We sure gave it our best shot, though!

Have you ever had a craving for pizza, but had a hard time deciding what flavor you want because you love it all? Luckily, for these kinds of conundrums, there’s the pizza buffet, and we found an awesome all-you-can-eat pizza restaurant originating from Gunma Prefecture called Napori no Shokutaku, or “the Table of Naples”. It’s a chain restaurant with branches in Saitama, Ibaraki, and Nagano as well as Gunma.

Our Japanese-language reporter Masanuki Sunakoma happened to hear about it, and, though he thought he might have been there before–he was probably thinking of another pizza chain, Napoli no Kama–he decided to check it out since he was craving pizza.

When Masanuki arrived at Napoli no Shokutaku the first thing that caught his eye was the giant pizza pan hanging in front of the restaurant.

When he went inside, he watched constant lines of waitstaff streaming by carrying countless steaming-hot pizzas. He later learned that the pizzas are cooked in a hot stone oven by pizza artisans, then sent out fresh out of the oven for serving. Masanuki’s mouth watered at the thought.

Once seated, he perused the menu and found that they had a Variety Pizza Set, in which the waitstaff would continuously bring fresh-baked pizzas to the table in an all-you-can-eat style. That explained why there were so many waiters–and pizzas–moving around.

There are four kinds of the Variety Pizza Set, so Masanuki ordered the Milano Set (1,758 yen [US$11.73]), which comes with dessert.

The set also comes with an entree of pasta, risotto, or doria (a baked rice dish), which you can pick from their expansive menu, and for a little extra, you can get a premium upgrade instead.

Masanuki decided to splurge and order the Slow Cooked Soft, Rich Umami Beef Stew from the Premium Menu, which was an extra 280 yen, for a total of 2,038 yen. It sounds like a lot, but for all-you-can-eat pizza, that’s not bad at all.

Once Masanuki placed his order, the staff immediately began to bring pizzas to his table. They announced what each pizza was, so Masanuki had no doubt as to what the toppings were. All he had to do was say how many slices he wanted of each.

The table comes with a two-sided sign that says, “I can still keep going!” on one side and “Time out! I’m full!” on the other side, so you can flip it to show the waitstaff whether you want more pizza or not.

Masanuki was feeling ready to munch away, so he had his sign on “I can still keep going!” About once every two or three minutes someone came by with a different flavor of pizza, so while he waited for his beef stew, he ate one piece each of Caramel, Seafood Basil, Four Cheese, Sausage and Onion, and Bacon Onion Soy Sauce.

▼ Seafood Basil

▼ Four Cheese

Then, in between bites of his beef stew, he also tried slices of Salami Milano, Cream Cheese, and Bitter Chocolate.

The pieces were small enough to try lots of different flavors, but it was still easy to overeat, so knowing the right time to take a break is key. Plus, it’s very easy to get full before the entrée comes, so you have to be careful to pace yourself.

The beef stew was rich and delicious, but the continuous pizza onslaught was intense. They just kept coming! And each and every one was hot out of the oven, had a nice, chewy crust, and was, of course, supremely tasty. Eventually, though, Masanuki knew he’d reached the limit of his stomach capacity, so with much regret he flipped his card to “Time out! I’m full!”

When Masanuki asked, he learned that they had over 40 varieties of pizza, including flavors like Sugar Butter, Shrimp & Mayo, and Mochi Teriyaki, which Masanuki didn’t get to try, but which looked really good when he regretfully watched them pass by.

By the way, the dessert that came with Masanuki’s order was “Three Kinds of Homemade Gelato.” It was the perfect refreshing palate cleanser to end his meal with.

Napoli no Shokutaku may be a regional chain that for some might require a bit of traveling to find, but Masanuki couldn’t deny that it was absolutely worth visiting. If you’ve got a hankering for pizza and just want to try everything, definitely check it out if you have the chance. It may be the pizza place of your dreams, or at least good competition for one of our favorite widely available pizza joints, Shakeys.

Images © SoraNews24
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