best deep dish pizza in chicago (2026)

tldr: out of 11 deep dish spots in chicago, my top 3 are pequod’s (caramelized cheese crust that changed my understanding of pizza, lincoln park, $22-28), lou malnati’s (the buttercrust classic, multiple locations, $22-26), and giordano’s (stuffed pizza with absurd cheese volume, $24-30). full reviews with prices and honest opinions below.

i have a pizza problem and chicago made it significantly worse. i spent four days eating deep dish across the city, hitting 11 spots from the tourist-heavy downtown flagships to the neighborhood joints that locals actually argue about. i gained what i estimate to be several pounds and i regret nothing.

here’s the thing about chicago deep dish - everyone has an opinion, and most of those opinions were formed at whichever place they visited first as a tourist. the reality is more nuanced. lou malnati’s, giordano’s, and pequod’s are the big three, but they’re making fundamentally different pizzas. comparing them is like comparing biryani styles across cities - technically the same dish, practically different food groups.

no one paid me for any of this. i bought every pizza at full price, waited in every line, and ate more cheese in four days than most people eat in a month. if you’re looking for other chicago guides, check out the temples in chicago guide for a different kind of pilgrimage.

the awards (my personal picks)

• best overall: pequod’s in lincoln park. the caramelized cheese crust is the single best bite of pizza in chicago. i’ll fight anyone on this.
• best classic deep dish: lou malnati’s. the buttercrust with sausage is the definitive chicago pizza experience. this is the one you send visitors to first.
• best stuffed pizza: giordano’s. if you want maximum cheese and don’t care about your arteries, this is the spot.
• best budget: pat’s pizza in lincoln park. a solid deep dish for $14-18 that doesn’t make you wait 50 minutes for a table.
• most overrated: uno pizzeria and grill (the original). historically significant, currently mediocre. the pizza tastes like it’s been coasting on reputation since 1943.
• best thin crust (yes, chicago has good thin crust): pat’s pizza. the tavern-style thin crust here is cut into squares, crispy, and honestly rivals the deep dish.
• best for groups: lou malnati’s. consistent quality, multiple sizes, and the wait is manageable at neighborhood locations.
• best late night: art of pizza in lakeview. open later than most deep dish spots and they sell by the slice, which is rare for deep dish.

the full list

the top tier (my regulars)

1. pequod’s pizza

lincoln park / $22-28 for a medium / 9.5/10

the first time i bit into a slice of pequod’s, i genuinely paused and looked at the pizza like it had personally offended every other pizza i’d ever eaten. the caramelized cheese crust is the thing. they press mozzarella against the edges of the pan so it melts, then burns slightly into this dark, crunchy, almost bitter ring of cheese that frames the entire pizza. it’s not a gimmick. it fundamentally changes the eating experience.

the pizza itself is a pan-style deep dish - not as deep as lou malnati’s, not stuffed like giordano’s. the dough is thick and bready, the sauce is tangy with visible chunks of tomato, and the cheese pull is dramatic without being performative. but that crust edge is where the magic lives. you get sweetness from the caramelized cheese, bitterness from the slight char, saltiness from the mozzarella, and crunch from the texture. it’s four flavor dimensions in every edge bite.

the wait on weekends is brutal - 45 minutes to an hour for a table, then another 35-40 minutes for the pizza to bake. go on a weekday if you can. the lincoln park location is the original and the one worth visiting. they don’t take reservations and they don’t apologize for the wait. annoying, but correct.

order the sausage. chicago deep dish sausage is a blanket of seasoned pork that covers the entire pizza in a single layer, not scattered bits. at pequod’s, the sausage gets those caramelized edges too.

what to order: medium pan pizza with sausage. do not skip the crust edges. that’s the whole point.

verdict: the best deep dish pizza in chicago. the caramelized crust is a genuine innovation and no one else does it this well. those people who say “deep dish isn’t real pizza” haven’t been to pequod’s.

2. lou malnati’s

multiple locations / $22-26 for a medium / 9/10

lou malnati’s is the deep dish everyone talks about first, and for once, the popular opinion is mostly right. the buttercrust is the signature - a flaky, buttery pastry-like base that has more in common with a pie crust than a bread dough. it’s rich without being heavy, crispy on the bottom, and tender when you bite through it.

the sauce is the other star. it’s chunky, barely cooked tomato with visible seeds and skin. it tastes like someone crushed san marzano tomatoes by hand five minutes ago. no sugar, no excessive seasoning, just tomato flavor that’s bright and acidic enough to cut through all the cheese and sausage.

the classic order is “the malnati chicago classic” - buttercrust, sausage, extra cheese, and their vine-ripened tomato sauce. the sausage is the full-layer style with fennel and black pepper that covers the entire pizza. the cheese goes directly on the dough, then sausage, then sauce on top. this layering means the bottom stays crispy while the top stays saucy.

the neighborhood locations (lincoln park, bucktown) are better than the downtown river north spot. less tourist crowd, shorter waits, same pizza. the river north location has a 30-45 minute wait on weekends and the dining room feels like a cafeteria. go to the lincoln park location instead.

what to order: the malnati chicago classic (buttercrust, sausage, extra cheese). small feeds one hungry person, medium feeds two normal people.

verdict: the gold standard of chicago deep dish. not the most exciting, not the most innovative, but the most consistently excellent. if you only eat one deep dish in chicago, this is the safe pick that won’t disappoint.

3. giordano’s

multiple locations / $24-30 for a medium / 8.5/10

giordano’s makes stuffed pizza, which is technically different from deep dish, and that distinction matters. there are two layers of dough with an absolutely obscene amount of mozzarella sealed between them. then tomato sauce goes on top of the upper crust. when you cut into it, the cheese stretches in thick, gooey strings that could span the table.

the cheese volume is the selling point and the limitation. there’s so much mozzarella in each slice that by the third piece, you’re in a dairy coma. the dough is softer and breadier than lou malnati’s buttercrust, more like a thick focaccia. the sauce on top is decent but unremarkable - it’s there to add moisture and acidity, not to be the star.

the spectacle factor is real though. when that first slice comes out and the cheese pulls in these thick golden ropes, you understand why this place is famous. it photographs better than any other deep dish in the city. instagram has been very kind to giordano’s.

the downtown locations are predictably crowded and slightly worse than the neighborhood spots. the dough tends to be slightly underbaked at high-volume locations. if you’re in the loop and this is your only option, it’s fine. but the original on 63rd street, if you can get there, is the better version.

what to order: medium stuffed pizza with sausage and green peppers. the peppers add a necessary freshness to cut through all that cheese.

verdict: the most photogenic deep dish in chicago. the cheese pull is legendary and the first two slices are excellent. by slice three, you’ll want something acidic to drink. this is the pizza equivalent of a sugar rush - incredible at first, overwhelming if you overdo it.

the solid middle

4. art of pizza

lakeview / $7-9 per slice / 8.5/10

art of pizza does something almost no other deep dish place does: they sell by the slice. this is a bigger deal than it sounds. deep dish usually requires committing to an entire pizza and a 35-minute wait. here, you walk in, point at a slice, and eat it in five minutes. the slices are pre-made and reheated, which sounds like a compromise, but the quality holds up surprisingly well.

the crust is sturdy enough to hold the weight of toppings without going soggy, and the sauce-to-cheese ratio is better balanced than giordano’s. a single slice is genuinely filling. two slices and a drink for $18-20 is the most efficient deep dish experience in the city.

they also make full pizzas to order if you want the fresh-from-the-oven experience. but the by-the-slice option is why this place matters. sometimes you just want one slice of deep dish at 9 pm without planning your evening around it.

what to order: a slice of sausage deep dish. add a slice of spinach if you want to feel slightly less guilty.

verdict: the best deep dish experience for solo travelers or anyone who doesn’t want to commit to a full pizza and a 40-minute wait.

5. pat’s pizza

lincoln park / $14-18 for a medium / 8/10

pat’s is the budget pick that doesn’t sacrifice quality. a medium deep dish here costs $14-18, which is $6-10 less than lou malnati’s or pequod’s. the crust is solid, the sauce is tangy, and the cheese is generous. it’s not going to change your life, but it’s a reliable deep dish at a fair price.

the real surprise at pat’s is the tavern-style thin crust pizza, which is the style chicagoans actually eat on a regular basis. cut into squares, cracker-thin, with a crispy edge and a good char on the bottom. if you’ve been eating nothing but deep dish and your stomach is begging for mercy, the thin crust at pat’s is the reset button.

what to order: medium deep dish with sausage for the deep dish experience, or the tavern-style thin crust with sausage and giardiniera for the local experience.

verdict: honest pizza at honest prices. the deep dish is solid and the thin crust is secretly the better order.

6. gino’s east

multiple locations / $22-28 for a medium / 7.5/10

gino’s east is famous for two things: deep dish pizza and the graffiti-covered walls where generations of tourists have carved their names. the walls are more interesting than the pizza, which tells you something.

the pizza is fine. the cornmeal crust has a distinctive crunch and the sausage is well-seasoned. but the sauce is sweeter than lou malnati’s and the cheese doesn’t have the same quality. it feels like a pizza designed to be inoffensive to the widest possible audience rather than a pizza with a strong point of view.

the downtown location on superior street is the iconic one with the best graffiti. the pizza at all locations is essentially identical.

what to order: the “meaty legend” deep dish if you’re going for it. the sausage patty is the best element.

verdict: a perfectly acceptable deep dish in a restaurant with great walls. you’re going for the atmosphere and the instagram opportunity, not for the best pizza in chicago.

the ones i’d skip (but you might not)

10. pizzeria due

river north / $20-26 for a medium / 6.5/10

pizzeria due is the sister restaurant to uno, opened in 1955 when uno got too crowded. the pizza is marginally better than uno’s current output, but that’s a low bar. the crust is thick and bready without much flavor, the sauce is generic, and the cheese is standard-issue mozzarella without any distinctive character. you’re paying for history, not quality.

verdict: if you’ve already been to lou malnati’s and pequod’s and need a third deep dish experience for some reason, this is fine. otherwise, skip.

11. uno pizzeria (the original)

river north / $22-28 for a medium / 6/10

this is where deep dish pizza was invented in 1943. that’s genuinely cool, and the building has historic charm. the pizza, however, has not kept up with the competition. the crust is dense and heavy, the sauce lacks brightness, and the overall experience feels like eating pizza at a chain restaurant - because uno is now a national chain, and the original location hasn’t maintained the quality that made it famous.

i respect what this place represents. i do not respect the pizza it currently serves.

what to order: if you must, the classic deep dish with sausage. set your expectations to “historically significant, culinarily average.”

verdict: go for the history, take a photo, then walk to lou malnati’s for actual dinner. those people who say “the original is always the best” are wrong in this case.

chicago deep dish tips

• deep dish takes 30-45 minutes to bake at every restaurant. this is physics, not poor service. order an appetizer or a drink while you wait. the italian salad at lou malnati’s is surprisingly good and fills the gap.
• go to neighborhood locations instead of downtown flagships. the pizza is the same or better, the waits are shorter, and the prices are identical. lincoln park has pequod’s, lou malnati’s, and pat’s all within a 10-minute drive.
• two slices of deep dish is a full meal for most people. order a small for one person, a medium for two. do not order a large for two unless you want leftovers for days.
• the sausage at chicago deep dish places is a full layer of seasoned pork, not scattered bits. always order it. this is the defining topping of chicago deep dish.
• chicago also has excellent tavern-style thin crust pizza cut into squares. if you’re tired of deep dish (it happens), try pat’s or any neighborhood pizza joint for the style chicagoans actually eat weekly.
• tipping is 18-20% at sit-down pizza spots. the servers are dealing with tables that occupy space for 45+ minutes waiting for pizza to bake. they earn it.
• if you’re short on time, art of pizza in lakeview sells deep dish by the slice. walk in, point, eat. the only fast deep dish experience in the city.
• winter in chicago is brutal. plan your pizza crawl between november and march when the cold makes hot, heavy, cheesy food feel less like indulgence and more like survival.

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