We’re in Chicago!
First stop, Gino’s East Gino’s East. Actually Lou Malnati’s was our plan, but we got there and they weren’t open. The New Yorker in me didn’t realize that any pizza place could be closed for lunch on the weekdays.
So the whole place looks like 3-year-olds with crayons and chalk came through.
We were warned that their Deep Dish Pizza’s take about 40 minutes so we started with a salad and a sampler platter. The salad was simple, Iceberg and stuff. The dressings were awful, a blue cheese that tasted like nothing, and a raspberry that was a liquid Jolly Rancher.
Luckily, everything else was better. The sampler platter had so-so calamari (served with cocktail sauce) but the best mozzarella sticks and spinach sticks ever. They had a crunchy breading, were not at all oily, and good wholesome oozing cheese.
We’ve never had Spinach Sticks before but they’re just fortified Mozzarella Sticks. We loved them to pieces.
The pizza finally arrived (you can call ahead and have them start your pizza befroe you get there) and it was so climactic for me, having never tried Chicago pizza before.
We loved the sausage, which was tender large crumbles. We loved the sauce, which we thought was much more like pasta sauce than pizza sauce. We loved the cheese, the same one used in the mozzarella stick, fresh and milky. We didn’t really enjoy the crust. The yeast was a bit strong and it was too corn-y (haha), both in flavor and texture, resulting in a hard crust.
The meal was still great for $38 (including tax and tip). We were full for hours and couldn’t go for our planned ice cream stop. The most important thing I noticed was that everything was perfectly seasoned. Foods like these often get too salty and here they really restrained. We enjoyed our coma-inducing (we really had to nap) lunch but I don’t believe this is Chicago’s best.
That spinach stick looks good although it doesnt look like mozeralla inside.
I have to stop reading your blog at night cause i always want to get a snack afterwards.
I am so jealous. My boyfriend is originally from there and I have never been so I am going during the summer. I can’t wait to try deep dish pizza (it will be a first for me.)
Jeffrey, we’ll probably try to make that Spinach Stick.
Manger la ville, we hope our posts help you with your trip. =)
I agree that it isn’t Chicago’s best. Everyone sends tourists to that place, and I’ve never gotten over the watery dressing…plus I’m not a big fan of deep dish (I can hear the Chicagoans groaning all the way in WA)
Dr. Food, have you had NY pizza? I still think NY has the best pizza. It’s totally different though so I’m still hoping we’ll try a better deep dish place while we are here.
We’ll happily help test taste spinach sticks! Also, Stephen says he was disappointed by Lou Malnati’s last time in Chicago
OOh ooh those spinich sticks look sooo good. I’ve never been to Chicago, and I hope to one day visit, just to try their deep dish pizzas. And it’s so much cheaper!!! Have fun and eat lots!!
I like Giordano’s the best.
K&S;, I think we're going to try Lou Malnati's because Lon had Giordano's last time.
Wonders, we love traveling just to eat!
Asianmommy, Lon liked it last time he was in Chicago.
Yeah, I’ve had NY pizza quite a few times, and in fact, I’ll be attending a conference in NJ this spring where I’m hoping to find a good sausage pizza. I’ve always judged the quality of pizza with the quality of the meat in mind first, and I have to say that Lou Malnati’s, Uno’s, and Gino’s have never really hit the spot for me. Falco’s, Home Run Inn and Fat Ricky’s however… I’m a sucker for the Italian sausage a lot of Chicago pizza joints use since many of them use the kind with big, fat fennel seeds in them. And it never overpowers the pizza. Delish!
Dr. Food, I don’t know of any great pizza places in NJ. Will you be coming to NY? I know you’re not a big fan of deep dish but I feel like that’s the point of eating pizza here. For thin crust, I’ll have that back in NY.
wow. that is most definitely my type of pizza. note to self–visit chicago and eat pizza. 🙂
Yes, Giordano’s would definitely be my favorite. Their spinach pizza is to die for!
Grace, deep dish is definitely heavier than thin crust.
Kelly, Lon went to Giordano’s when he was in Chicago many years ago, so we didn’t go this time, now I’m sad we didn’t.