I'm not a huge fan of bread, and hence, I'd never really liked Chicago deep dish pizza. But when I heard that Chicago also has its own unique thin crust pizza, I had to come check it out. This place (3033 North Ashland Avenue at Nelson Street, 773-327-5600) is considered to be one of the best in town...for both the deep dish and thin crust versions.
I was actually a bit surprised to see it offered in slices (apparently, this is supposed to be cut up into squares instead), but obviously didn't matter much taste-wise. Being in Chicago, I had to order the quintessential sausage variety, which was already being kept impressively warm in their heater rather than needing a reheat in the oven like New York style pizza. And of course, being Chicago style, the cheese was on top rather than the other way around.
Admittedly though, I still didn't really like it. I could see why people felt this place had a nice crust, as it was decently flaky and buttery. And the toppings were hearty. But this "thin crust" still provided too much of a bread taste for me, even if it was much thinner than deep dish pizza. Well, at least I got to try one of the better pizza joints around Chicago. I suppose I should have ordered the deep dish afterwards to do it justice, but I really didn't want to eat any more bread after that.
Dude, after reading your link on Ben's Pizzeria in NYC, I realised we ate there like days apart haha. It's a darn small world. If you're still in the mood for Chicago deep-pan, do try Gino's East. I reckon they're better than Uno. My review on them is in this compilation post
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Now, I am originally from the Chicago area, but caviat - haven't been back for years and years. However, if you want great pizza, you need to try Chicago stuffed pizza - the most amazing experience and even those with hearty appetites could only finish off a small one on their own. The very best was Giordonos - don't have a clue if it is still there, but it is where we always went as a family and I took my husband there on my last visit - about 15 years ago. What it is, is thin crust, but as its name suggests, stuffed with fillings (gotta have sausage as one of them - big chunks, yum) and another very thin crust on top with tomato sauce.
ReplyDeleteJust searched them and they are still around - yahoo! http://www.giordanos.com And they have an outlet in little old Oswego - in my day working as a 16 year old at my dad's surgery, the only thing there was a diner across the street from the surgery (which actually had great burgers and milk shakes). What we would have done with a Giordono's - Oswego must be a very much different place than I remember it.
Anyway, you must try it if you get back to the Midwest.