Chicago Style vs. New York Style…
ByI don’t know if any of you saw this article on the Huffington Post’s Chicago site: Did Michelle Obama Call NY Pizza ‘The Best’? The Pizza War Continues. There seems to be some question over whether Michelle Obama dissed Chicago-style pizza in favor of New York-style pizza, or if she just complimented it. In any case, the war over which pizza is best has been waging between these two culinary metropolises for some time. There’s a poll included, and at the moment, looks like NYC is winning by a hair. Come on, Chicago peeps–show your loyalty and vote!
Actually, I love New York-style pizza. It helped me survive graduate school, since there’s pretty much nothing else in Manhattan as poor student can afford to eat (except maybe hot dogs at Gray’s Papaya, and fast food chains). It’s huge, you fold it over, and you sit on a stool or stand and eat it. I don’t have a favorite. I’m not even sure I ever knew the names of the little pizza places that I frequented on the Upper West Side. I just knew where they were.
Ah, but having said that, I’ve lived in Chicago now for 15 years. And the big, stuffed, Chicago-style pizza is not something I can eat every day, like I did with NYC pizza, but it is pretty delicious. That crispy, buttery crust! The chunky, hearty sauce! The flavorful cheese! And still two hours to go before lunch…
My personal favorite Chicago pizza place comes from the Malnati family, which, depending on who you ask, invented Chicago-style pizza (Rudy Malnati was the original pizza chef at Pizzeria Uno’s in 1943; the Chicago Daily News credited him with the invention in 1956). Gino’s West, Giordano’s, Pizzeria Uno, Pizzeria Duo and other Chicago hotspots all offer really yummy pies, but every resident of Chi-town has his or her favorite, and mine is Pizano’s. I love the crispy texture of the crust and the ratio of cheese to sauce, and–if I sound like I’m getting technical, that’s because you’ve got to learn to talk that way if you’re comparing Chicago-style pizzas. They’ve all got their own personalities, you see. And you have to get sausage if you want the full experience, but I have no idea why that is.
I’d also like to point out there is a thin-crust Chicago style as well, which has a crispy crust (unlike the NYC pies). I think a wonderful example of this type can be found at the local chain called Barnaby’s, a low-key family restaurant that features a number of locations around the Chicago area, including Schaumburg, Niles and Northbrook. I honestly have no idea how many of these there are because they’re independently owned and operated, so there’s no central listing. But if you see that little brown building with the distinctive sign, turn in immediately.You just have to discover them as you go.
And that’s my two cents in the pizza wars. I have one thing to add, and that is, NYC pizza certainly wins on speed. You have to have at least an hour available to eat a Chicago-style pizza, since it takes 20-25 minutes for them to cook.
I’d love to hear other people’s opinions on the NYC-Chicago pizza wars, and on which Chicago pizza is best.
Barnaby’s (the one I go to)
960 Skokie Blvd., Northbrook
(847) 498-3900
Pizano’s
Pizano’s State Street
864 N. State St., Chicago
(312) 751-1766
Pizano’s Glenview
1808 N. Waukegan Rd., Glenview
(847) 486-1777
Pizano’s Pizza & Pasta
61 E. Madison Street, Chicago
(312) 236-1777
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HCN
