In short
The best pizza in Exeter is at The Flat, 142 Fore Street: hand-stretched 11-inch pizzas, all vegetarian, every one available vegan or gluten-free, open Wednesday to Saturday evenings. For a group, go to On The Waterfront on the Quay for giant sharing pizzas. For value, Franco Manca's weekday £12.50 lunch deal (pizza and a soft drink) is hard to beat.
Contents9 sections
Where is the best pizza in Exeter?
It depends on the evening you are planning. For the pizza itself we would go to The Flat on Fore Street, a small independent where the whole kitchen is vegetarian. If you are booking a table for eight, go to On The Waterfront on the Quay. Your best bet for a late, loud pizza with a pint is The Old Firehouse on New North Road. Franco Manca in the Guildhall is the good-value sourdough option, and PizzaExpress at Cathedral Yard has the setting.
We checked all five for this September 2026 update. Each still holds a current Food Standards Agency listing at the address given below, and we took opening hours, menus and offers from the venues' own websites, not from aggregators. Two things changed since our spring edition. The Flat now opens Wednesday to Saturday rather than Tuesday to Saturday. We had also called The Old Firehouse an independent, but it is run by Young's, the London brewery and pub group.
Pizza is one of the best foods for bringing people together. It arrives in the middle of the table and everyone leans in. Ordering becomes a group decision, and "shall we get a few to share?" settles the question of who owes what. It is also one of the cheaper ways to eat out properly, which matters if you want dinner with friends to be a regular thing rather than a birthday treat.
Which independent pizzerias in Exeter are worth it?
The Flat, Fore Street: the best pizza in Exeter
Our verdict: the most carefully made pizza in the city, and the easiest table in Exeter for a group with mixed diets. The Flat is a small vegetarian and vegan pizzeria on Fore Street. It describes its food as "inspired by planet-friendly vegetarian & vegan living", made with organic ingredients where possible, and every pizza is hand-stretched to order. They are 11-inch pizzas with a choice of regular or thin base. The menu includes combinations you won't find at the chains: a Quattro Formaggi with sundried tomatoes, and a Spicy with aubergine and vegan pepperoni.
The strongest reason to choose it is that every pizza on the menu can be made vegan and/or gluten-free. That makes it rare in Exeter as a place where nobody at the table has to order from a "free-from" corner. One honest caveat, which the restaurant states itself: the kitchen is open, so the gluten-free option may not suit everyone with coeliac disease. Ask when you book.
It is open Wednesday to Saturday, 5pm to 9:30pm, so plan an evening there, not a lunch. The dining room is small, so book, especially for a group of more than four. There is also a takeaway menu. If The Flat suits your group, our guide to vegan and vegetarian restaurants in Exeter has more places in the same spirit.
Style: Hand-stretched, 11-inch, vegetarian with vegan options. Dietary: Every pizza available vegan and/or gluten-free. Hours: Wednesday to Saturday, 5pm to 9:30pm. Takeaway: Yes. Location: 142 Fore Street, EX4 3AN. Booking: Recommended.
On The Waterfront, Exeter Quay: best pizza for groups
Our verdict: the best pizza venue in Exeter for a big table. You come here for the scale and the setting rather than finesse. On The Waterfront occupies the Southern Warehouse on the Quay and calls itself "famous throughout Devon for our gigantic handcrafted pizzas". Those pizzas are the reason to bring a group here. They are made for the middle of the table, and ordering a few to share across six or eight people is simpler and cheaper than everyone ordering a main.
It is open every day, including bank holidays. Food is served from 11am until 9pm Sunday to Thursday and until 9:30pm on Fridays and Saturdays, which makes it the most flexible venue on this list. It also runs events and private hire, so a birthday table is straightforward to arrange. For pizza at home, it delivers through Deliveroo, or you can phone and collect. If you are making a day of it, our guide to Exeter Quay covers the rest of the waterside.
Booking for a group? On The Waterfront is the easiest place in Exeter to get a big table on the same night, and sharing a few giant pizzas keeps the bill simple. Book ahead for Friday and Saturday evenings, when the Quay gets busy.
Style: Giant handcrafted sharing pizzas. Hours: Daily, food from 11am to 9pm (9:30pm Friday and Saturday). Delivery: Deliveroo, or call to collect. Location: 4-9 Southern Warehouse, The Quay, EX2 4AP. Booking: Online; recommended for groups.
Where can you get pizza late in Exeter?
The Old Firehouse, New North Road
Our verdict: the pizza for a night that goes on. It is not the most refined here, but it's the most fun, and the kitchen is open the longest. The Old Firehouse is a much-loved Exeter pub, now part of the Young's estate, and pizza has long been its thing. It serves 14-inch square pizzas, with vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options. Food is served every day from 12pm to 10pm, and the pub itself stays open until 2am Monday to Thursday, 3am on Fridays and Saturdays and 1am on Sundays. No other venue on this list comes close to those hours.
It works mostly on a walk-in basis, which suits the spontaneous "anyone fancy pizza?" message. It does take bookings for some areas, and it has an attic bar for private parties. Expect a busy pub with student energy, not a quiet restaurant. That is exactly why people go. The pub side is covered in our guide to Exeter's best pubs.
Style: 14-inch square pub pizzas. Dietary: Vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options. Food: Daily, 12pm to 10pm. Booking: Mostly walk-in; some bookings taken. Location: 50 New North Road, EX4 4EP.
What is the cheapest good pizza in Exeter?
Franco Manca, Guildhall Shopping Centre
Our verdict: the best-value proper sourdough in the city centre, especially at lunchtime. Franco Manca is the London-born sourdough chain, and its Exeter branch is in Queen St Dining at the Guildhall Shopping Centre, close to Exeter Central station. The menu is short and numbered, and the slow-proved sourdough bases give the crust a chewy texture you won't get at most chains.
The deal to know about is on Franco Manca's own website: a sourdough pizza and a soft drink for £12.50, or two courses with a drink for £15, Monday to Friday from 12pm to 4pm. It is the cheapest way to eat good pizza in central Exeter, and it is a good excuse for a midweek lunch with a friend. Chain offers change, so check the Franco Manca site before you plan around it. For more ways to eat well for less, see our guide to cheap eats in Exeter.
Franco Manca's Exeter branch opens from 12pm Monday to Thursday and from 11:30am Friday to Sunday. It offers dine-in, order-and-collect, and delivery through Deliveroo, Uber Eats and Just Eat. Bookings are taken, which is worth doing for a group.
Style: Neapolitan-style slow-proved sourdough. Offer: £12.50 lunch deal, weekdays 12pm to 4pm. Hours: Mon–Thu 12pm to 9:30pm; Fri–Sat 11:30am to 10pm; Sun 11:30am to 9pm. Delivery: Deliveroo, Uber Eats, Just Eat. Location: Queen St Dining, Guildhall Shopping Centre, EX4 3EB.
Which Exeter pizza restaurant has the best setting?
PizzaExpress, Cathedral Yard
Our verdict: a chain, but in one of the best spots in the city. Pick it when the setting matters more than the pizza, or when you need something everyone will eat. PizzaExpress is at 2 Broadgate on Cathedral Yard, looking out towards the Cathedral Green. The food is what you expect from PizzaExpress: thin Romana-style bases and the familiar menu, plus pasta, salads and a children's menu. For families and mixed groups, that predictability is the point. You can book a table online, and it also offers collection and delivery.
Style: Thin, Romana-style. Booking: Online. Delivery: Collection and delivery available. Location: 2 Broadgate, Cathedral Yard, EX1 1HJ.
Which pizza place in Exeter should you choose?
- Best pizza overall: The Flat. Hand-stretched, and every pizza available vegan or gluten-free
- Best for a big group: On The Waterfront. Giant sharing pizzas, open every day
- Best late-night pizza: The Old Firehouse. Food until 10pm, bar until the small hours
- Best value: Franco Manca. £12.50 pizza and soft drink, weekday lunchtimes
- Best setting: PizzaExpress. On Cathedral Yard
- Best for vegans and coeliacs: The Flat, with the open-kitchen caveat above
If you want Italian beyond pizza (pasta, antipasti and a longer evening), our guide to the best Italian restaurants in Exeter picks up where this one stops.
Why pizza makes the best group dinner
Pizza is a collaborative meal. Everyone has a say in the order, someone argues for anchovies, and the food lands in the middle of the table for everyone to share. Nobody has to navigate a wine list or worry about a dress code, and the bill doesn't get awkward. That informality is what makes it such a good way to get friends round the table regularly. As we explored in the role of food in emotional wellbeing and connection, eating together builds a sense of belonging that eating alone does not.
Planning a pizza night for a larger group? On The Waterfront has the most room and The Old Firehouse is the easiest walk-in. The Flat is small and closed Sunday to Tuesday, so book it ahead and check the day.
Best pizza in Exeter: common questions
Frequently asked questions
- Where is the best pizza in Exeter?
- Our pick is The Flat at 142 Fore Street: hand-stretched 11-inch pizzas from an all-vegetarian kitchen, with every pizza available vegan and/or gluten-free. It opens Wednesday to Saturday, 5pm to 9:30pm. For a group, On The Waterfront on the Quay does giant sharing pizzas every day; for sourdough on a budget, Franco Manca in the Guildhall.
- Where can I get cheap pizza in Exeter?
- Franco Manca in the Guildhall Shopping Centre runs a lunch deal of a sourdough pizza and a soft drink for £12.50, or two courses with a drink for £15, Monday to Friday from 12pm to 4pm, according to its own website. Offers change, so check before you go.
- Is there vegan and gluten-free pizza in Exeter?
- Yes. The Flat on Fore Street is vegetarian and says every pizza on its menu can be made vegan and/or gluten-free, though its open kitchen means gluten-free may not suit all coeliacs. The Old Firehouse also offers vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options.
- Which pizza places in Exeter are good for large groups?
- On The Waterfront on the Quay is the best choice for a big table: giant sharing pizzas, open every day, with events and private hire. The Old Firehouse works mostly on a walk-in basis and has an attic bar for private parties. The Flat is small, so book ahead for groups.
- Where can I get pizza late at night in Exeter?
- The Old Firehouse on New North Road serves its 14-inch square pizzas from 12pm to 10pm every day, and the pub stays open until 2am Monday to Thursday, 3am Friday and Saturday and 1am on Sunday. Franco Manca serves until 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays.
Ready to make it happen?
The best pizza is the one you share. If one of these places has caught your eye and you would like some company to enjoy it with, we would love to help. For ordering in instead, our Exeter takeaway guide has the rest.
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