Mamma Mia! It's Time for the Seeding Round of Cheesy Pizza Cup 2023

Vincent R. Vinci, Contributing Editor | Jan 5, 2023 4:21 pm | Add a comment | 180 reads

Beijing pizza lovers: the time has come for the Beijinger’s 2023 Cheesy Pizza Cup!

Yes it’s time once again for you to pick Beijing’s Best Pizza!

It’s been over a year since the flour settled on our 2021 Pizza Cup, and a lot has changed since then. For starters, 18 new pizza places have made it into this year's nomination list. These include seven brand new venues and a few who didn’t make it into the Top 100 list last time around: Joe’s Pizza, Canotto by The Pizza Show, Il Fuoco, SIGMORE, Felichita, Fufu and Yum Yummy.

In addition to those newbies, 11 restaurants that have been around for a while entered our nomination list for the first time, including COMMUNE•X, Wobbit Bistro, Eata and Home Plate BBQ (which added a pizza to its menu in late 2022).

That being said, 16 restaurants from last year's list are gone. These include a few favorites like MIAM MIAM (last year's #20) and Volare (#63).

Green Cow City Café, a weekend brunch favorite up near 798 known for their pizza and pizza bagels that ended up as #44 on 2021's rankings, has closed until further notice (here's to hoping they rise again).

Whereas 2021’s contest was decided via live taste-offs from the Sweet 16 onwards, this year we’ll be holding normal voting until the Final Four.

The championship will be decided by a live taste-off in February, so you’ll be able to come try them all let your tastebuds inform your final decision!

But first – it’s up to you to help determine which of Beijing's pizzas deserve a spot in the Round of 64.

Our initial ballot features some 100 contestants spread evenly into four brackets based on their rankings in last year’s Pizza Cup. Dead venues have been removed and rookies have been added in.

Your mission in the seeding round is to simply check off the names of your favorites. This data will be used to form the initial bracket of 64. Competitors will then go head-to-head until but four remain.

Here are the dates to remember:

Seeding Round: Open now!
Round of 64: Jan 12
Round of 32: Jan 16
Sweet 16: Jan 20
Elite Eight: Jan 31
Final Four: Feb 6
Final Taste-Off: TBA

Please note: This year there will be no online voting for the Final – you must be present (and sample all contestants) in order to cast a ballot. We’ll let you know the details later.

Want to get out and try some of these pizzas? You’ll be able to do so – and be in the running to win great prizes while you’re at it – during our first ever Cheesy Pizza Month!

15 pizza brands spread across 18 venues are taking part in the month-long event, which will run from Jan 6 (tomorrow) all the way to Feb 13. During this time, you can visit the participating restaurants, get stamps in your Cheesy Pizza Cup passport, and win prizes.