Sforno Pizzeria Napoletana quietly opened in January 2026, offering Neapolitan-style pizza just off Hayes Street. Owner Silvia Veronese hails from Verona, Italy, but has lived in the Bay Area working in tech for the last 20 years. This is her first restaurant, and she’s running it with her two sons and two pizzaioli who grew up in Napoli, one of whom apprenticed at L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele in Naples, Tablehopper reports. It’s a pizza shop steeped in Neapolitan tradition, so much so that Sforno is looking to be certified by the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, a group which regulates the rules that distinguishes Neapolitan pizza from other styles.
The shop quickly became known for its street food-style of pizza, the portafoglio (or wallet pizza), a pizza folded into fourths and wrapped for eating on the go — a tradition in Italy, but a rarity in the Bay Area. The shop also serves panozzi, or sandwiches that utilize baked pizza dough as the bread. Sforno serves about 10 to 12 kinds of pizza each day, mixing Italian ingredients with local produce. The dough is fermented for two days, before it’s shaped, topped, and slid into the dome-shaped, wood-fired oven for 60 to 90 seconds. It’s a traditional Italian pizza counter plopped right into Hayes Valley, serving streetside snacks and bites for the neighborhood.
Sforno has a small footprint, with the space mostly dominated by the white wood-fired Acunto Mario oven. Despite that, Sforno feels airy, thanks to the high ceilings, from which some olive-branch greenery hangs, and also due to the literal fresh air that moves through the space via a roll-up, garage-style window that was open during my recent visit. The photorealistic wallpaper mural that features a close-up glimpse of olive tree leaves against the sky is a nice touch that brings together the space.
Sforno offers a selection of Italian sodas to pair with your pizzas. We’re talking Molecola, the Italian-made cola (in both regular and sugar-free versions), plus Limonata Siciliana, Aranciatta Siciliana, and Chinotto. There’s also a bottle of Lurisia Aperitivo, a nonalcoholic aperitif, if you’re looking for a little something to start your meal. There is also still and sparkling bottled water for purchase.
There are exactly three tables inside the space, with two mint green cafe tables outside on the street; you might be able to fit a group of three at one of these tables, but not without being a bit squeezed in, so most of the table-based fortune will belong with duos dining together. If you’re in a decent-sized group, plan to take your goods to go, or to Patricia’s Green, half a block south of Sforno. Also, if you’re in a rush, Sforno offers online ordering.