Top Seeds Survive as Pizza Cup Gets to the Upper Crust

Ladies and gentlemen, the upper crust is officially set! After the latest culling, only 16 candidates are left standing, no mean feat given that our quest to find Beijing’s best pizza establishment started with some 200 brands!

All top seeds survived the round aside from three. In the biggest upset of the round, Bracket D's No. 7 seed Pizza View by Opera Bombana (7) knocked out two-seed Pizza Express (2).

Pizza Express, which was purchased by Chinese investors for USD 1.5 billion in 2014, is apparently in a state of flux, just last week rebranding its Beijing stores to Pizza Marzano, which can't help but befuddle long-term fans of the chain. Only time will tell whether standards can be upheld.

In the round's other upsets, Eatalia (6) edged out Sureño, The Opposite House (3) and Tavola (5) inched by Mao Mao Chong (4).

Here's a full recap of the Round of 32 action:

Bracket A
Gung Ho (1) bungeed Tiago (8)
Pizza+ (2) flagged down Yellow Cab (7)
La Pizza (3) burned Pyro Pizza (6)
Pie Squared (4) cornered Hutong Pizza (5)

Bracket B
Annie's (1) blew by Passby Bar (8)
Tube Station (2) retired Mio, Four Seasons Hotel (7)
The Tree (3) planted Ramo (6)
Q Mex (4) jalapeno'ed Yummy Box (5)

Bracket C
Great Leap #45 (1) bounded by Tim's Texas BBQ (8)
Bottega (2) swatted Flypizza & Hoodadak Chicken (7)
Luga's Villa (3) retired Grandma's Kitchen (6)
Tavola (5) inched by Mao Mao Chong (4)

Bracket D
Kro's Nest (1) pecked Bocca Della Verita (8)
Pizza View by Opera Bombana (7) bounced Pizza Express (2)
Eatalia (6) edged out Sureño, The Opposite House (3)
The Local (4) floored The Rug (5)

Here's how our bracket stands now:

Click for a larger version

SCAN/EXTRACT THE QR CODE TO VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE IN THE SWEET 16

Voting for the Sweet 16 will remain open until Thursday, October 27 at 2pm; at 4pm that same day, the Elite Eight will be announced.

In the meantime, don't forget to become an educated voter by indulging in our Pies For The People promotion.

Successive rounds will follow this schedule:

Monday, Oct 31: Elite 8 closes at 2pm; Final 4 announced at 4pm
Thursday, Nov 3: Final 4 closes at 2pm; Championship match announced at 4pm
Monday, Nov 7: Announcement of 2016 Pizza Cup Champion

Lastly, we also asked you on the previous round to tell us your favorites that did not make the top 32. Here's what you said, and this will serve as their final rankings in the 2016 Pizza Cup:

33. Pizza by LMPlus
34. Vineyard Café
35. New York Style Pizza
36. Papa John's Pizza
37. Domino's
38. Mr Pizza
39. Pizza Buona
40. The Irish Volunteer
41. Stuff'd
42. Pizza Hut
43. Nasca Cafe
44. Lakers
45. Lily's American Diner
46. Xian Bar, EAST, Beijing Hotel
47. Alio Olio
48. Jazz-Ya
49. Scott's Family Ristorante Italiano
50. iFresh Pizza
51. VSports
52. Paddy O'Shea's
53. Fratelli Fresh, Renaissance Beijing Capital Hotel
54. Mrs Shanen's / Green Cow Cafe
55. Park 17
56. Ahava Bistro + Café
57. Elisa's
58. Via Roma, Kempinski Hotel
59. Nine Road Pizzeria
60. Loft Eatalicious
61. The Veggie Table
62. Red House
63. 1st Floor
64. Pizza Factory
65. PBD Pizza Bar
66. Peter Pan
67. Casalingo
68. Pizza Maru
69. Michael’s Place
70. FA Cafe
71. Isola
72. Nanjie
73. Peter's Tex-Mex
74. Mixs Italian Grill
75. Whale's Pizza
76. Assaggi
77. Pizza Now
78. Frost
79. Prego, Westin Financial Street
80. Pomona
81. Charlie's
82. Ricci Café
83. Kitchen Igosso
84. Eudora Station Bar and Restaurant
85. Byone
86. Agrilandia
87. Bene, Sheraton Grand Dongcheng Hotel
88. Ku Pizza

As mentioned, voting is now open for the Sweet 16 round in this year's Pizza Cup. Read the voting process here or head straight to the voting page by scanning/extracting the QR code below. Voting for this round closes on October 27 (Thursday) at 2pm.