Villa Nova Pizzeria

This is a gem of a pizza spot in New Buffalo. The thin crust pizza is delicious! They are very generous with their toppings and cheese portion is on point. Delivery came piping hot, which isn’t always the case for pizza delivery in general.

Villa Nova Pizzeria of New Buffalo, Michigan is not your standard beach town pizzeria. In fact, their recipe comes from the daughter of a Sicilian immigrant who brought Sicilian-​style pizza to Stickney, Illinois in the 1950s. I’m not sure how long the New Buffalo location has been in operation, but I hope it stays around awhile for the sake of pizza lovers in the area.
There is a limited amount of inside seating at Villa Nova. However, seeing as how New Buffalo is most popular for summer vacationers, it has a fairly large patio. I took my pizzas to go, so I can’t speak to their dine-​in service.
The crust and cheese on the pizzas at Villa Nova are what stood out to me the most. The thin crust was cooked well and had cornmeal on the bottom. It reminded me a lot of Donatos. They also offer a gluten-​free crust that I’m told is pretty good. The cheese was rich and placed over the toppings. Their great cheese seemed to mostly mask the taste of the pepperoni, so the cheese was on top in more ways than one. I would definitely order pizza from Villa Nova again if given the opportunity.

Delicious pizza! Fast delivery to the hotel. Got the veggie tray to attempt some healthiness and it was great. Try a mushroom chicken pizza with olive oil garlic sauce instead of red pizza sauce

Great service. Food was awesome. Thin crust pizza, but still very filling. I recommend the sausage. They are large pieces. The large pizza is enough to feed at least 4 people. Great beer selection & outdoor seating. Brightly lit & good atmosphere. Not much room for large parties inside. Crust was cooked perfectly.

Ordered a thin crust sausage, pepperoni, mushroom pizza. Whenever I order pizza from anywhere I always order ground sausage, but somehow I forgot to ask for it. The chunk sausage was just right. Not bland but not too spicy either. Overall the pizza was delish. And they even delivered right to my hotel room.

. We just stopped in New Buffalo to get something to eat and to watch the sun set so we checked out pizza places on Unilocal and found the best place. The pizza was perfect and was one of the best we’ve had in several years and the sunset was a great way to end our day in Michigan. We will certainly come back for their pizza and wonderful harbor town.

We have never been here before. we have a place in Union Pier… and the pizza is great as was the gnocchi and a pefect and I mean perfect meatball! Courtney was our server and she was friendly and super attentive as was the busboy. Highly recommend.

Came here on a quiet May weeknight. I was one of only two customers and got increasingly annoyed as I sipped my Oberon and the wait time for my pizza passed the 30-​minute mark. But I guess good things can’t be rushed. God it was good pizza! Some of the best Chicago-​style, thin-​crust, tavern-​cut (that is, squares, not triangles) pizza I’ve had. Competes with the very best I’ve had on the South Side and elsewhere.
The place has zero atmosphere, and the guys making the pizzas look like they might spend their daytime hours installing septic systems or something. So I was a little wary. But they know what they’re doing.
The sausage is pizza-​sausage perfection — chunky, not greasy, not overly hot, perfectly seasoned with fennel and garlic. (The pizza maker guy told me it’s from Greco and Sons in Bartlett, IL.) Mushrooms are real, not canned. The cheese is perfectly browned around the edges. The crust stays crispy. Good ingredients well-​executed.
Oh what this place could be with a little atmosphere and without the rolls of paper towels on the table! It’s all almost an insult to the quality of the pizza.

Being from Chicago, I feel I’ve had several quality pizzas. The sausage pizza I had here was probably the best thin crust sausage pizza I’ve ever had. Packed with huge chunks of sausage, zesty sauce, and perfectly cooked cheese. Crust was a little softer than preferred, but that didn’t affect the overall taste/​quality. Definitely worth trying.

We went in on a pleasant Saturday early afternoon during the off season so things were quiet. Not much décor here but that is just fine. The air smelled heavily of a well seasoned pizza oven (one of this author’s favorite smells on earth). There was one other table occupied when we arrived and the folks there seemed quite happy with their pizza while being engaged in happy banter fueled by frequent gulps of their from the tap icy beers. Our waitress was friendly and attentive and was able to quickly answer questions on what was popular. We ordered three pizzas, one small with pepperoni and meatball as well as two family size pizzas one having extra sauce and sausage and the other sausage onion and green pepper. You can choose from small, large and family size pies. The toppings were in abundance and of good quality. The sausage was large chunk style and well seasoned, no sausage crumble here. The sauce was slightly sweet and we are glad we paid the small additional fee to have extra. The pizzas arrived within 15 minutes and the drinks were kept full while we waited. The crust was thin and crispy with a few delectable bits of burnt cheese and crust here and there all around. Fantastic and will definitely be back.

This review is about the restaurant’s Chesterton, IN location.
Get over yourselves precious little naysayers who want a $ 40 bottle and gourmet pizza for under $ 30. Doesn’t have real garlic? Boo-​hoo.
We arrived cold, hungry, and thirsty left happy. The French onion soup was piping hot and tasty. The beer was cold. The pizza was delicious and fresh tasting. Dessert was refreshing. I was grateful for the kindness of a manager who welcomed us and a low-​key waitress who listened for special requests. The bill was less than $ 35. Isn’t that enough? It’ll be our go-​to place whenever we’re in Chesterton.

I recently read Steve Dolinsky’s review of this place as a top «pub pizza» joint and although I don’t know what that means, I decided to try it. I’ve been driving past for 7 years now. Turns out he was right — the pizza is really good. Especially the sausage pizza. They keep beer in a fridge so it’s a fun and inexpensive way to do saturday night with a pizza and a few beers. The staff is very nice and welcoming. Probably your best option for pizza in from the state line to sawyer.

This pizza is great if you love thin crust style pizza. Was there for the third time tonight, and we were served exactly what we came for — our favorite pizza cooked extra well done. We drove several miles out of way to enjoy this guilty pleasure, and it is well worth it. The ambiance is friendly, yet Spartan — the servers are super nice and attentive without being in the way. Wine and several brands of bottled beer and a few draft beers are available.
The prices are reasonable, and the menu goes well beyond pizza, with a good selection of salads, entrees and desserts. But in our minds, pizza is the main event.
Can’t wait to get back here. I hear that during the summer months when harbor country is peaking in population, the place explodes with demand.

Came here about 9pm on a sat night after 3 hours of trying to get into other places.
We were told they would come to our table. We waited for someone to take out order. We waited for drinks, even water.
After over a hour still no pizza.
It was incredible how bad the wait was. The pizza was good but not worth waiting an hour and being ignored. My friend says they always order takeout.
I would never eat here inside again. I would be open to takeout. But I wouldn’t call when I was hungry.

Great food and service.
The thin crust is tasty and crisp, especially when eaten at the restaurant.
The beef sandwich was a surprise, recommended by another patron, and very tasty — peppers made there a welcome addition.

The pizza is amazing and delicious!!! The crust is crispy and perfect. Mozzarella sticks… Not so much. They were soggy and had no taste… But they probably don’t travel well when ordering delivery.
We order this pizza every time we are in new buffalo and have never been disappointed with the pizza. A must have!!!

After trying to get in to THREE other places on a Saturday night in late August downtown — we gave up and came here for pizza. I lived in NY for over 10 years and I am a pizza snob. They were very busy — but had room for us and wine — all we wanted at that point. The pizza is thin and I love the way they cut it into small pieces for easy eating — wine was a generous portion (not that we needed it at that point in the evening). Solid choice.

We dined in and had a sausage and onion pizza with a sprinkling of anchovies on part of it. The pizza and the sausage were amazing — nice crispy crust.
Service was solid, and I loved having the lawn games out front and watching kids having fun.
The place was a bit noisy, but if you’re going out to a casual dining pizza place, that should be expected.

Ordered two thin crust, family size pizzas. Ready in 30 minutes. The whole group loved it and only had good things to say. I think if I ever order there again, I would get something smaller than family size because the middle was a little soggy and everyone seemed to prefer the crust pieces.

Great pizza. The thin crust rocks and staff is friendly too. The chicken bacon ranch was the best ever! MUST TRY.