as one can find in Buenos Aires, land of cheap cheese and junk dough.

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