Giordano's

I have to start by saying I’m not the biggest fan of deep dish style pizza. As Jon Stewart says: “It’s not pizza…it’s a f’n casserole.” It’s good 2 or 3 times a year when I visit Chicago, but doesn’t hold a candle to NYC pizza. Super thick, heavy and so messy, you need a fork & knife to eat it. All that being said, this is a modern day take on old school Italian Easter Pie, a kind of stuffed pizza which is now just referred to as “deep dish.” Giordano’s has been serving up this style pizza since 1974 and has expanded to 70 locations across 10 states, including 50 locations in Illinois alone. Despite its status as a “chain restaurant,” they are considered 1 of the big 2 premier deep dish joints in Chicago. They start with a layer of soft and fluffy dough, then a mountain of shredded mozzarella, topped by another layer of dough, with a ladle of sauce placed atop the pie. Because the sauce isn’t layered, the guts of the pizza are extra cheesy, melty & extremely stringy. The cheese is almost overwhelming, lacking balance with the amount of sauce. The sauce is very sweet and has some great flavor, just need more of it spread throughout the pie to give it a more even taste. A sprinkle of Parmesan dust adds a little more flavor to a very good deep dish style pie. If you’ve never had this type of pizza, this is worth a try. It’s not bad, just incredibly heavy. And while this may be one of the best deep dish joints in Chicago, I still prefer the thin and delicious NYC style pizza.