Noida's midnight crowd is lining up for roadside gourmet pizza

It rained and Delhi-NCR was finally enjoying some respite from the scorching heat. Cool breeze, cool weather, and a weekend - the perfect excuse to step out. A long night drive, a good playlist, and maybe some snacks on the way. At 11 pm, my friends and I decided to romanticise the weather and enjoy it while it lasts in Noida. And it's no surprise that there are one too many midnight hangout spots in Noida now. So, how do you decide where to go next? Read Full Story It's 2026. All it takes is one food Reel saved on someone's Instagram. And that's exactly how we found a street-side pizza place. You say, what's new in that? Well, it's not your regular pizza for sure. It's gourmet. It's wood-fired. It's Neapolitan. And it's part of the midnight roadside carts gang. In Noida, late-night food culture is growing with several food carts lighting up the streets (Photo: Author) The gourmet street of Noida When you think of street food, pizza is definitely the first thing come to mind. Momo, chaat, and rolls? Absolutely. But pizza - especially the kind that's wood-fired, topped with freshly made sauces, and loaded with quality cheese - rarely figures in the street food conversation. This Italian speciality mostly belongs to a different world - quaint aesthetic cafes, menus offering names you cannot pronounce, and toppings like sun-dried tomatoes, jalapenos, burrata, smoked chicken and paprika. Or so we thought. A neapolitan pizza on the go please? (Photo: Author) So when we came across carts - yes, actual street-side thelas - making fresh pizzas and selling them by the roadside, we were intrigued. These pizzas weren't emerging from a cafe kitchen but from humble setups that stay busy until midnight, proving that great food doesn't always need four walls or a fancy address. Gourmet pizzas are now a part of Noida's street food culture(Photo: Author) Given that Sector 76 is already buzzing with midnight cafes, hangout spots, and viral food carts, we expected the place to be easy to find. Instead, one wrong turn and a call to the pizza cart later for directions, we finally found ourselves on the right street. Gusto Italiano and JP Pizzeria are the two carts parked by the road alongside other stalls. And we tried both. These carts in Noida have no plush interiors, just the aroma of freshly baked dough, bubbling cheese, and a crowd that keeps showing up well past dinner hours (the crowd is us!). If you are one of those people who save food Reels only to try them later, you've probably already come across JP Pizzeria. Their white cart with hints of red and green exudes the ideal Italian cuisine vibe. And Chef Ashish Guglani's playful pizza-making often does the rounds on social media. The other one we tried was Gusto Italiano. It is run by two friends, Kartavya and Punit. They are in their mid-twenties and have been running the cart for close to two years now. For them, it was one trip to Rishikesh, and they came back with a business idea and simply fired up the oven. What's on the menu? An impressive variety of pizzas, garlic bread, and even calzones — far more than what you would expect from a roadside food cart. And the cost? So much less than what you would pay at a quaint cafe for the same pizza. For pizzas, they serve two sizes — an 8-inch starting at Rs 400 and a 10-inch starting at Rs 500. Depending on the toppings, the price may vary slightly. We tried the Diavolo from JP Pizzeria and the Primavera Picante from Gusto Italiano. It was all made from scratch, hand-tossed, wood-fired and then served to perfection. Primavera Picante pizza freshly handtossed (Photo: Author) The Diavolo arrived with a beautifully blistered crust, slightly charred from the wood-fired oven. The cheese wasn't overloaded the way most Indian pizzas are. Instead, it let the smoky flavour of the dough do the talking. The Primavera Picante packed more heat, with toppings layered generously enough to justify its gourmet tag. And honestly, it was all worth it. They make the dough from scratch and have all the ingredients ready before assembling each pizza and firing it up. Once it's ready, customers can enjoy it however they like - sitting in their cars, gathering around the standing tables, balancing a box on their bikes, or simply taking it home. The setup may be simple, and that's exactly how laid-back you like your street food. When and where? While the location is in Sector 76, Noida, near JM Orchid, you can contact them in case you miss a lane. The official timing as of now, as per their social media, is 6 pm to 12 am, it extends a little beyond midnight (around 12:30 ish) on most days. But if they are sold out, they might just close up early or have limited options as the night goes on. Last bite Even when the clock strikes 12 am, no chariots are turning into pumpkins. The area is bustling. Young consumers discover new food spots through social media, willingly driving across the city to try viral recommendations. Midnight outings turn into