Axios Chicago readers pick the best deep dish pizza
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Chicago's heavy pizza styles include pan, deep dish and stuffed, but all are delicious including this pan style from LaBriola. Photo: Monica Eng/Axios
Axios Chicago readers delivered some great pizza suggestions in response to our deep dish Food Fight, but some folks still seem fuzzy about Chicago's taxonomy of heavy pizza styles beyond deep dish.
For the record: Deep dish (Lou's, Uno, Due and Gino's) features a buttery crust, a layer of cheese, then sauce.
- Pan pizza (like Burt's, Pequod's and George's) boasts a fluffy crust and caramelized, fricoed edges.
- Stuffed pizza (like Giordano's, Eduardo's and Nancy's) starts with a thin bottom crust, then gobs of cheese, a second top crust and finally sauce.
Yes, but: We've cooked up a list with all of those heavy suggestions here, just slicing them into the proper categories. Enjoy.
Deep Dish
"Lou Malnati's is the best deep dish by far!" — Francine G.
"My favorite used to be Lou Malnati's, but after a recent visit to their Oak Park location, I will never return. The Lou's Special was not the savory, delicious, sumptuous pie that I have been eating for 35 years. So, my vote is to deduct votes from Lou's." — Susan H.
"Connie's Pizza in Bridgeport on Archer Ave. is my favorite deep dish." — Maurice S.
"Gino's East. Reminds me of going out to eat with my mom when I was a kid. A shame Gino's is down to only 3 local locations now." — Mike C.
"My favorite deep dish pizza is Georgio's in Crystal Lake and South Barrington." — Jim B.
"If I ever need to choose a last meal, Bacino's deep dish sausage pizza would be it." — Lee P.
"Uncle Jerry's in Cary, Illinois. I don't even like sausage on a pizza, but their deep dish sausage is very good!" — Donna B.
Pan Pizza
"Hands down George's Deep Dish in Edgewater! The ingredients are always fresh, the sourdough crust never disappoints, and George creates awesome topping combos all named after famous 'Georges.'
- His mom works there and is always so good to our family, even when we see her at the grocery store!" — Steven P.
"Sausage and black olives from Burt's Place in Morton Grove. Burt's started years ago by pizza innovator Burt Katz after he had a falling out with his partners at Pequod's.
- There's a plaque on the wall in a booth at Burt's: "Anthony Bourdain sat here." No further endorsement necessary." –Steve N.
"My husband and I have fallen in love with Pequod's! Any chance I get to pick up some when I'm in the city is a treat. Their caramelized crust is just so good!" —Bonnie E.
Stuffed Pizza
"Bacinos stuffed spinach and mushrooms." — Susan B.
"Palermo's on 63rd is the best deep dish pizza. Caveat: I feel like they call their deep dish stuffed and their stuffed deep dish. Listen, I'm not arguing with Frank, go check it out.
- The sauce is perfectly sweet, dough cooked to perfection, always fresh ingredients." — Esau C.
"Thanks for reminding everyone that deep dish pizza and stuffed pizza are NOT the same. Giordano's is my go to for stuffed." — Maurice S.