Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Isn't Chicago style the type that is cut into squares?
I think traditionally cut pizza makes it easier to eat, and what I have noticed is I end up eating all the outer slices (since you have to order a whole pie) because I like the crust, and end up with a bunch of soggy middle pieces that end up going to waste.
Actually most people I know love the middle pieces over the outsides I like the outsides though, so we all get along great.
There are tons of places that do square cuts. That's more a sicilian thing than just Chicago. I found blogs on the subject and people said there's a lot of square cuts in upstate NY and around NJ and the rest of the midwest. Apparantly it's more what you find in traditional italian bakeries and pizza places out east as opposed to just pizza joints.
It's also called "party cut" because it's apparently easier to get at and less messy for groups of people.
I prefer squares to wedges - although I think that's mostly due to the fact that when you get wedge pizza in Chicago it means you're probably getting more mass-produced cheaper chain pizza like dominos or pizza hut as opposed to something of better quality ingredients. I do love "Chicago Pizza" though, the pizza by the slice places, and those are wedge cuts. Of course I do only eat that between 2am and 5am when I happen to stumble out of the bars and stop by on my walk home
As far as Chicago style - that's deep dish, nothing to do with squares.
Quote:
Chicago-style pizza is a deep-dish pizza style developed in Chicago. Chicago-style pizza has a buttery crust up to three inches tall at the edge, slightly higher than the large amounts of cheese and chunky tomato sauce, acting as a large bowl. The term also refers to "stuffed" pizza, another Chicago style. While in Chicago most pizzerias serve thin-crust pizza, generally in a style characteristic to the city, the term Chicago-style pizza is used to describe this deep-dish style of pizza.
There's also a Chicago-style thin crust, but the deep dish is more the "chicago style pizza"
Quote:
Thin-crust pizza
There is also a style of thin-crust pizza found in Chicago and throughout the rest of the Midwestern USA. The crust is thin and firm enough to have a noticeable crunch, unlike a New York-style pizza.
The crust is topped with a liberal quantity of Italian style tomato sauce, which usually has quite a lot of herbs or is highly spiced, and typically contains no visible chunks of tomato. Next, a layer of toppings is added, and finally a layer of mozzarella cheese. This pizza is cut into squares, also known as party cut or tavern cut, as opposed to a pie cut into wedges. However, the consistency of the crust and the quantity and choice of the tomato sauce and cheese are what separate this style from East Coast- and Roman-style pizzas as opposed to the cut, and it makes the pizza from most neighborhood pizzerias immediately distinguishable from that offered by national chains such as Papa John's or Pizza Hut. Aurelio's is a chain which specializes in this kind of pizza.
Last edited by Chicago60614; 12-16-2011 at 09:59 AM..
I googled it. Apparently it's just been tradition here for a long time. It's known as the "party cut" or the "sicilian cut". Historically a lot of people made pizza on rectangle pans, so the cut make more sense than trying to do random angles. It's the "party cut" because it's easier to get at if you're at a party and you can pick multiple smaller pieces as opposed to just 8 or so wedge cuts. I've been here 10 years, and while I now see that we do almost always do square cuts, it's not something I had thought about before. I actually like the square cuts better than wedge. More managable and less messy.
I like NYC style over Chicago style for certain - although honestly very few people who live in Chicago order Chicago style. Most of it is eaten by tourists. I've only had it a few times when we had work outings and we went to places by our office building downtown.
How do places like Burt's, Pequod's, My Pie, etc. stay in business then? There aren't any tourists going there. Transplants? Some, but not in Morton Grove.
And I've met countless Chicagoans who love Lou's deep dish. Is it an age thing (I'm 26)?
I don't see why Chicagoans should have to apologize for deep dish and stuffed pizza, saying only tourists eat it. The stuff makes a dynamite dinner.
How do places like Burt's, Pequod's, My Pie, etc. stay in business then? There aren't any tourists going there. Transplants? Some, but not in Morton Grove.
And I've met countless Chicagoans who love Lou's deep dish. Is it an age thing (I'm 26)?
I don't see why Chicagoans should have to apologize for deep dish and stuffed pizza, saying only tourists eat it. The stuff makes a dynamite dinner.
People still eat enough of them. It might be transplants? Who knows. I think Lou's is pretty overrated if you ask me, I don't see the love for it. I have seen this with many people from the suburbs liking Lou Malnatti's. To me, it is the blandest of all of the "main" ones like Uno, Giordano's, Gino's, Pizzano's, etc. I also like italian sausage on my pizza, but their "sausage layer" is really unappealing mouth feel wise and aesthetically, plus it isn't that flavorful, nor is the sauce or cheese they use.
Personally I like Bacino's or Art of Pizza for the stuffed style. If I were getting one of the "big guys" I would definitely do Giordano's.
Yeah, the chains are horrid -- even the local locations.
But even more infuriating is the Old Chicago chain based out of..... Denver. The same parent company is also responsible for the proliferation of the aptly-named Rock Bottom brewpub chain. That whole company needs to be punched in the throat.
I've eaten at Old Chicago, it was terrible. I've been to Rock Bottom also, it was OK, basically like drinking an inferior Sam Adams with a TGIFridays feel to the place, but I'd certainly prefer a local microbrewery over it. I didn't know either places were big chains when I first went. I don't like my food to have a mass production feel to it or service that feels overly commercialized.
I've eaten at Old Chicago, it was terrible. I've been to Rock Bottom also, it was OK, basically like drinking an inferior Sam Adams with a TGIFridays feel to the place, but I'd certainly prefer a local microbrewery over it. I didn't know either places were big chains when I first went. I don't like my food to have a mass production feel to it or service that feels overly commercialized.
I think the food at Rock Bottom is pretty good, so I can justify going there if I'm dragged along by someone else. Additionally, they've given some leeway for the brewmasters at each site to put a couple of their own creations up on the taps in addition to the "corporate" beer lineup; and the brewmaster at the River North location has come up with some pretty good stuff. But, the corporate beer recipes suck, and the whole idea of a national-chain brewpub just strikes me as a violation of the whole brewpub ethos. So I rarely find myself at RB when there are better options around.
As for the Old Chicago chain... if there were any justice in the world every single one of 'em would burn to the ground overnight tonight.
im born and raised in chicago, and i eat deep dish pizza (half spinach/pepperoni) at least 5-6 times out of the year..i love it and idk what anybody says
Isn't Chicago style the type that is cut into squares?
I think traditionally cut pizza makes it easier to eat, and what I have noticed is I end up eating all the outer slices (since you have to order a whole pie) because I like the crust, and end up with a bunch of soggy middle pieces that end up going to waste.
Isn't Chicago style the type that is cut into squares?
I think traditionally cut pizza makes it easier to eat, and what I have noticed is I end up eating all the outer slices (since you have to order a whole pie) because I like the crust, and end up with a bunch of soggy middle pieces that end up going to waste.
Have you ever considered asking the place to pie-cut it instead of party-cutting it when you order? Sometimes I do that depending on what I'm in the mood for. Other times, I prefer the crustless "inner" pieces.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I like the outsides though, so we all get along great.
The same parent company is also responsible for the proliferation of the aptly-named Rock Bottom brewpub chain. That whole company needs to be punched in the throat.
