Mammamia is one of the longest running Neapolitan pizzerias and Italian restaurants in China, serving up Italian quality and tradition for 14 years. This is their story.
News from Mammamia: Fresh pastas by Che Pasta coming soon to downtown Shanghai, Matto Italian bar and eatery on Yanping Lu opening soon, and more locations.
Get a complimentary dessert or selected drink when you show this article in-store at any Mammamia location. Plus get a 10% voucher for Che Pasta. Details below.
About Mammamia!
The restaurant was founded in 2010. The first location opened in Suzhou on the banks of the lake, where it remains today.
Husband and wife Stefano Micillo and Daniela Coppola began Mammamia at the behest of their then 13-year-old son, who craved for a taste of home, Naples. Back then, there weren’t many options for authentic Italian cuisine let alone unadulterated Neapolitan pizza. Thus, Mammamia was born, and its decade-plus saga continues, now with a total of eight restaurants in China located in Shanghai, Suzhou, Kunshan, and Guangzhou.
In addition, the parent company also runs Brace, a steakhouse in Wuxi and Che Pasta (read: kay-pasta), a fresh pasta concept at their Mammamia Gubei, Shanghai location. Che Pasta, which does simple but tasty authentic Italian pastas, available dine-in or frozen, is soon to expand further in Shanghai. More on Che Pasta below.
Mammamia has two outlets in Shanghai located within More Than Eat on Julu Lu and in Meet & Eat in Gubei. Both are part of food courts.
Despite its cozy shared spaces, Mammamia does not scrimp on their equipment and use traditional Neapolitan wood-fired pizza ovens imported from Italy. Ingredients are also imported, including buffalo mozzarella and San Marzano tomatoes.
Their pizzas use a traditional fermented dough recipe made with 00 flour, then fired for 60 seconds in the oven. The crusts bare the trademark of authentic Neapolitan pizzas, sporting fluffy puffed edges with leopard-print char marks.
Mammamia has also received recognition from Italian food authorities Gambero Rosso and Top 50 Pizza, ranking their pizzas #47 in the world in the most recent awards ceremony in 2024.
Neapolitan Pizza & Italian Comforts
They have a whopping 34 pizzas on the menu, which covers the spectrum of flavor profiles, dietary preferences, and Italian culture by region.
A handful of pizzas are vegetarian and some are pescatarian-friendly, there’s a Calzone, and one’s a Tronchetto (folded upwards). They have the classics like Four Cheese, Diavola, Margherita, Salsiccia e Friarielli, and Gorgonzola with Pear. Pizzas range from ¥88 to ¥158.
The Carnivora is essentially the Italian version of a “Meat Lover’s Pizza.” A tomato base is topped with fior di latte cheese, salami, meatballs, sausages, cooked ham, and basil.
My favorite is the Pugliese, a new pesto-based pizza. It is topped with fior di latte cheese, fried zucchini, stracciatella cheese, coppa ham, sundried tomatoes, arugula, and toasted walnuts. The zucchini adds juiciness and texture, and the pizza would not be the same without the nuttiness from the walnuts.
On the other side of the spectrum, the Pizza Chicca is one for those who value simplicity and a whole lot of cheese. It’s a tomato base topped with fior di latte cheese, Parma ham, and a whole burrata. The burrata is served cool from the fridge and is oh-so milky. Cheesy indulgence at its finest.
The Tronchetto is a first for me. This pizza is from Naples and is essentially a “pizza log,” whereby pizza dough is folded upward into a baguette-like shape. It is filled with fior di latte cheese, gorgonzola, mushrooms, arugula, Parma ham, Grana Padano fondue, and basil.
It looks a lot like a calzone/stromboli, though I’ve been cautioned that the tronchetto is different, and is fluffier, thicker, and fuller. Semantics aside, it’s hella tasty.
On the topic of calzones, in case you don’t want to commit to a full one, they also do mini fried calzones. These deep-fried mini calzoni are just the ticket when you want a dose of fluffy, crunchy pockets filled with ricotta cheese, cooked ham, and smoked cheese.
Introducing Che Pasta
In addition to pizza, Mammamia also channels the soul of Italian cuisine and culture through pasta.
At their Gubei location, Che Pasta churns out fresh pastas made with a traditional semolina flour recipe. The pastas are naturally colored with beetroot, carrots, squid ink, and spinach, and have zero additives or food coloring.
Pastas and sauces are also available for takeaway. Pastas can be flash frozen in-store, in case you want an emergency pack in your freezer. This concept might be coming to downtown Shanghai soon, so keep your eyes and ears peeled. (Note: Their Julu Lu location also has pasta but use dried pasta.)
They have a few ready-to-go pastas, including the Spaghetti ai Frutti di Mare. Spaghetti is tossed in an arrabiata sauce, a mildly piquant tomato sauce with plenty of shrimp, squid, and clams.
Otherwise, you can build your own at the Gubei store. Sauces start from ¥28 a serving, pastas from ¥15, and additional toppings like Parmesan cheese from ¥18. I went with a flavorful beef Bolognese sauce (¥58) with tagliatelle (¥20) and extra parmesan (¥18).
Mammamia also has traditional antipasti, which are great for sharing.
Mozzarella is served in the form of roll-ups, a great option for cheese lovers who want to limit their carb count. The light cheese is layered with Parma ham, fried eggplant, pesto, arugula, and cherry tomatoes.
Italian comforts see “grandma-style” meatballs, a casserole of fluffy meatballs in a tomato sauce with fior di latte cheese, as well as baby octopus and tender potatoes in a flavorful and briny putanesca sauce flavored with black olives.
The Bacetti Mammamia is one of many party dishes. These little sandwiches are made with deep-fried pizza dough buns and are stacked with mortadella ham, burrata cheese, arugula and pistachios.
For dessert, they have traditional sweet treats of tiramisu and Nutella doused fried pizza balls. However, I prefer the Pistachio Cheesecake, a classic cheesecake with rich and creamy pistachio sauce.
Coming Soon From Mammamia
Mammamia aims to open more locations in Shanghai in the coming year. I’m especially looking forward to a more central location of Che Pasta.
But first, we’ll get Matto, a casual Italian bar and eatery, which will open this December on Yanping Lu in the former Little Catch.
Nomfluence Readers Deals
Get a complimentary dessert or selected drink when dining in; limited to one per person, food purchase of more than ¥88 per person is required. Just show this article in-store at any Mammamia location to claim the deal.
Drinks include soft drinks, house cocktails, and house wine. This deal is valid until January 26, 2025.
Mammamia! (Shanghai)
Address: More Than Eat, 1/F, 758 Julu Lu 巨鹿路758号1楼
Tel: 15316360528
Hours: Mon-Fri & Sun, 11:30am-9:30pm; Sat, 12pm-9:30pm
Address: Meet & Eat, 1/F, 1468 Hongqiao Lu 虹桥路1468号TBC比邻古北1楼
Tel: 15316626062
Hours: Daily, 11am-9pm
Other Locations
Mammamia! Kunshan Dayu Plaza
Mammamia! Suzhou Olympic Stadium
Mammamia! Suzhou Huanyuhui
Mammamia! Suzhou Ligongdi
Mammamia! Wuxi
Mammamia! Guangzhou IFC
