These SC pizza shops rank among the nation’s best. Why customers can’t get enough

If you’re craving pizza in South Carolina, you may not have to travel far to get a satisfying slice, a new report finds.

That’s because two restaurants in the state now rank among the nation’s best places to go for pizza.

Toni’s Detroit Style Pizza in Mount Pleasant joins Vicini’s Restaurant and Pizza in Myrtle Beach on a list of top 100 pizzerias in the United States, according to results published Monday, Jan. 23.

To create the rankings, the restaurant review website Yelp said it studied pizza-related businesses across the country. It then “ranked those spots using a number of factors including the total volume and ratings of reviews” left over time.

Of the two South Carolina pizzerias that earned national acclaim, Toni’s Detroit Style Pizza ranked the highest at No. 9. Though the restaurant is located on U.S. Highway 17 — just outside the Southeastern travel hotspot of Charleston — it focuses on another region’s specialty.

The shop serves Detroit-style pizza, which is prepared in rectangular pans. The inventor may have gotten “his initial batch of pans from a friend who worked in a factory that used the pans for spare parts,” according to the michigan.org tourism website.

“This family-run pizzeria was started by three Detroit natives — and their restaurant pays homage to their Midwestern roots with Motor City memorabilia, and specialty soda offerings like ‘Vernor’s’ and ‘Faygo,’” Yelp wrote in its report. “Each pizza is baked in an authentic blue steel pizza pan, which leads to a crispy, buttery crust that’s unlike any other type of pizza.”

On Yelp, several users said they were fans of the toppings piled onto thick crust, helping the business earn five out of five stars. The restaurant is no stranger to national recognition, having earned a place on Yelp’s list of top U.S. pizza places last year, McClatchy News reported.

A newcomer on this year’s list is Vicini’s Restaurant and Pizza in Myrtle Beach. The restaurant on North Kings Highway was No. 74 in the Yelp rankings after customers went online to rave about the crispy crust loaded with cheese.

The restaurant, which earned more than four out of five stars, said it was started after the owner brought a love for the ocean from the European country of Albania.

“I dreamed my whole life to open my own restaurant and show people my passion: to cook food made from scratch with the best ingredients,” the restaurant wrote on its website. “My dream came true opening Vicini’s.”

Overall, Yelp said the nation’s best place for pizza was Sapori Di 786 Degrees in Pasadena, outside of Los Angeles, California.

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