Battle of two Chicago frozen "deep dish" pizzas
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
A slice of Rupiani's (L) versus Lou Malnati's. Photos: Monica Eng/Axios
Growing up in Chicago, I never heard the terms "tavern" or "deep dish" pizza.
- We just called it thin or thick crust.
Yes, but: A lot's changed since then. Pizza styles have grown increasingly specific and some standard bearers — like Lou Malnati's — have been acquired by private equity.
- That led one reader to recently tell us that she's given up on Malnati's newly skimpy pies.
Driving the news: I wondered if she was right and whether a nationally shipped pie could restore Chicago's deep-dish reputation and show the world what we're made of.
- Apparently, dough, sauce and cheese.
Enter Rupiani's, a River North-based business that reached out to tell me they'd perfected the shippable "deep dish pizza."
- I agreed to try a press sample and cook it alongside a small frozen Malnati's pizza ($19.45) as a test.
The verdict: Private equity Malnati's does seem skimpier than the pie of my youth, but I still love the buttery crust, layer of fennel sausage and yeasty aroma.
- Rupiani's (three pizzas for $165) delivers a totally different experience, with gobs of cheese and a lovely sweetish sauce but a weirdly thick crust.
- With no top crust, it falls mysteriously between stuffed and deep dish.
The bottom line: Tasty but unlike any Chicago pizza I'd ever tried.