Squid ink risotto and funghi salad at Cheonan pizzeria Napoli Shinbu

I went to Napoli Shinbu, a wood-fired pizza spot in Cheonan. Sinbu-dong has quite a few Western-style restaurants, but we visited specifically for dinnertime wood-fired pizza.

Parking and break time at Napoli Shinbu

Napoli Shinbu is at 46 Bangjukan 3-gil, Dongnam-gu, Cheonan, Chungnam, 1st floor, and we parked right on the roadside out front. Break time runs from 3 PM to 5 PM, so I'd recommend timing your visit around that!

Since they serve everything from wood-fired pizza to risotto and pasta, it's a Sinbu-dong Western-food favorite that draws plenty of students from nearby too.

What the inside of Napoli Shinbu looks like

Inside, Napoli Shinbu has everything from 4-person tables to 6-person tables, so it can accommodate different group sizes. We arrived right at dinnertime, so we could sit down comfortably and order at a relaxed pace.

The interior is clean and has a nice vibe, so it'd also work well as a date spot.

As soon as we sat down, they brought us cold water and pickles. Cucumber pickles were self-serve.

We ordered three menu items total — burrata pizza, squid ink cream risotto, and pungi salad.

Funghi mushroom salad (18,000 won)

A pungi salad often plays the important role of opening a fine-dining meal, so I always order it with high expectations — and Napoli Shinbu's version fully lived up to them.

It was generously packed with various mushrooms grilled to carry a subtle smoky char. The chewy yet soft texture of the mushrooms filled my mouth, and on top, crisp fresh vegetables, salty umami cheese, and the special dressing were genuinely delicious.

It wasn't heavy, but the deep flavor unique to mushrooms really came through, making it a great appetizer. It wasn't too strong-flavored but healthy and refined, the perfect opener to sharpen the appetite before the main meal. And the portion was huge, so it was great for starting a healthy meal :)

Burrata pizza (23,000 won)

Next, I tried what could be called Napoli Shinbu's signature dish — the burrata pizza. As a wood-fired pizza specialist in Cheonan, the freshly baked pizza caught my eye visually right away.

The crust's outside was crispy while staying chewy with every bite, showing off the real skill of a wood-fired pizza. It was fun to pop the big burrata cheese sitting right in the center and spread it wide over each slice.

The cheese's savory, fresh milky flavor combined with the tanginess of the tomato sauce and the fragrant basil for an explosive harmony of flavors.

Squid ink cream risotto (17,500 won)

Finally, the dish I was most excited about — the squid ink cream risotto. That jet-black look sparks curiosity at first, but once you take a bite, it's a magic menu item you fall completely in love with.

Popping the egg yolk into it made the squid ink cream risotto even more delicious to eat. The deep, rich umami of squid ink and the smoothness of the cream sauce were mixed in a perfect ratio.

Rather than the heaviness of a cream sauce, savoriness and deep flavor filled my mouth. There was fresh squid inside the risotto with a good chewy texture, and it was so delicious.

The verdict after all three dishes

The pungi salad, squid ink cream risotto, and burrata pizza we ordered this time formed a perfect trio without a single disappointment among them. I could really feel the care in generously using fresh ingredients, and every dish touched by the chef carried a real sense of Naples, Italy. If you're looking for a good wood-fired pizza spot in Cheonan, definitely give this place a visit!