Pat's Pizza: House-made Sausage and a Perfect Crust Make One Great Pizza
Posted by Daniel Zemans, September 10, 2008 at 1:45 PM
Daniel Zemans, our man in Chicago, checks in with another piece of intel on the Windy City pizza scene. Daniel also blogs about Chicagoland pizza with his friends on the Chicago Pizza Club blog. —The Mgmt.
Pat's Pizza
2204 North Lincoln Avenue, Chicago IL 60614 map); 773-248-0168; patspizza.info Pizza Style: Bar pizza, with an impossibly thin, flaky crust somewhere between cracker and phyllo in consistency
Pat's Pizza has been in Lakeview on Chicago's north side for nearly 60 years, most of which was spent across the street from the Brew & View, which, with double features for $5 and a full bar, could well be the best movie theater in the history of mankind. Pat's was opened in 1950 by Nick Pianetto Sr., who was looking to supplement his truck-driving income. Before long, the truck driving income was no longer necessary.
After staying at the original location (which also served as the Pianetto's house) for about 55 years, Pat's apparently got an offer it couldn't refuse from a condo development a couple years ago and moved about half a mile southwest. The location is new, nicer, and no longer BYOB, but the pizza is still the same, and that's a very good thing. And it's still in the same family, now run by Nick Pianetto Jr.
Pat's does offer pan pizza, which I've had in the past and which is very good, but the reason to visit Pat's, and the reason it makes every serious list of the best pizzerias in Chicago, is for what may well be the best bar pizza (i.e., thin crust) in town. Many Chicago pizza aficionados swear by Vito and Nick's (reviewed here on Slice), and they do make exceptional pies that I would gladly eat daily, but Pat's is at least as good.
The crust at Pat's is exceptional. The thinner-than-a-cracker crust has a texture that I've never seen on pizza elsewhere. It is both crisp and flaky, almost like a cross between a cracker and phyllo—if you try, you can actually peel apart a couple of buttery paper-thin layers. The crust takes three days to make, which is somehow necessary to prevent the yeast from rising (I'm not a baker, I'm just repeating the company line).
On top of the crust is a thin layer of well-seasoned, not-too-sweet and not-too-tangy sauce. I would prefer more sauce, but that's a minor gripe. Get yours topped with sausage—a generous sprinkling of fennel-filled chunks made in house. Topped with a relatively thick layer of perfectly browned mozzarella, it's a combination that makes Pat's a must-try on any serious pizza tour of Chicago.
I've never had Pat's, but from the look of it, it is very similiar to Pizza King in East Central Indiana, and one of the best pizza joints around here (in my humble opinion anyways). If you are ever north of Indianapolis, "ring the king!" The small chain is native to Muncie, but there are restaurants scattered throughout northern Indiana. There may be some in the southern part of the state that I don't know about, but I don't travel that way much.
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The crust at Pat's is exceptional. The thinner-than-a-cracker crust has a texture that I've never seen on pizza elsewhere. It is both crisp and flaky, almost like a cross between a cracker and phyllo—if you try, you can actually peel apart a couple of buttery paper-thin layers. The crust takes three days to make, which is somehow necessary to prevent the yeast from rising (I'm not a baker, I'm just repeating the company line). 
5 Comments:
I've never had Pat's, but from the look of it, it is very similiar to Pizza King in East Central Indiana, and one of the best pizza joints around here (in my humble opinion anyways). If you are ever north of Indianapolis, "ring the king!" The small chain is native to Muncie, but there are restaurants scattered throughout northern Indiana. There may be some in the southern part of the state that I don't know about, but I don't travel that way much.
hharnish05 at 3:48PM on 09/10/08
I have been raving about Pat's for years. Nobody ever took me seriously. Ha, sweet vindication.
coolname at 6:09PM on 09/10/08
This was my Monday Night Football pizza a few years back. Ah, nostalgia!
pizzaMePlease at 10:25PM on 09/10/08
That looks absolutely great. It does look like a midwest style pizza. Great.
Prairie at 10:35PM on 09/10/08
It a little pricy but truly the best thin crust I have had in Chicago.
Timothyrows at 4:54PM on 01/27/09