Cafe Luigi

A fair amount has been written about Cafe Luigi, primarily in reference to where to get a good slice of NY-style pizza. I'm a big fan of their pizza so I figured they deserved their own thread. They've also been known to have good calzones, though I haven't yet tried them myself.

I've had some delivery problems in the past. On more than one occasion they've showed up an hour after they said they would over the phone. Today I called them mid-afternoon and said I'd like the pizza delivered at 6PM. They showed up at 5:50PM. So maybe plenty of advance notice is the secret to success.

Tonight, for the first time, I tried their Sicilian Style deep dish in addition to their standard Neapolitan style thin crust.



First the typical Neapolitan with mushrooms.





The pizza is nice and foldable. It has the right amount of cheese. Enough to create the classic pulling the cheese tableau, but also in balance with the bread and the sauce. The sauce is nice and bright with plenty of tomato flavor and hints of oregano. The crust is chewy and floppy yet stands on its own. The mushrooms are canned, enough said. When I'm in the mood for floppy pizza, Luigi's is my first choice, and they've never disappointed.

I can't quite say the same for their Sicilian-style deep dish.





The crust is thick, dry and very bready. The sauce and cheese are the same and pepperoni is standard issue, but the crust is just awful. It was hard to taste the toppings because there was so much dry bread in every bite. Never again.

Cafe Luigi
2548 North Clark
Chicago, IL 60614
(773) 404-0200

I used to enjoy Café Luigi when it opened about 15 years ago. Then I noticed a marked decline, especially in crust quality, and eventually stopped going. Here's my last slice, almost three years ago, that made me vow never to return. It reminded me more of frozen pizza than a proper NY slice.



Your pictures look a lot more like how I remember Luigi's from its early days. I guess it's time to give them another try.

I live a couple block from Luigi and I've always enjoyed their pizza when I've gone in there to get it by the slice. Always my first stop for pizza by the slice. But I, too, have typically had issues when I've ordered delivery. I once ordered at like 6:30pm and had a 9pm volleyball game to get to. When it hadn't arrived by 8:30, I finally called back and told them to forget it. Another time I ordered and it took 1:15. Again -- I'm maybe 2-3 blocks away. Given the quality of the pizza itself and their prices, it'd be my primary delivery pizza if they were dependable.