Gusto Pizzeria

Stopped in for lunch today after a business meeting in the area. Excellent service, place is super clean and bright, and the pizza came out in just a few minutes. Was recommended by a friend, we split the Americano. Fantastic pizza, ranks right up there with the best wood fired Neapolitan style pizza I’ve had. Will absolutely be back!

This was my first visit to Gusto. I ordered the Sammy and a Bianca pie. This was a great Naples style pizza. My only critique is the pizza wasn’t cut through. The dough was airy and cooked perfectly. The Sammy pies ingredients were very fresh and of great quality. The Bianca is one of the tastiest renditions I’ve ever eaten. The service was great and the pizzeria itself is clean and well maintained. Great for the family. If you’re ever in the area I highly recommend visiting Gusto Pizzeria. Thank you for the wonderful food.

I was a little confused when I first entered and it seemed a little disconnected, but within a very few short matter of moments I was treated to a wonderful experience that was both delicious and nostalgic of a taste from long ago. I thought the pizza was wonderful, I knew I shouldn't do it but I had to........ Cannoli It was wonderful, I will have to return.

Nine years in the Triads, and today was the very first time I visited Gusto in Oak Ridge. What kind of a rock have I been living under? Having been blessed/cursed with very discerning taste buds and having had pizza in some of the best restaurants all over Italy north to south, I am very impressed with the pie I had today at Gusto. It is definitely on par with what you can have in better parts of Italy. Finding this joint in the middle of American Southeast is a miracle. Let's start with the heart of any pizza - the crust. This crust is wonderfully yeasty, perfectly foldable, light and airy, yet chewy, with definite texture that is yet just dense enough to serve as the vehicle for toppings. Perfectly baked, but without that gritty bottom some Napoli style pizzas have (looking at you, Cugino Forno). The flavor of the crust is spot on perfect! Dear owner/s, thank you so much for taking the time to figure how to do this right, your efforts have not gone to waste! We notice! The sauce. I had given up on finding a decent dollop of sauce within driving distance from G'boro. Most pizzerias get sad gallons of the cheapest sauce they can find - sharp, sour, made from tomato paste, sugar, and broken dreams. By contrast Gusto's sauce is flavorful and in no way overpowering. It offers a barely noticeable layer of flavor between the base and the toppings. Sophisticated yet mellow. Toppings. Mine were supremely fresh, of excellent quality, at all the right textures, and most importantly in perfect balance with each other. You can't just have a neighbors' kid that works at Domino's figure out such perfect proportions - it takes somebody with an eye and experience to balance toppings so masterfully. The one thing I was unsure of was the basil. It was perfectly fresh, healthy, and flavorful, but it is served wilted from the oven - while dehydrating it concentrates the flavor, I'm on the fence whether I'd rather have them put it on post bake and enjoy it crispy fresh. Next time I'll be sure to ask for my basil to be added to my pie after the bake and compare. Speed of service - incredible! My pizza was served within 3 minutes of ordering. In and out - 20 minutes tops, including eating time. Quality of service. Polite, efficient, attentive, if perhaps a smidgen too formal/cold for the setting. I would've preferred a warm, smiley, friendly, soulful, maybe even loud kind of service at a pizza joint. I would've preferred lots of personality, like Italy herself! This is being extremely nit picky and reflecting back on my experiences in Italy growing up. Atmosphere - to be honest not a whole lot of it. I came in at 3:30 on a Friday and was an only customer during my entire meal. Perhaps had I come in on Saturday night, I would've gotten a different impression. Sitting eating my delicious pizza in solitude I definitely missed the hustle and bustle of a typical pizzeria, chef busy tossing dough and shouting at his help, dishes clanking, people laughing, kids running around. I missed the component of "life" in this place. Having said that, I did appreciate that Gusto plays Italian music from my childhood. When "Felicita" came on, I smiled. It provided a perfect hint of nostalgia for me right there and then. The summary. Fantastic quality professionally made pizza, the best I've had ANYWHERE in the south, and this is coming from a connoisseur! Served very quickly in clean, pleasant surroundings. Missing a tiny bit of a soul atmosphere wise, and a tiny bit of warmth service wise, but in this day and age aiming for absolute perfection is unrealistic. In most other places if a waiter didn't curse at you and didn't mess up your ticket, that's already a success. Oh, and to be totally honest I would've given an arm and possibly a leg to have proper linen napkins instead of paper ones. Instant elevation of experience! Hey, a girl can dream! All in all, I am extremely grateful to have a pizzeria of this caliber in our neck for the woods and wish them many, many successful years. Thank you for feeding us the good stuff!!!

We recently had dinner at Gusto Pizzeria and really enjoyed the overall vibe of the place. The atmosphere was cozy and welcoming—stylish without feeling pretentious—and the service was friendly and attentive from start to finish. I went with the Americana pizza, which had a solid flavor overall. It was definitely on the cheesier side, which may appeal to some more than others. The drizzle of honey on top added an interesting twist—it wasn’t overly sweet or thick, just a unique flavor that I haven’t typically had on pizza. It’s one of those things you might either love or be on the fence about, but I appreciated the creativity. We also tried the vanilla gelato for dessert, and that was a win—smooth, creamy, and just the right amount of sweetness. A great way to finish the meal. My wife ordered the spaghetti with meat sauce. The sauce had a nice flavor to it, but the texture of the meat was a bit off. It didn’t seem like it had been cooked down in the sauce; instead, it felt more like pre-cooked meatballs that were broken up and added in at the end. Not the worst, but not as cohesive or tender as we’d hoped. All in all, it was a good experience. While a couple of the food items didn’t quite hit the mark for us, the great service and warm atmosphere made it a place we’d consider trying again—especially to sample a few other menu items. Edit: after coming back for a few different dishes, we love the place and frequent often.

I can’t wait to come back. The pizza was amazing, we got the “Sammy” along with the kids cheese pizza and a fajado salad. Everything was delicious and came out quick. The service was quick and efficient as well! I got the birthday cake gelato and it was so yummy too with chunks of cake mixed in. Fantastic experience!

Great high fire pizza that have high quality toppings. Salads are really good. The subs are decent but a little small for the money. Service is good and friendly. The atmosphere is casual and clean so typical of what you might find in a strip mall. The salads do seem to have shrunk since they opening but are still good.

Excellent service, hadn’t been in there since they first opened. Pizza is of high quality ingredients and unique to the area by the ingredients and cooking style. They do have specials every day now and also lunch specials. The smaller pizza is the 9.99 lunch, any pizza for that price, salads for 5.99 lunch size. The Hot Honey we have had a few times and is a fave. I saw an employee eating what looked to be some type of off the menu meatball sub, please ad that to the menu!