CONTRIBUTED BY JOELLE
I traveled a lot in my 20s — and getting to this restaurant brought back all the emotions of wandering aimlessly in some foreign city towards a museum or restaurant or park that had been described to me on some train in some other country by a backpacker who over a 16 hour train trip had become my new best friend… We had to stop three times to ask a simple question, “Kajinho?” Each time we were smiled at and waved and pointed in the correct direction… and finally, just over the rise of the hill, gleaming in the afternoon sun… well, it wasn’t quite that dramatic – but I was pretty stoked when we finally arrived!
The restaurant itself appears to be in a traditional Japanese home. There is indoor seating as well as lovely seating on a patio around the perimeter of the house. These tables are low to the ground for traditional floor seating. Also, there is a covered area to the side where there is picnic table-like seating. We were led to a table and given a fan on which is written the simple menu: Large pizza, Medium pizza, salad, and various fruit drinks, teas, & alcohol. There is not a choice of toppings – you just get the pizza they’re making that day (ours was corn, sausage & green peppers).
I thought the pizza was great and was glad with our party of 6 that we had gotten two larges so I could have seconds and thirds. The salad was yummy with Japanese dressing and the teas came with a lovely little bouquet of flowers. It was all just delightful!!!
We were there just in time for sunset and the view over the islands was superb. The only negative was the vast number of mosquitoes and no-see-ums that were around. The waitress did bring a coil to burn near our table. (And as we left that night, I realized they had bug spray at the desk where you sign in.)
Basically we all had a wonderful time. I would recommend going after/before a visit to the aquarium or butterfly garden and on a weekday if possible – we had no wait on a Monday evening.
If you’ve ever watched the little old bald man at the beach with the pulled up socks finally find something hidden on the beach with his metal detector, you might understand some of my joy at finally finding Pizza in the Sky!
Update: As of July 2011 the pin below on the map is accurate! Hope it helps!
Directions: 1. Take the expressway to Nago. The expressway will merge into 58. You can also take 58 all the way to Nago.
2. Go left on 84 (west) toward Ocean Expo Park (aquarium). Set the Odometer. Drive 11.7 km.
3. Turn right on HWY 115 toward Nakijin. Drive 0.9 km. The road is windy and there are a lot of tombs.
4. Take the road that forks off to the right – there will be a red, white, green sign with a large red arrow marking the turn and it says Pizza in the Sky in large letters. Drive about 200 meters
5. Take the 1st Left. The road goes under the bridge of 115. There will be another sign marking it. It is a windy 1 ½ lane road.
6. Stay on this road as it winds until you reach Pizza in the Sky on the Left. There will be a construction/gravelyard area on the left about halfway and then the road will bend to the right up a hill. There are many side roads that fork off, just stay on the main road that has white lines on each side. Just before reaching Pizza in the Sky you will pass a “key coffee” restaurant on the left, Pizza in the Sky is just up the hill.
7. There are 3 parking areas one on the left and two on the right.
Or, for you visual learners, you can download Pizza In The Sky directions with pictures.
Joelle, about how long did it take to get to Kajinho from the aquarium?
I’m a little skeptical about having corn on my pizza but it looks delicious! Will have to print out a copy of all your directions and stash them in the car for the next time we’re up in that area.
Thanks for all of the great info!
Not long at all… maybe 15 minutes?? (Course that was with all the stopping to ask for help!). AND, I just realized I said we were there on Tuesday night and obviously they are CLOSED on Tuesday’s — so it must have been Monday. Kelly, can you change it in the original??
I can’t believe it’s that close to the aquarium! I’m definitely going to head up there one day soon. Can’t wait! Thanks again!
Can you get me directions from Pineapple Park?
HAHA! My husband and I went to Pineapple Park yesterday….and also Pizza in the Sky! I honestly do not know how we made it in his chunky car and all those tiny roads! Not to mention, I had written the directions a little wrong. I had to push him a little bit….”lets have an adventure”, “it will be fun”….that kinda talk. Of course he has to be Mr. Macho…and not admit that he loved trying to wiggle his car through the crazy roads. Once he got to the pizza he was happy! He’s not really big on pizza. He likes Anthony’s a lot, and he said this was better, so that’s always a good thing.
The only thing about the signs….I didn’t see any brown and white signs. I saw red, white and green signs and they were fairly big. So they may have changed them!
I followed the other set of directions, which were great! They updated the road signs to get to Pizza in the Sky after the 115 turn (coming from Kadena to Pizza in the Sky), and they were big and hard to miss. I have to say that the food and the view were equally great! I went on a Monday for lunch and it was pretty busy, but got seated within 30 minutes even though there were about 20 tables ahead of us, considering how small the place was. And the service was fast! We had our food 7 minutes after ordering – yes, I timed them! Also, they have blankets and space heaters for you to use if you’re seated outside, which is great especially for the winter months.
We drove all the way up there today & they were closed. Forgot that I heard Jan 1 & 2 were Japanese holidays! So, practically everything was closed & my not-so-directionally-gifted husband drove around for like 2 hours trying to find McDonald’s!
It sounded good though! Maybe when it warms back up!
Oh & yeah, the road signs are changed to red, white & green like mentioned by Lauren & they said “Pizza & Sky” Otherwise, we got there no problems..just didn’t get to eat!
I love this place. My husband and I went here when we first got here, and I’ve been dying to go back. It was incredibly hard to find, we got directions from Kadena ITT but they were definitely not clear cut. Got lost a little bit, but it was worth it!
What are the hours? Are they open on Sunday?
Pizza in the Sky is closed on Tuesdays AND Wednesdays. They open at 11:30 and close at 7pm *I think*. Not sure about the closing, but definite on the opening. I believe they are open every day except those two mentioned above. It is definitely worth the trip, unless it’s a Japanese holiday or New Year’s
How do you get there from Kadena?
You have to go north from Kadena. Take either the Expressway (Gate 2) and then hit 58 or take 58 all the way (Gate 1). Once in Nago I believe you can hit 84 ( althought that is past Nago so keep going on 58), or take 449 to the left off of 58 and go the Aquarium first.
We hit one of the beaches first and then went to Pizza in the Sky. There will probably be a wait, but it’s worth it!
Can someone post an approx. cost so we know how much yen we might need? Thanks!
It’s been a couple months since I’ve been there, but I believe it was less than 2,000 yen for my husband and I…we got a medium pizza and a salad. I believe the salad was about 500 yen. They had a couple other items on their menu to include drinks and I think a larger sized pizza, so it would probably be more if you chose to get those items, and depending on how much you order for however many people are in your group.
Thankfully we took a pic of the menu when we were there, so I can help with this…a medium pizza (14″) is 2000 yen and a small pizza (7″) is 1000. The salad is 500 yen, and drinks range from 200-500 yen, depending if you want an Orion, juice or soda.
we went there last weekend and the directions seemed to have changed some and they now have large signs that are red, white,and green with red arrows and all English writing. I took pictures of the new signs and can forward them to whomever so that they can be added to the directions, along with updated directions (there was no T intersection and basically once you make the left and go under 115 you just follow that road until you reach the resturant), there is a lot of construction going on so that may have changed the layout of the roads.
You can actually request items to NOT be on your pizza. We ordered a pizza for our kids and got it without the green peppers and onions.
Also – the mango desert is really really good.
Actually I find the pizza not so great. Not bad, but not worth the hype. Everything else, location especially, is amazing!
Anybody know pizza in the sky’s current hours/days?
Hours are 11:30 – 1900, closed Tuesday and Wednesday. From the aquarium we turned right and headed to 115. Make a left and wind your way up. Yummy!!!
Went there on Sunday. Beautiful view!!! However we got there at about 1pm. Had to wait about an hour for a table. (Which is fine it was the weekend. Just letting people know what to expect.) My husband and I, however, do not think the pizza was worth $20. It was good, but not amazing like people make it out to be. Did enjoy the experience and view though!!
I recommend HIGHLY going to the “Key Coffee” restaurant right next to Pizza in the Sky (mentioned above). The views there are even better and the owners are incredibly sweet–they serve up delicious Okinawan set meals. I am not overly impressed with Pizza in the Sky (corn pizza?!) and can not recommend the cafe right before it highly enough.
Way overhyped. The service is horrendous and the pizza is mediocre. The view was amazing. I also feel the menu needs to be emphasized in this article. There are three items to eat: plain pizza, pizza of the day and salad. That’s it. We had about a half hour wait and there were only 5 groups in front of us. The wait was not worth it. I also noticed somehow the American families were seated last. Interesting coincidence.
Awesome directions, could not have been better! Got there with no problem. Pretty good pizza, awesome view.
Incredible directions, thank you! As of April 2012, they are still closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Does anyone have specific directions from the aquarium?
Nevermind, got it. Just make a left on 115 and follow the directions above
Great view, and that’s about all I can say about that place. Way overhyped!!
The last few times we went there, there was an hour wait! Not worth it.
Just drive all the way up there- to be turned away… They stop taking orders at 6:30!
Okay… Well this was our 2nd attempt. We made it ALL the way up here… It is 5:17pm on Monday- and they stopped us at the door to say “pizza sold out” Seriously?! You are a pizza shop, half way up a mtn, in the middle of nowhere… You can’t let yourself run out of pizza… Does a Pub run out of beer? Does an Italian restaurant run out of spaghetti? You are a pizza shop!