24-03-2025
Final 4: Courier Journal's Pizza Madness enters Round 3. Here's how to vote
The final four are here! The Courier Journal's Pizza Madness, where we want you to pick between competitors to decide which is Louisville's favorite spot to get pizza, is heating up. The race to pie has entered round three, with just four restaurants left facing off.
The online bracket-style competition, which was compiled using a random match-up generator, runs over four total rounds now through Friday, April 4, with the champion announced on Monday, April 7.
You can vote up to eight times per day at Here's what to know:
919 Baxter Ave., 310 Wallace Ave., 7507 River Road, Hours: vary by location
DiOrios Pizza and Pub features hand-tossed New York Style pizza by the slice and more. Look for specialty pizzas including Caroline's Sweet BBQ Chicken Pizza, which features a BBQ sauce base, fresh mozzarella, grilled chicken, red onion and bacon and the This Little Piggy pie, which features Diorios' pizza sauce base, Italian sausage, spicy Italian sausage, pepperoni, ham and bacon. DiOrios is also home to The Gibbon, a pizza sauce base pilled high with pepperoni, Italian sausage, meatballs, ham, tomato, onion, green and black olives, fresh mushrooms and green peppers, which, at 30-inches, weighs 15 pounds.
multiple locations, Hours: vary by location
Bearno's has been serving Louisville-style pizza since 1977 and has been the Community Choice Award Winner four years running. Look for pies including Mama Bearno's Special, "called Louisville's #1 selling pizza." The pizza is loaded with sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, green peppers, black olives, green olives, and topped with mozzarella cheese. Crusts can be customized, with thin, extra thin, thick, gluten-free and cauliflower options.
More: 16 restaurants, 1 winner: Help us find the best pizza in Louisville
multiple locations, Hours: vary by location
The Original Impellizzeri's Pizza features a variety of specialty pies, including The Sampler, with homemade Italian sausage, pepperoni, ham, mushrooms, onions, green peppers, banana peppers, and black and green olives. This one comes with a 30-45 minute cook time, but is worth the wait. Other popular pies include a variety of thin crust specialties, including The Bianco, with garlic infused extra virgin olive oil, light mozzarella, oven roasted tomatoes, spinach, kalamata olives, roasted garlic and herbed ricotta cheese.
1540 Frankfort Ave., Hours: daily, 5-10 p.m.
This spot serves up wood-fired Neapolitan Pizza and has landed at the top of Food & Dining's Best Pizza list multiple times. Pizzas are varied and feature pies including the Puttanesca, with organic milled tomatoes, soleggiati tomatoes, garlic, anchovy, capers, olives, herbs and olive oil, and the Funghi, made with a blend of local roasted mushrooms from Frondosa Farms: elm, blue, shimofuri, chestnut, phoenix oyster, lions mane, shiitake, taleggio, plus mozzarella, buttermilk ricotta, parmigiano reggiano cheeses.
The competition will include four rounds, with rounds lasting five days. Round three, involving four matchups, will start at 5 a.m. on Monday, March 24, and end at noon on Friday, March 28. The next round will begin at 5 a.m. on Monday, March 31, and so on from there.
In each round, you will select a restaurant from each pairing. The winners advance to the next round until only one remains. You can vote up to eight times per day at
Each round of voting runs from 5 a.m. Monday to noon Friday. Round results will be announced on Mondays. The winner will be announced on Monday, April 7.
Round 3: Four restaurants; Voting Monday, March 24 to Friday, March 28. Results announced on Monday, March 31
Round 4: Two restaurants; Voting Monday, March 31 to Friday, April 4 at noon. The winner will be announced on Monday, April 7
The restaurants were selected by members of the Courier Journal newsroom and by readers of a Courier Journal post on social media based on various criteria, including taste, crust, cheese to topping ratio, flavor and more.
Reach food and dining reporter Amanda Hancock at ahancock@
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Courier Journal Pizza Madness Round 3: Matchups, how to vote
