Pequod’s Pizza

Though Chicago’s best-known pizza style is the famously thick “deep dish,” most Chicagoans only eat the calorie-dense version on special occasions, favoring considerably thinner “tavern-style” pizzas week in and out.

Founded in suburban Morton Grove, Pequod’s has won awards for its versions, famously battling for honors with their late founder Burt Katz, who left and started Burt’s Place as a competitor only blocks away. As a result, people line up for both pizzas in a largely residential suburban neighborhood.

Though Pequod’s describes its offerings as the “best pizza in the universe,” we prefer the deep dish at Lou Malnati’s, where the dough is more buttery and less bread-like, while Pequod’s tavern-style (here, with sausage and mushrooms) is more memorable for its stretchy cheese pulls than anything else. One plus: Pequod’s has two locations and is open during the week for lunch, while Burt’s is not.