Chicago is renowned for many culinary delights, but deep dish pizza stands in a category of its own. It’s not just a style of pizza — it’s a cultural institution, a family legacy, and a very serious topic of debate among Chicagoans. Everyone has an opinion about who makes the best one, and they will defend it passionately.
This guide cuts through the noise. Here are the deep dish spots that actually deliver — the ones locals argue about, critics award, and visitors remember long after they leave. Get ready to experience Chicago pizza perfection.
🍕 Here’s the Deal
Deep dish pizza takes 30–45 minutes to bake — plan accordingly. It’s not fast food; it’s an event. Most places don’t take reservations for small parties, so expect a wait at the popular spots, especially on weekend evenings. One deep dish pie feeds 2–3 people easily. And here’s the local secret: deep dish, stuffed, and pan-style are all different things. Deep dish has sauce on top of the cheese. Stuffed (like Giordano’s) adds an extra layer of dough. Pan-style (like Pequod’s) puts sauce under the toppings. All are thick, all are indulgent, and all are worth trying.
🏆 Quick Picks
- 🥇 Local favorite: Pequod’s — the caramelized cheese crust converts everyone
- 🏛️ The original: Pizzeria Uno — invented deep dish in 1943
- ❤️ Best sauce: Lou Malnati’s — vine-ripened tomato sauce, trademarked Buttercrust
- 🏆 Most awarded: Bartoli’s — named best pizza by Chicago Tribune, USA Today, Food & Wine
- ⭐ Most unique: Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder — the Pizza Pot Pie
- 🌿 Best vegan option: My Pi Pizza — dairy-free deep dish that actually works
- 📍 Best for tourists (downtown): Giordano’s Rush Street or Gino’s East Mag Mile
- 🍺 Best hidden gem: Bartoli’s — BYOB, no tourist crowds, award-winning pies
What Is Chicago Deep Dish Pizza?
Chicago deep dish pizza is built in reverse. A thick crust — typically made with cornmeal dough — is pressed into a deep, round pan. Then the layers go in this order: cheese on the bottom, fillings in the middle, and chunky tomato sauce on top. That sauce-on-top construction is what makes it distinctly Chicago. The whole thing bakes for 30–45 minutes and arrives hot, gooey, and heavy enough that one slice is a meal.
Here are the places that do it best — from award-winning newcomers to the family dynasties that put deep dish on the map.
Bartoli’s Pizzeria
Named best pizza in Chicago by the Chicago Tribune, USA Today, and Food & Wine magazine, this family-owned pizzeria has earned serious credentials since owner Brian Tondryk perfected his grandfather Fred Bartoli’s recipe and opened his first location in Roscoe Village in 2013. (More on that family connection below.)
The deep dish pies feature thick tomato sauce that pairs perfectly with chewy, gooey fresh mozzarella. The Bartoli’s Special — sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, and green peppers — is the classic order. The Grandma Bartoli’s spinach and cheese mix layered with mozzarella and house sauce is the insider pick. Both locations are BYOB, which means you can bring a nice bottle of wine and skip the markup — a serious perk.
The Art of Pizza
Known for a rich, buttery crust and a perfectly calibrated sauce-to-cheese ratio, The Art of Pizza has been a Lakeview staple that locals swear by. Their deep dish pies feature creative topping combinations — from spicy sausage to sliced Italian beef — and the portions are generous for the price. For something different, try the White Pizza with ricotta, mozzarella, spinach, mushrooms, and garlic — it’s a standout that proves deep dish doesn’t have to be traditional to be excellent. You can also grab deep dish by the slice here, which is rare and incredibly convenient when you’re craving a quick fix.
Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder Company
This isn’t technically deep dish — it’s something entirely its own. Set inside a historic brownstone in Lincoln Park (across the street from the site of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre), the Pizza Pot Pie is a bowl of buttery dough, rich tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese with just the right amount of pull, and your choice of toppings, baked upside-down and served inverted. Each individual pot pie is a half-pound of dough. It’s so rich and filling that most people can’t finish it in one sitting. Cash only, no reservations, and the line can stretch down the block on weekends — but this is one of the most unique pizza experiences in Chicago, or anywhere.
Gino’s East
Founded in 1966 by Sam Levine, Fred Bartoli (yes, Brian Tondryk’s grandfather), and George Loverde, Gino’s East is one of Chicago’s most iconic deep dish destinations. The pizzas are baked in seasoned cast-iron pans, producing a thick, golden crust with crispy edges and a generous blanket of mozzarella. The Deep Dish Sausage with patty sausage, mozzarella, and vine-ripened tomato sauce is the classic order.
The Magnificent Mile location is famous for its graffiti-covered walls — a tradition that started accidentally in the 1970s when customers carved initials into tables. Now every surface is covered, and you’re encouraged to add your own. The in-house Gino’s Brewing Co. makes craft beers designed specifically to pair with deep dish, and The Comedy Bar upstairs offers stand-up shows seven nights a week — making this the rare pizza spot where you can get a deep dish, a house beer, and a comedy show all in one building.
George’s Deep Dish Pizza
Plan ahead for this one. Owner George Bumbaris makes a limited number of pies each day from his Edgewater kitchen, and they sell out fast. The draw is the sourdough crust with a crispy, caramelized cheese edge — it’s unlike any other deep dish in the city. Choose from pizzas named after famous Georges (Clooney, Michael, Harrison) or build your own with additions like Ezzo cup-and-char pepperoni and hand-rolled meatballs. No dine-in — order early in the day or risk missing out entirely.
Pizzeria Uno and Pizzeria Due
This is where it all started. Rudy Malnati Sr. opened Pizzeria Uno in 1943, and deep dish pizza was born. Chicago magazine calls it “the pizza that spawned an empire” — and they’re right. Yes, you’ll wait. Yes, it’s crowded. Yes, the dining room is cramped. But the cornmeal-crusted pizza hits that perfect balance of bread, sauce, and cheese that started a citywide obsession.
My go-to is the Chicago Meat Market — layers of mild sausage, meatballs, pepperoni, fresh mozzarella, thick tomato sauce, and a finish of pecorino romano. Pizzeria Due (one block away, opened 1955) serves the same menu with typically shorter waits.
Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria
Lou Malnati’s has a devoted fan base — including a few of my own family members — who consider Lou’s sauce the best in the city. Made from California-grown, vine-ripened tomatoes using a closely guarded recipe, it’s the signature flavor that separates Lou’s from every other deep dish in Chicago. The trademarked Buttercrust is flaky and buttery, and the lean sausage patty is a perfect complement.
The Chicago Classic (sausage, Buttercrust, vine-ripened sauce) is the essential order. The Lou (spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, garlic) is a solid veggie option. And the Crustless — a low-carb creation using sausage as the base instead of dough — has quietly become a cult favorite. With 70+ locations, you’re never far from a Lou’s.
💡 Chicago Deep Dish Family Ties: The history of deep dish pizza is really the history of a few connected Chicago families. Rudy Malnati Sr. opened Pizzeria Uno. His son Lou opened Lou Malnati’s. Lou’s half-brother opened Pizano’s using a recipe from Rudy’s wife. Brian Tondryk’s grandfather Fred Bartoli co-founded Gino’s East — and Brian went on to open Bartoli’s. Robert Maleski of Milly’s Pizza was inspired in part by Burt Katz, who started Pequod’s. Deep dish pizza isn’t just a food tradition in Chicago — it’s a family tree.
Pequod’s Pizza
Ask locals — not tourists — where to get deep dish and Pequod’s comes up more than any other name. The reason is the crust. Baked in cast-iron pans, each pie develops a ring of caramelized mozzarella around the edges that’s crispy, almost burnt, and utterly addictive. Technically it’s pan-style (sauce goes under the toppings), but the result is a thick, golden pizza that converts skeptics into regulars.
Pies come in 7-inch and 10-inch sizes. The sausage is the classic order. Expect a 45–60 minute wait on busy nights — reservations release a month out and disappear fast. Walk-ins right at opening (4pm) are your best bet.
Giordano’s
Giordano’s specializes in stuffed pizza — similar to deep dish but with an extra layer of dough on top of the cheese and sauce, creating a true pie. Serving Chicagoans since 1974, it’s thick, filling, and unapologetically indulgent. My standard order: a Chicken Sausage Deep Dish with mushrooms and spinach — creamy, chewy mozzarella with perfectly balanced sauce.
They also make a parmesan crusted pan pizza and surprisingly excellent thin crust. Multiple locations make Giordano’s convenient for visitors, and the Rush Street spot in Gold Coast is my go-to.
💡 Insider Tip: Giordano’s hand-stretched extra thin crust is one of the best thin crusts in the city. Most tourists overlook it entirely — order it alongside a stuffed pie and compare.
My Pi Pizza
This Bucktown favorite quietly makes one of the best deep dish pies in the city. The crust is the standout — delightfully crispy on the outside and light, almost fluffy on the inside, unlike anyone else’s. The sauce is made from San Marzano tomatoes and paired with Wisconsin cheese. If you’re vegan, My Pi makes a dairy-free cheese version that’s legitimately good — not just “good for vegan” but genuinely worth ordering.
💡 Insider Tip: My Pi also makes an excellent thin crust that’s worth trying — don’t assume deep dish is the only move here.
Labriola Café & Restaurant
Rich Labriola was an artisan bread baker before he started making deep dish pizza — and the difference shows. The focaccia-style dough is double-proofed and lined with fresh mozzarella, producing a fluffy interior with a caramelized cheese crust that has serious crunch. The Burrata and Basil — mozzarella, provolone, pecorino, burrata, and fresh basil — is the standout order. Located on the Mag Mile, Labriola gives visitors an excellent deep dish option without the tourist-trap atmosphere of the bigger chains.
Find Your Favorite Deep Dish
Whether it’s caramelized crust at Pequod’s, the buttery Buttercrust at Lou Malnati’s, or a half-pound Pizza Pot Pie at Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder, Chicago’s deep dish scene is as deep as the pies themselves. Every spot on this list brings something different to the table — literally. The only way to settle the debate is to eat your way through it.
Where’s your favorite spot to grab a slice? Let me know in the comments — I’m always ready to argue about pizza.