BTB wrote:Here are a few suggestions of mine after living for a few years in the south suburbs:

Ed & Joe's - 173rd Pl, Tinley Park (my favorite in so. suburbs)
Papa's - 160th & Cicero, Oak Forest (good ultra thin crust)
Nino's - Matteson on Rt. 30 & Chgo Hts on Halsted

Papa's Pizza in Oak Forest closing after 40 years.

Jefe wrote:Uh oh, I am about to spill one of my family (and the southwest suburb's) best kept secret: Louisa's pizza. Legend has it that Louisa was an original chef at Uno's. Sometime in the late seventies/ early eighties she defected and founded her outpost in Midlothian. She makes my favorite Chicago style pie- buttery crust with a hint of cornmeal that is caramelized around the edges, light on the cheese, homemade stewed tomato sauce, and the best house-made Italian sausage any where. My folks- vegetarians- love the fresh spinach. Not to be missed. Skip anything else on the menu and stick to the pies. The room has a great seventies chianti bottle charm and there is always at least three generations of Louisa's family present on any given night. Louisa is now a feisty ancient Italian grandmother who doesn't seem to spend much time in the kitchen, but makes rounds in the dining room.
It seems like you have your southside thin crust options covered, but for the best Chicago style:

Louisa's
14025 s Cicero
Midlothian

A quick zip on the Midlothian Turnpike (159th) will get you right there from Orland. Its fairly convenient from I-57 as well.

Trixie-pea and I had the pleasure of taking the Rock Island Metra line down to Midlothian with Mr. & Mrs. Jefe this week for some quality deep dish pizza. While I historically have not been a Sicilian-esque (very loosely meaning a bready style pizza of any sort) pie lover, I nonetheless found myself loving Louisa's pizza. It was far less greasy than your usual bear and had an almost perfect proportion of quality toppings to bread. The sausage here is also noteworthy. Although Jefe claimed that the crust this time was less carmelized than normal, for me its other many assets easily outshined that perceived shortcoming.

Louisa's original front room is classic South Side all the way with an enthusiastic clientele. Great vibe.

Certainly worth going out of your way for. Thanks for turning us on to this place, Eric.

^ Spillin the beans/ preaching the gospel there Mr. PIGGY.

The pies were great the other night, despite my noted lack of color on the edge of the crust. The packed room at 7:30 on a Thursday likely contributed the haste from oven to table. Regardless, it still had quite a lot of tooth. And yes, their nuanced, judicious hand at building these pies transcends the often heavy-handed nature of the dish

A few quick edits to my hyperbole above from back in '07. Louisa Degenero sadly passed in 2011, though the rest of the cast are still familiar faces– her daughter was running the FOH the other night. Also, their address is in Crestwood, not Midlothian.

Louisa's Pizza
14025 S Cicero Ave, Crestwood, IL 60445
(708) 371-0950

philw wrote:little franks
6355 w 79st
burbank,il.
708-598-8660

I 2nd the Frank's recommendation, but would put Phil's pizza ahead of it. Neither have dine-in.

Phil's Pizza
8932 Ridgeland Ave
Oak Lawn, IL 60453
(708) 599-4747

Deep dish pizza (and Chicago style thin crust pizza with homemade Italian sausage) is a passion for me, and in my very humble opinion, Louisa's in Crestwood is probably the best I've ever had. The late Louisa DeGenero worked as a waitress and a cook at Pizzeria Due for over 2 decades. Her adult daughter, who runs Louisa's today, also worked at Pizzeria Due for at least 10 years. Her crust is slightly buttery, but not as buttery as Lou Malnati's or Pizano's. It's a shallower/thinner version of Pizzeria Due, with some of the best toppings in America, and the world for that matter.

Louisa's tomatoes are excellent, and similar to Lou Malnati's in taste, but not quite as chunky as Lou Malnati's. The family grows their own Italian herbs and spices behind the restaurant in the summer months, which perfectly compliment Louisa's tomatoes. Her garlic sausage is made in house, and is some of the best sausage you'll ever have on a pizza of any style. It's very heavy on the garlic, with some cracked black pepper, and other Italian seasonings. Louisa's housemade sausage is every bit as good as the garlic sausage used at Burt's Place, the Anichini Brothers garlic sausage used at Pizano's and Pizzeria Uno/Due, and the garlic sausage from Peoria Meat Packing that supplies Lou Malnati's. And if you like onions, Louisa's uses the same style of long, carmelized onions that Pizzeria Uno/Due still uses, as opposed to the more square cut versions at Lou Malnati's and Pizano's, although I think Pizano's small, square cut onions are the best.

For appetizers, try the Chicken Vesuvio wings in garlic, olive oil, and white wine sauce. For dessert, they offer Italian ice served in a full lemon with the top cut off, and the lemon ice inside. If my memory serves me correctly, I think Louisa's uses some of the same black cast iron pans from the old days at Pizzeria Due, too.

The service is o.k.- not bad, but nothing great, either. They're just there when you need them. And that's good enough for me, especially when we're talking about some of the best deep dish pizza anywhere. We're talking destination pizza here, and one of Chicagoland's true culinary gems.

Good stuff.

For Chicago style thin crust, cut into squares, with homemade Italian sausage, I believe the two best places in the south suburbs are Villa Nova in Stickney and the former Joe's Italian Villa in Bridgeview. After many decades in the same location, Joe's Italian Villa is looking for a new home somewhere in the south suburbs. Hopefully, their owners will be letting everyone know very soon where their new location will be. Joe's Italian Villa has always been a favorite of Midway Airport employees, pilots, and many blue collar Chicago city workers. Their pizza is definitely more well done with a somewhat zesty sauce, but the real draw of Joe's Italian Villa is their homemade sausage. It's excellent, and some of the best in the business. It's heavy on the fennel and other Italian seasonings, and there are only two places that make a better sausage recipe: Villa Nova in Stickney and Pat's in Chicago up on Lincoln Ave. That's it. Joe's Italian Villa has always been a very family friendly place with many neighborhood locals, and a great place to catch whatever Chicago sporting event is on t.v.

Villa Nova in Stickney is, in my opinion, the best thin crust pizza with homemade Italian sausage anywhere. "The Nov's" sausage is similar to Pat's on Lincoln Ave., but Villa Nova uses larger chunks. And I've always loved Villa Nova's cheese, and how it blends with their tomato sauce. It's perfect, and it's everything that Chicago style thin crust pizza should be. To me, it's the gold standard. They've been in the same location since 1955, so I know they're doing something right. The Nov is as old school as you can get, and is definitely a throw back to another era, and another time in Chicagoland.

In terms of thin crust pizza, both Joe's Italian Villa and Villa Nova are both perfect examples of why we are all very lucky to be Chicagoans.

Not seeing any LTH love for a truly great tavern style Chicago pie over at Ricos Pizza in Lansing, IL.

Carry out and Delivery only. Get a Large Sausage well done and youll thank me later. If your in the Calumet City/Hammond area, this is a must have.

Ricos Pizza
3651 Ridge Rd
Lansing, IL 60438

AlexAC wrote:Not seeing any LTH love for a truly great tavern style Chicago pie over at Ricos Pizza in Lansing, IL.

Carry out and Delivery only. Get a Large Sausage well done and youll thank me later. If your in the Calumet City/Hammond area, this is a must have.

Ricos Pizza
3651 Ridge Rd
Lansing, IL 60438

Yep,and I've ordered it for years exactly the same way. Terrific thin crust.