This restaurant is a can’t-miss in Amarillo for more than one reason. The building is wrapped in a colorful mural depicting in super-size some of the traditional ingredients used to make its namesake dish. Tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, basil, cured meats, and more, are (metaphorically) thrown haphazardly onto the brick facade by local artist and muralist Malcolm Byers. Pizzeria Nomad, originally a husband-and-wife duo serving pizzas out of a food truck in 2018, is now a permanent fixture off 34th and Georgia.
In the local pizza world, choosing a clear favorite is controversial. Many local makers roll out their own interpretations of the Naples dish, but Pizzeria Nomad is a cut above.
Its rule-breaking special menu items may sound like a fever dream when deconstructed and written on a menu, but the end result is adventurous pizza perfection. These special menu items, updated every week or so, are so perfectly balanced and curiously satisfying, you won’t want to miss any of them.
This week, for example, don’t pass on the Pickle Pizza—pickles (yes, real pickle slices), kimchi aioli, ranch dressing, mozzarella, bacon, and fresh dill on a pizza? The alchemy is unexplainable, but the outcome is delectable.
Trust me, and order the Butter Chicken Pizza if you ever see it on the menu. (And if you’re somehow connected to Pizzeria Nomad, please consider this a formal request to bring it back for good!)
If it happens to be Tuesday, take your taco craving to Pizzeria Nomad for a change as the eatery beautifully marries both the flavors and textures of two of the greatest dishes ever invented. Making multiethnic, or nomadic cuisine flavors accessible for diners is one of their passions—so much so, it’s incorporated into their name. Diners can taste the baked-in respect and care taken in perfecting the incorporation of flavors and textures from regions around the globe.
If you are one of those people who only eat the part of the pizza with toppings and leave the handle for the garbage, you will want to change your tactics at Pizzeria Nomad. Springy and crisp-tender, slightly salty and buoyant as only a sourdough recipe can be, and cooked to perfection—never teetering too close to overcooked—the crust perfectly accentuates both traditional and more adventurous toppings. (Another tip: With the Carry-Out Special every evening, you can order more than one to try guilt-free.)
An adventurous palate is welcome but not required at Pizzeria Nomad, with offerings like cheesy bread, chicken wings, and the Macintosh 1984, a baked-to-perfection take on macaroni-and-cheese. For those looking for something a little less playful, the classic margherita pizza and pepperoni are also excellent. Other creations rely on ingredients and combinations you might recognize more readily by other names, but are cleverly incognito on their menu.
Others are uniquely Nomad. The burrata pie with tomato sauce, garlic, burrata cheese, arugula, honey, and a squeeze of lemon is an all-time favorite for those of us looking for great flavors and less meat. The American cheese on the BLT pizza was a surprise to this diner, at first, but it is a great example of how Pizzeria Nomad takes unexpected flavors and balances them into perfectly crave-worthy meals. The Roni Con Queso is what you might expect from a pepperoni pizza, but elevated by a drizzle of beer cheese. Its cousin, the Diablo Con Queso, starts with the same base but is topped with pickled jalapeños and an extra flavorful but devilishly spicy Freak Sauce.
Eating sauerkraut on a pizza might not be for everyone, though you can try it with the Smokey Swarzenegger, which also includes a cream sauce, bratwurst, black pepper sausage, Dijon mustard, and Korean chili flakes. Regardless, the folks at Pizzeria Nomad seem like they are having fun, riffing on tradition, and offering an excellent alternative to our sometimes crusty pizza scene.
