Rice and beans, conch fritters, grilled lobster, garnaches, salbutes, tamales, and burritos… oh my! There is no shortage of delicious and filling food to be found on the peninsula, but sometimes you just crave that warm dough-tangy tomato sauce-melted cheese combination that is PIZZA and no amount of tacos will suffice. Where can you go in Placencia to find fabulous pizza? Quite a few places, as it turns out! Here is a list of the top seven sites for pizza on the peninsula.
The Pizzeria at Turtle Inn
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Tuscany meets Bali meets Belize in this charming open-air pizzeria tucked into Turtle Inn’s organic garden. The Pizzeria is a new addition to this exquisite property, one of the Coppola Family’s Hideaways, and offers visitors yet another captivating al-fresco dining experience. Beautiful brick oven pizzas are cooked to order before your eyes with ingredients picked fresh from the surrounding garden. Seating is family style, around one massive centerpiece high-top table and the chefs work around you, not behind the scenes, to create a slightly charred yet still chewy crust with incredible topping combinations. Locals love the 2-for-1 Sunday Special.
Cha Chi’s
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Directly on the road in the heart of the village of Placencia, Cha Chi’s churns out thin crust pizza all day and night long from industrial pizza ovens. The only place you can snag a single slice. Cha Chi’s has pre-made pies ready and waiting in their display case that you can grab and go with but you might be tempted to stick around by the handsome bar and rotating line-up of live music.
Itz’ana Resort’s Poolside Pizza
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A beautiful behemoth of a brick oven occupies space beside the alluring infinity pool at Itz’ana Resort on the beach just south of Seine Bight Village. While many amenities are reserved for guests, the excellent restaurant and bars are open to the public and there are few finer settings for casually elegant dining than poolside pizza at Itz’ana. The mushroom, caramelized onion, and goat cheese pizza is simple yet sophisticated. They have a 2-for-1 pizza promotion on Thursdays.
Tipsy Tuna Seaside & Sports Bar
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The popular beach bar, Tipsy Tuna, only serves pizza on Mondays nights (to the disappointment of its many die-hard fans). With a thick crust and utterly loaded down with toppings, Tipsy’s pizzas are substantial and satiating. The Caribbean Shrimp pizza is a top choice; heavy with grilled shrimp, bacon, sweet peppers, onions, and pineapple it tantalizes all taste buds. Tipsy Tuna is a colorful and comfortable spot on the beach that strikes a welcoming vibe to locals and visitors, young and old alike. If you miss the pizza on Monday, spot in any other night for a rotating agenda of entertainment that includes Garifuna Drumming, karaoke, live music, and DJs.
Rick’s Café
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Rick’s Café went from an unassuming little 6-table-place on the Placencia sidewalk to the 1500-square foot roadside restaurant we know now with the capacity to seat 70 people. Rick’s is a favorite for familiar American-Italian comfort foods like sandwiches, salads, pasta, and most notably, pizzas. The new location didn’t just expand their dining room, it included an upgrade to a large and modern kitchen to more efficiently produce the superb pizzas they’d become so popular for. The Greek pizza with pepperoncini, red onion, feta, and calamata olives is especially wonderful.
Jaguar Lanes
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Jaguar Lanes is a real deal bowling alley in Belize…the one and only! Any self-respecting bowling alley must also serve up some stellar snacks and Jaguar Lanes’ menu has all the usual: burgers, nachos, tacos, wings, and pizza. Many Maya Beach-ers argue that the best pizza on the peninsula is made here. Eat-in while you bowl a game or two or carry-out, pizzas come in 12- or 16-inch sizes and can be customized with an array of toppings. Pulled pork and red onion are a favorite.
Umaya
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“This one is technically on its way, but the pizza has already been verified! That’s because Don Tonito’s Pizza, the resident wood-fired pizzeria at Sleeping Giant Rainforest Lodge, will officially be offered beachside at Umaya Resort in Placencia, starting October 5, 2022. Umaya confirms their opening hours from Thursday through Sunday, starting 12:00 pm – 8:00 pm.” Carolee Chanona.
Header image via Turtle Inn.
