Safety Harbor pizzeria boasts best pie in the country

SAFETY HARBOR, Fla. - Not only is the owner of Nona’s Slice House in Safety Harbor a world-champion pizza acrobat, but his pizzas are award-winning as well.

His "Pizza Margherita" won best in the country in 2011.

"It's our take on the classic Margherita," declared Jamie Culliton.

Don't get the name confused. The spelling is different from the popular drink.

The Margherita pizza was created in the late 1800s to honor the unification of Italy. It's simple with three toppings, basil, mozzarella, and tomato to reflect the green, white and red of the Italian flag.

Pizza Margherita is simple with three toppings, basil, mozzarella and tomato to reflect the green, white and red of the Italian flag.

"We start with our dough made in-house, what we want is a really nice and thin crust going around it," Culliton said. "We hand stretch it, we work it around the edge, so we end up with a really nice thin and crispy crust."

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The next step in Culliton’s creation is to add fresh mozzarella. He slices all of it by hand and places it out on the dough with gaps in between.  After that, he dabs his tomato sauce imported from Italy right in between the mozzarella allowing it to have the perfect amount.  

Jamie Culliton's "Pizza Margherita" won best in the country in 2011. 

"Where there's no cheese there's sauce, where there's no sauce there's cheese," he shared. "When this cooks it melts together, you’re going to get a fully covered pizza, without it being too soggy or overloaded."

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From there he throws in his perfect spice blend of fresh basil and extra virgin olive oil, creating the best specialty award-winning pizza.

"You can hear how nice and crispy it is." He added, "That’s our ‘Pizza Margherita’, best in the country, 2011."

LINK: Click here to learn more about the specialty pizzas at the Nona Slice House.