History
Buffalo-style pizza developed alongside the city's wings and Italian-American culture, with La Nova (1957) and Bocce Club Pizza (Bailey Avenue, 1959 location) the canonical homes. The cup-and-char pepperoni is the regional signature: the small cured pepperoni rounds curl into cups and char at the edges in the high-heat oven.
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Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy
Make it at home
Ingredients
- 1 lb pizza dough, store-bought or homemade
- 1 cup tomato pizza sauce
- 8 oz low-moisture mozzarella, shredded
- 2 oz Romano cheese, grated
- 4 oz Sahlen's cup-and-char pepperoni, sliced (or any small-diameter dry-cured pepperoni)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Pinch of dried oregano
Method
- Heat oven to highest setting (typically 500 F or 260 C) with a pizza stone or steel inside, for at least 30 minutes.
- Stretch dough to a 12-inch round on a floured peel.
- Spread sauce thinly, leaving a 1-inch border.
- Sprinkle Romano first, then mozzarella across the surface.
- Arrange pepperoni rounds on top, slightly spaced so they cup as they cook.
- Slide onto the hot stone and bake 8 to 10 minutes until the crust is deep golden and the pepperoni edges curl and char.
- Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle oregano over the top before slicing.
Tip from the editors. Use the smallest-diameter pepperoni you can find. The cup-and-char shape is what makes this Buffalo-style and not New York-style.
Where to eat buffalo-style pizza (cup-and-char pepperoni)
Buffalo-style pizza (cup-and-char pepperoni) in Buffalo
La Nova Pizzeria ★ 4.2
La Nova on West Ferry has slung Buffalo-style cup-and-char pizza since 1957, with slices and pies that anchor the West Side budget Italian-American counter.
TryBuffalo-style pizza slice
Bocce Club Pizza ★ 4.3
Bocce Club Pizza on Bailey Avenue serves the canonical Buffalo cup-and-char pepperoni pizza since founder Dino moved in next to UB South in 1959.
TryBuffalo-style pepperoni pizza
Pearl Street Grill and Brewery ★ 4.3
Pearl Street Grill on Pearl Street has anchored Buffalo brewpubs since 1997, four floors and nine bars with house-brewed beer from basement tanks.
More cities are in research. Want buffalo-style pizza (cup-and-char pepperoni) covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.