The summer sun regularly sends Las Vegas’s temperatures over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Yet those sizzling outdoor scenes are nothing compared to what happens inside the kitchens of Las Vegas pizza restaurants. Some of the top restaurants in Las Vegas and the premier pizza parlors all seem to have one thing in common: the brick oven.

How They’re Built

The inside of a brick oven can reach temperatures of up to 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit, but, if it's built right, it’ll be barely warm to the touch. Brick ovens’ ability to keep a lot of heat inside is the reason why pizza chefs and bakers around the world stoke the flames every day as happily as a kid who just got a pet dragon. The intensity and uniformity of the heat mean that it may take little more than a minute to get a pizza with perfectly bubbly mozzarella and a golden crust—and, as a side benefit, a deliciously charred flavor. Paragraph

How They Work

The ovens absorb heat uniformly into their dense walls, where it lingers to evenly bake dishes from every direction. In fact, although wood, coal, or gas flames do provide the initial heat, they’re not what cooks the pizza—the bricks themselves do. Unlike metal or slabs of cake, bricks and other earthen materials radiate the heat they’ve soaked up gradually, rather than bouncing it straight back. Depending on the design, the fire may be inside the cooking chamber or may heat it from without. In either case, the interior can remain hot enough to bake bread long after the last embers have gone out.

The Best Place to Find Brick-Oven Pizza

Whether you ask locals, well-informed vacationers, or Travel Channel hosts, there’s one name that comes up again and again in the tasty world of Las Vegas pizza: Grimaldi's. The founders behind this New York City import have been making pizzas in coal-fired brick ovens for more than 100 years. To keep that authentic Big Apple flavor, Grimaldi’s Las Vegas locations have custom water systems to simulate New York City’s tap. Their traditional pie is a classic white pizza topped with sliced prosciutto, a shaved cheese blend, and fresh arugula.

Other Best Places to Consider

Grimaldi's is a surefire bet, but don’t forget these other Las Vegas restaurants, all of which cook pizzas in brick ovens.

• Pizza Rock Las Vegas | 201 N. 3rd St. The team here includes an 11-time world pizza champion, and his brick-oven pies get paired with great craft beers and live music.
  
• Rao’s | 3570 S. Las Vegas Blvd. Located within Caesars Palace, this is the place to go if you don’t want to stray too far from the slots and tables.
  
• Trevi | 3500 S. Las Vegas Blvd. Outside the same resort is this upscale Italian restaurant, which serves brick-oven pies with unexpected toppings.