In 1940, when this place opened, “special” meant sausage, green peppers, onions, and mushrooms baked in a gas-fired oven. It’s still terrific, especially on Saturday night, when a strolling trio lends a retro kind of seasoning. 4127 W. Lawrence Ave., 773-725-1812
A mile high with thick crust, mozzarella, tomato sauce, and impossibly sweet, juicy sausage, this pie fell right off Chicago’s deep-dish tree: Mama Louisa learned her craft at Pizzeria Due. 14025 S. Cicero Ave., Crestwood, 708-371-0950
There are more atmospheric pizzerias than this cavernous spot with booths and laminate tables, where a gruff and tatted cashier serves your $4 slice on a paper plate dropped unceremoniously on a tray. Doesn’t matter one bit, though, when said slice is what New York–style pizza is in its best moments: cheese melted to a … Read more
“Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.” The warning at the entrance to the underworld in The Divine Comedy may as well refer to your chances of finishing the Inferno, Dante’s 20-inch beast that re-creates the nine circles of hell, if not the nine circles of heartburn. The spicy peppers ringing it never overshadow the … Read more
Beer geek and chef Cleetus Friedman (Fountainhead) suggests the perfect brews for five kinds of pizza.
Why pizzerias pack their menus with endless variations of pizza ingredients is one of life’s great mysteries. But if you’re already in the carb-and-dairy zone, you might as well go all in. Our picks: Crunchy bruschetta at Elio Pizza on Fire Photo: Courtesy of Elio Pizza on Fire Doughy beignets at Jimmy’s Pizza Cafe Photo: … Read more
A cheap, good lunch is the white whale of River North, but this plastic-tableclothed joint pulls it off: a crispy-crusted 10-inch pie runs you $5.95, midday only. No wonder there’s always a line out the door. 405 N. Wabash Ave., 312-755-1255
The heel of the Italian boot, Puglia is best known for orecchiette, olive oil, and the pizzica, a zany folk dance that reportedly cures tarantula bites. The region’s pizza isn’t half as colorful. Unless you’re at Macello, a charming and oft-forgotten ristorante in an old slaughterhouse under the Green Line. The site is slightly less … Read more
Aurelio’s The legend of the old oven at the Homewood original does not travel well. aureliospizza.com Bar Toma Why, oh why, did this place opt out with kitschy and embarrassingly named pies? 110 E. Pearson St., River North, 312-266-3110 Pequod’s Maddeningly inconsistent. World-beater one night, and phoning it in the next. 2207 N. Clybourn Ave., Lincoln Park, 773-327-1512; … Read more
In the traditional sweet-salty union between peppers and sausage, salt often dominates. But Vince DiBattista rights the scales with caramelized onions. The creamy mozzarella and oak-seared crust pick no sides. 1245 Chicago Ave., Evanston, 847-475-2400
