08/20/2018

The Best Deep Dish Pizza in Chicago

Chicago, of course, is world-famous for its deep-dish pizza: that local specialty (and, by some partisan accounts, a pinnacle of the pizza family tree) defined by a heavy, high-rimmed crust allowing for a lavish heart of cheesy, saucy goodness. It’s basically a must-try for any Windy City visitor, not least those foodie types committed to a thorough exploration of regional dishes.

Well, consider Hotel Chicago your luxurious deep-dish-pizza-appreciation headquarters: Some of the finest purveyors of this quintessential Chicago culinary creation are mere minutes from your Autograph Collection room or suite!

Pizzeria Uno (29 E Ohio St.)

That certainly includes Pizzeria Uno, just a few blocks away from our luxury hotel here in River North. This is ground zero for deep-dish pizza: the spot where, in the early 1940s, this heavy-duty variation on the form was invented. That makes this a historic landmark as well as an excellent place to bring an appetite.

 

Lou Malnati’s (439 N Wells St.)

As a chef at Pizzeria Uno, Rudy Malnati was instrumental in the creation of deep-dish pizza alongside Uno’s founder Ike Sewell. Rudy’s son, Lou, learned the tricks of the trade from his father and applied them at his first Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria, opened back in March of 1971. At the River North location, you can (as at Pizzeria Uno) taste some history via scratch-made, time-honored deep-dish that hews just about as close to the original as you can find.

Pequod’s Pizza (2207 N Clybourn Ave)

It’s worth the wait at Pequod’s (established at its Morton Grove location by pizza mogul Burt Katz) to sink your teeth into a sub-variety of deep-dish: pan pizza. The Pequod’s version is famous for its toothsome carmelized crust, achieved by a special layer of cheese and imparting a distinctive (and delightful) chewiness.

The Art of Pizza (3033 N Ashland Ave)

The Chicago Tribune has voted The Art of Pizza’s deep-dish—an awesome exponent of the stuffed “subspecies” of the style—the best in the city. Naturally that claim applied to any pizzeria inspires some vigorous debate among deep-dish aficionados, but either way we advise you to dutifully collect some data with a lunch or dinner stop here.

Bella Bacino’s (75 E Wacker Drive)

Another lauded destination for top-grade Chicago pizza, Bella Bacino’s on Wacker Drive is less than a half-mile from Hotel Chicago. Among its best-known dishes is its Spinach Supreme Pizza, which comes so lusciously primed with veggies and mushrooms that you can sort of feel good about eating it…

Deep-Dish Deep Dives at Hotel Chicago

The above list of deep-dish destinations is woefully far from exhaustive, we’ll admit: Check out this Thrillist roundup for some other great options, such as Bartoli’s and Nino’s, and then hit the streets from your Hotel Chicago base camp for some in-depth explorations of one of the Windy City’s defining dishes!