Well, not really, in my opinion. Deep dish usually has a shit ton of sauce on it, and the cheese layer acts as a protective layer, keeping all the wet ingredients from melting into the crust and making a soggy mess. I’ve made it both ways, and cheese on the bottom makes the most sense to me for this style of pizza.
In terms of stuffed, Art of Pizza makes the best version of that style for my money. My problem with stuffed is that regular deep dish already has enough freaking dough in it. Who needs more? That’s just overkill. We’re making pizza here, not a literal pie.
I call it that because it seems like that’s what everyone wants when they come visit. :smack: So it’s out to Due’s or whatever, and we eat maybe half the pizza, and then all stare dumbly at it in our little food comas, trying to figure out whether we want to haul the leftovers home or if we should just leave it.
I had a study monitor who’d order Lou Malnati’s every time he came to check our records, which is where I got introduced to the giardinera + tomatoes combo, which I am fairly fond of. But still, I could maybe put away two slices, same with my coworker, then I’d be dozing the rest of the day, and he’d bring the rest of it back to his hotel that night for dinner.
Okay, clear up some confusion for this New Yorker.
There’s the original Pizzeria Uno in Chicago. It was popular so the owner opened a second restaurant, Pizzeria Due, a block away from the first.
Is there a difference in menus or atmosphere between Pizzeria Uno and Pizzeria Due or is Due essentially just overflow for Uno?
On a separate issue, how does the food at the various Uno franchises around the country compare to the food original Chicago sites? I’ve eaten pizza at Uno’s in NY - have I had authentic Uno pizza?
I haven’t eaten at all of these places, but I say Giordano’s is better than Uno’s or Eduardo’s. Carmen’s is also incredible. I don’t know why anyone is saying Giordano’s doesn’t count.
I’m not from Chicago, but my family has deep ties there. I’ve had all of the usuals (Uno, Due, Giordano’s, Gino’s East, Malnati’s etc. I’ve even had Malnati’s delivered to Ohio which is decidedly not cheap). I looked at Pequod’s site, and a few others, but found nothing really compelling to make me go there.
The last time I went to visit my Aunt in Chicago, I decided I’d do a little research before I just ordered from a default pizza place (Giordano’s was her default). I ended up doing the research load of a doctoral candidate.
People that don’t live in Chicago might be surprised by a $30 pizza, but it’s not that odd.
I had a slice at Art of Pizza that would be lunch or dinner for most people. That slice and a large water cost me less than $5 after tax.
Carmen’s for the win. They have the tastiest crust of any Chicago style pizza.
Uno was the dullest pizza I’ve ever had, with the most bland tasting sausage I’ve ever encountered - it was like eating unflavored tofu. It looked great, but all the flavors had been dumbed down for tourist tastes, as far as I can tell.
Pizzeria Uno and Pizzeria Duo in Chicago provide completely identical pizza. There is no culinary reason to prefer one over the other. You might have an architectural preference, but the food is identical.
The Uno franchises around the country SUCK SUCK SUCK! There is ZERO correlation with the real pizza at Uno and Due in Chicago. It is a totally different company, licensing the name, with a vastly inferior product. Accept no substitutes!
In the past year I’ve traveled to Chicago a few times, but am not qualified to vote based on not having enough experience. I usually stay in the Loop, as that’s where my work is. I’ve tried Giordano’s (which nearly lost me my job…it’s pizza non grata there), Lou Malnati’s and Exchequer Pub. All were very good, although the personal-sized pizza at Lou’s just isn’t right; the toppings/sauce/crust mix is just off in such a small pie. I also had Gino’s East a few years ago on a different trip to the western suburbs, and also found that to be very good. Maybe I’m just not all that picky As to the thin crust, I also had that on that trip and have to say I did not care for it at all. I like crust, and that crust shouldn’t be a cracker. Could have just been a function of the pub we were at (maybe in Addison? Somewhere around there).
I hope in my next trip to venture north of the Loop to Uno or Due to try that. I’m just not sure of the walking distance (I usually just fly into MDW and hop on the Orange Line).
It’s not as good as it used to be. We now order from Rosati’s instead; seems Papa Dels got kinda boring, maybe they changed the sauce or quantity of toppings, but it doesn’t seem the same.
Thin crust around here is usually on the crackery side, but I wouldn’t call most of the places here true cracker crust. It’s thin, but it still usually has a bit of chew to it. Cracker crust I consider more like something Zaffiro’s in Milwaukee has or Candlelight here in the city. A good Chicago thin crust pizza is among my favorite pizzas in the world.
Pequod’s is quite a bit different than the other pizza places mentioned (along with Burts, as Burt was one of the owners of Pequod’s and his recipe is the pizza recipe there.) There are those who say these aren’t really true deep dish pizzas, or that they’re contemporary deep dish, or that they’re simply pan pizzas (as is advertised on their menus.) Most Chicagoans, I think, would file it under “deep dish.” One of the interesting points of Pequod’s (and Burt’s) is the crust has a charred cheese edge. If you’ve ever had a Detroit-style pizza (like Buddy’s), Pequods and Burts seem like a cross between that style and Chicago deep dish. Here’s a picture of a finished Pequod’s pizza. Yes, I know those edges look burned, but they’re not. They taste like crispy, concentrated cheddar (I believe they use white cheddar for the edges.) Burt’s is the pizza that graced the cover of Saveur Magazine, when they had their first single-city issue.
Yep. It’s about 3/4 of a mile. Just go down two blocks south to Webster, then head west until you hit the diagonal street, Clybourn (there will be a Potbelly’s sandwich place there). Look to your right. It will be about three or four doors down, on the east(ish) side of Clybourn.
Nobody is saying it doesn’t count. Some people do actually have different categories for deep dish and stuffed pizzas. I count stuffed as a sub-category of deep dish, but they have their differences, so I could see how some people would like to keep them separate.
The pizza that defines Chicago-style deep dish was created by Uno’s in the early 40s. Stuffed pizza is a more recent off-shoot of the style, being developed by Nancy’s in the early 70s.
Is it splitting hairs? Maybe, but it’s a big difference to me, as I don’t like stuffed pizza for the reasons outlined above. Then again, if I were a purist, I would put Burt’s and Pequod’s in their own subcategory, as they’re a bit closer to pan pizza than regular deep dish (their pizza doesn’t go quite as high along the sides as a deep dish and the bottom crust is thicker than the average deep dish.) In order to keep things simple, I call of these “deep dish”, but will append the term “stuffed” when discussing pizzas like Giordano’s, Edwardo’s, Nancy’s, etc.
/hijack]
What is chicago thin crust pizza? Is it a distinct style, as chicago deep dish is a style, compared to New York Pizza or California pizza? Or is it comparable to the rest of us eat, just non-specific fare? If it is something distinctly chicagoan, what makes it so?
/endhijack]
Your typical Chicago-style thin crust is crispier than a NYC style (you can’t fold it), but not quite as crisp as your typical brick-oven pizza. I guess “chewy” would be a good description. It is also typically cut in squares (aka, “party style”) rather than wedge-shaped slices.
Maybe it does when you make it, but all those for-shit pizza joints in the poll make glop for tourists. Oh, if I’m going to complain you’ll take my portion off my hands? Fine. I’ll order a beef. (checking the poll) Which none of those dumps can make, either. :mad:
As to the thin crust, I also had that on that trip and have to say I did not care for it at all. I like crust, and that crust shouldn’t be a cracker. Could have just been a function of the pub we were at (maybe in Addison? Somewhere around there).
