Pizza Tour 2022 Results

Every year, our group of five spends one entire evening tasting, reviewing and rating a slice of pizza from every ”legitimate” pizzeria on the Wildwood boardwalk, in search of our favorite slice. Here, we reveal our findings… For more info, read the 'About the Pizza Tour' page!

2022 Pizza Tour Details

Starting Point: South end of the boardwalk, Alex's Pizzeria
Pizza Places Reviewed: 21
Average Price Per Slice: $3.32 (Up 31 cents from 2021)
Most Expensive Slice: XO Pizza -- $4.34
Least Expensive Slice: Steak 'Em Up -- $2.67
Overall Average of All Slices: 2.44 out 5 (Up .13 from 2021)
Time Spent: 3 hours 26 minutes (Starting time: 7:15 pm End time: 10:41 pm)
Reviewers: Brian, Chris, Frank, Mike, Tim

The Best Wildwood Slices 2022

1st Place: Olympic Pizza - Avg: 4.3

Olympic Flame! We've been loving and recommending this slice for years now and simply put, 2022 is some of the best work this shop has put together in all of the 16 years we have been doing the Wildwood Pizza Tour.

This year's slice received a 4.3 out of 5 star review, decisively earning a 1st place over the competition as well as the highest rating we have ever given Olympic Flame all-time.

So, why'd we like this slice? The cheese and sauce was plentiful and full of flavor, well balanced, and, despite featuring a thicker-than-most-boardwalk-slices crust, this slice managed to come across notably fresh and highly approachable.

With a thicker crust and a pan cooked approach, this slice's style and preparation may be different than the New York style thin crusts commonly found across the boardwalk, and it works so well, we no doubt consider this factor an asset.

Let's end with some stats that highlight this slice's consistency.

In the last 10 years:

3x years: our #1 favorite slice
5x years: our #2 favorite slice
Been in our top 5 favorite slices all of those 10 years

Much to our appreciation, many of you have tried Olympic Flame at this point in time, but if you haven't yet, please give them a shot!

We'd love to know what YOU think of this slice -- click here to submit a quick review of Olympic Flame.

Overall Rating: 4.3 out of 5

Brian: 4.5 Chris: 4.0 Frank: 4.0 Mike: 4.5 Tim: 4.5

Slice Price: $3.00
Slice Size: 9.0 x 8.0 -- 36 square inches

2nd Place: Mack's Pizza - Avg: 3.9

Surely you've heard of Mack's Pizza before, right?

If you haven't tried Mack's recently, please return to check out this boardwalk staple...

After a bit of a dip in our 2021 ratings, we're excited to see Mack's bounce back to usual form this year. Mack's presented an absolutely delicious slice for 2022, full of flavor that made other slices feel notably lackluster by comparison. The cheese and sauce on our slice meshed like two good friends who have known each other since 1953 (the year Mack's opened, bad joke?) and the thin crust does it's job admirably without getting in the way. All the ingredients on this slice seem to know their role, as confirmed by our tastebuds.

Overall Rating: 3.9 out of 5
Brian: 3.0 Chris: 4.5 Frank: 3.0 Mike: 4.0 Tim: 5.0
Slice Price: $3.00
Slice Size: 9.0 x 7.0 -- 31.5 square inches

3rd Place: XO Pizza - Avg: 3.8

No doubt about it, XO Pizza, who just opened for 2022, is a new kid in the neighborhood...And, naturally, you might be a little cautious or skeptical as a result, but soon you'll realize there is simply no need for any hesitation.

Our experience with XO Pizza left us encouraged and loving pizza more than ever as we approached the end of our pizza-filled boardwalk evening. The slice looked great and tasted even better. Simply put, great fresh flavors all around made this a joy to experience.

North Wildwood pizzerias, typically a safe haven for some of our favorite pizza in recent years, struggled a bit this year, but XO Pizza provided a definitively satisfying slice, ranking at 3.8 out of 5, totally good enough for 3rd place overall in the 2022 Wildwood Pizza Tour.

Give this place a shot! While the Pizza Tour focuses exclusively on regular cheese slices, we will admit that XO's speciality slices with toppings also caught our eyes...

Overall Rating: 3.8 out of 5
Brian: 3.5 Chris: 4.0 Frank: 4.5 Mike: 3.5 Tim: 3.5
Slice Price: $4.34
Slice Size: 8.5 x 9.0 -- 38.25 square inches

4th Place: Franconi's - Avg: 3.7

Franconi's Pizza was on a hot tear in the 2010's -- we told everyone we knew to go to FRANCONI'S.

They have bounced around in the rankings a bit the last few years, but 2022 was a wonderfully satisfying experience, resulting in a highly respectable 4th place placement! It was back to the leader board for Franconi's.

Overall Rating: 3.7 out of 5

Brian: 3,5 Chris: 3.0 Frank: 4.0 Mike: 4.0 Tim: 4.0

Slice Price: $3.00
Slice Size: 9.5 x 7.0 -- 33.25 square inches

5th Place: Little Angelo's Pizza Spot - Avg: 3.6

The whole reason we started the Pizza Tour was for the chance to discover pizzerias shelling out great pizza that might not have the same reputation as long established and/or popular businesses. So, when we find one that surprises us, we truly love it! It sheds light on our theory that there must be some really good pizza on the boardwalk and we just need to put in the effort to find it.

Little Angelo's Pizza Spot was one such slice for us this year. This slice was picture perfect, tasted even better, and we didn't know what his us. This slice jumped from 14th place in 2021 to 5th this year -- absolutely love when that happens. Give this slice a shot if you're in the area and let us know what your experience is like with a short review!

Overall Rating: 3.6 out of 5

Brian: 3.0 Chris: 3.5 Frank: 3.5 Mike: 4.0 Tim: 4.0

Slice Price: $3.15
Slice Size: 9.0 x 6.5 -- 29.25 square inches

☛ The article continues below!

Best Value Slice (Taste, Price & Size)

In addition to our taste rating, we also record price and slice measurements to determine the best value slice. We have a special in-house formula to determine best value called P3R (Pizza to Price to Points Ratio) = Slice Area * (Points / Price).

1. Olympic Flame - Value Rating (P3R) = 51.60

Sometimes, it feels a little uncomfortable when the Best Slice winner is also the Best Value winner...but there's a good reason this sometimes happens. Olympic Flame offers a well-above average sized slice (6th largest in 2022) for just $3.00 ($3.31 is the average slice price for 2022)...and we already know it tastes great!

While not a factor in our Best Value calculation, this stat is only compounded by the fact that this slice features a slightly thicker dough, thus making it more filling and satisfying at the same time.

So yes, indeed, we found that money spent on Olympic Flame is some of the best cash you can spend in Wildwood!

Overall Rating: 4.3 out of 5

Brian: 4.5 Chris: 4.0 Frank: 4.0 Mike: 4.5 Tim: 4.5

Slice Price: $3.00
Slice Size: 9.0 x 8.0 -- 36 square inches

Value (P3R) Rating: 51.60

2: Steak 'Em Up - P3R: 43.95
3: Little Nicky's - P3R: 43.65
4: Joe's Pizzeria - P3R: 43.03
5: 3 Brothers - P3R: 40.50

Largest Wildwood Pizza Slices

Some days, you spend so much time walking the boards, catching waves, and having fun in the Wildwoods, that you're starving and just want to get your hands on the biggest slice you can possibly find. We know exactly what it's like and we've got you -- these are the largest slices we found on the boardwalk for 2022! If you normally order two slices, maybe start with one and go from there with these pizzerias!

1. Joe's Pizzeria - 13.5 x 8.5 in. (57.38 sq. in.)

2: Jumbo's Pizzeria - 11.0 x 8.0 in. (44.0 sq. in.)
3: Hot Spot Restaurant & Pizzeria - 10.0 x 8.0 in. (40.0 sq. in.)
4: XO Pizza - 8.5 x 9.0 in. (38.25 sq. in.)
5: Original Hot Spot - 9.5 x 8.0 in. (38.0 sq. in)

Most Controversial Slice

While some slices garner general agreement among the Pizza Tour reviewers, there are certainly some that result in mixed opinions. So, which slice was the most controversial this year?

TIE: Steak 'Em Up & Little Nicky's - 2.5 Range

The designation for 2022 is a tie and goes to, ironically, the two northernmost pizzerias on the Wildwood boardwalk: Steak 'Em Up and Little Nicky's. Both slices had a spread of 2.5 in ratings among the 5 reviewers, meaning some reviewers thought these slices were decent, while others were less optimistic.

Steak 'Em Up has generally ranked well in its first couple years (8th in 2019, 7th in 2021), but this year's slice spent a little too much time in the oven. Some reviewers looked passed it, while others had more trouble finding a silver lining navigating the charred crust. We know firsthand that Steak 'Em Up is capable of much better rankings, and suspect this is likely a one time fluke.

Little Nicky's ranked 12th place this year, a little lower than usual, but also received a 4 star review from one reviewer, while just a 1.5 from another. Worth a shot? Absolutely.

When things like this happen, we have no choice but to point it out and recommend that you check out these slices and see what you think! Also worth noting is the fact that both of these slices ranked well in our Best Value category -- One step further, Steak 'Em Up was the least expensive slice on the boards at just $2.67 (boardwalk average is $3.32) -- even more reason to give these two pizzerias a shot.