Northport Pizzeria, Voted Best On LI, Wins Several Awards: 'We're Very Proud'

NORTHPORT, NY — Long Islanders love their pizza. And PieZano's of Northport has the best on the island, voters decided in the 2025 FourLeaf Best of Long Island Awards.

John Vigliotti said winning the award for Best Pizza on Long Island is a "big deal" for him and his business partner, Ralph Caruso.

"We work very hard on our product. We're very proud of it," Vigliotti told Patch. "We've both been in the pizza business for a long time. To win that, it means a lot to us."

PieZano's won five other awards in the FourLeaf Best of Long Island Awards. The pizzeria was recognized for having the best calzones, rice balls, linguini and clam sauce and baked clams. Vigliotti and Caruso are particularly proud of having won Best Specialty Pizza on Long Island, however.

"That's what we're really known for: our specialty pies," Vigliotti said. "Our deep dish pie, we've been doing them in this store and at our other stores before this. It's always been something that has been really popular."

Any specialty pizzas on the PieZano's menu can be ordered as an 18-inch regular pie or in a 16-inch deep dish style. Options include chicken a la vodka; BBQ chicken; chicken bacon ranch; a white pie; penne a la vodka; fried calamari; and more. The pizzeria also serves specialty square pies and personal thin crust pies.

"Besides the regular best pizza, winning the best specialty pizza was a really big deal for us, as well," Vigliotti said.

The key to PieZano's' success is the "old fashioned" approach and recipes, Vigliotti said. He and Caruso have been in the pizza business for "many, many years."

"We use the same exact products," he said. "We don't really change anything. It's the same recipe."

PieZano's opened in Northport in 2013, initially as Mama Mia. The owners changed the name to PieZano's during the coronavirus pandemic.

Grandpa Tony's of East Rockaway had won Best Pizza on Long Island for five years straight in the FourLeaf Best of Long Island Awards before PieZano's pulled off the upset. Vigliotti credited his pizzeria's "really good fanbase" and "great customers."

"We had things all over the store saying that we were nominated," he said. "People really did the right thing. Everybody was proud of their favorite pizza store and everybody voted. We were really shocked when we found out that we won. We were really, really excited about it."

The restaurant relied on in-store advertisements, as PieZano's does not have much of a social media presence, Vigliotti said.

"We want to thank everybody who voted for us," he said. "Everybody who took the time. We were nominated for eight things; we won six out of the eight. I'm sure that took a lot of time for a lot of people to vote."

While PieZano's could not reclaim Best Soup on Long Island, which it won in 2021, Vigliotti said he is proud of the old-fashioned soup recipes offered at his pizzeria.

Other than offering award-winning pizza, soup, linguini and clam sauce, calzones, rice balls and baked clams, PieZano's menu also features heroes, paninis, wraps, pizza rolls, pastas, appetizers, entrees, and more.

"I definitely want to thank everybody again," Vigliotti said when asked for a final message to his customers. "I think it was really great that everybody came through and voted for us. We look forward to keep doing what we do here: serving great product. We're proud to be in Northport."

PieZano's is located at 395 Fort Salonga Road, Northport.