Lou Malnati's Pizzeria

Chicago-style deep-dish pizza since 1971.

(312) 828-9800

439 N Wells St (at W Hubbard St)
Chicago, IL 60610 41.8902 -87.6338

Get Map & Directions »

Neighborhoods: Near North Side, Central

Years in business

Established in 1971

Hours:

Mon-Thu: 11am-11pm

Fri-Sat: 11am-Midnight

Sun: Noon-9pm

Price:

$

Last updated 1.12.12

Category:

Restaurants, Food & Dining

Payment Methods:

American Express, Carte Blanche, Diners Club, Discover, Visa, MasterCard

Restaurant Special Features:

Local Favorite, Family-Friendly Dining, Private Rooms, Lunch Spot, Casual Date Spot, Outdoor Dining, Family Style Dining, Group Dining, Food Delivery, Dine At The Bar, Carry Out

General Info:

Open 7 Days

Cuisine:

Pizza, Italian

Smoking Permitted:

At the bar; Section

What People Are Saying About Lou Malnati's Pizzeria

Featured Review

Contributor

Contributor

When it comes to deep-dish pizza in Chicago, it all comes back to this institution that is so confident in its pies that it ships them overnight to most anywhere in the U.S. This old-school spot shines when it comes to the rich sauce, buttery crust and gooey cheese--and things only get better with the addition of pepperoni, spinach or mushrooms. Exposed brick walls are lined with sports paraphernalia, including a picture of a young, skinny Muhammad Ali. A dining room at the rear of the restaurant handles overflow with four-top tables and booths.

Editor's Tips

Save Money:
Until 2pm every day, get a personal sausage or pepperoni pizza plus soup or a house salad for about $6.
The Extras:
Not only does Lou's deliver all over Chicago, but it will FedEx pizza, Carson's ribs, Eli's Cheesecake and Vienna Beef hot dogs anywhere in the U.S. Call (800) 568-8646.
The Extras:
Need a Lou's fix and you're not in Chicago? They ship anywhere in the U.S. via UPS. Call the restaurant for more information.
Parking:
If you can't find metered parking, try the pay garage on Hubbard and Wells.
ambiance
100.0% positive
  1. Great atmosphere, good service!
  2. The services is great, the wines are great and the ambience is very nice.
  3. This place has the best of everything, the sevice is awesome, the food is fabulous, and it also has a family sports bar kinda atmosphere to it.
  4. The waiters and waitresses were extremely kind and the atmosphere was great.
  5. The place does have great atmosphere, but its not a big place, so expect to wait a while.
  6. The service and atmosphere are outstanding!
  7. The atmosphere could be improved, as it was pretty boring, although I guess the focus in a place like this should just be on great pizza.
  8. only wish they would franchise a location in Northwest Indiana so I wouldn't have to go so far for a good pizza.
  9. Friendly service, satifying food and wonderful atmosphere.
  10. The service, food and atmosphere are good overall.
  11. From downtown to the original location to mail order (yes, I said mail order) I have never in 25 years of eating Chicagoland pizza had anything other than a fabulous pie at Lou's.
  12. It has a great atmosphere and the pizza is incredible.
  13. the service has always been good every time im there the only thing i dont like is parking sometimes.
  14. remember going to the location in Lincolnwood for family get-togethers and even to this day and the different locations, Lou's never fails.
  15. The atmosphere is great and so is the wait staff.
  16. They have great parking.
  17. The atmosphere was nice too.
  18. Great pizza, but not the most fun place to eat.
  19. love their traditional pizzeria atmosphere, great tasting pizza and affordable prices.
dessert
90.90999603271484% positive
  1. late night in Evanston brought me to Lou's for the best pie I've had in years.
  2. Never a bad pie.
  3. Many have tried to copy or create something close to the Chicago style pizza, and I'm sorry there aint noway that anyone can stand up to Lou's creation of herbs and spices all rapped up in a big pizza pie!
  4. Nowhere on this earth I think that anyone can ever match this awesome creation of a pizza pie.
  5. And the Chocolate Chip Cookie dessert is a perfect ending to a perfect pizza.
  6. Before I begin I must say that pizza is one of my favorites and I enjoy all types of pizzas- especially a good deep dish pie.
  7. From downtown to the original location to mail order (yes, I said mail order) I have never in 25 years of eating Chicagoland pizza had anything other than a fabulous pie at Lou's.
  8. The sauce is metallic and that big wad of ground meat they throw on top of the sausage pie has a bizarre rubbery texture that overrides any flavor that might be present.
  9. Best to get all the info from Lou's while enjoying a great pie.
  10. The pizza is delicious, but save room for dessert!
  11. You will be thankful for an incredible pie with perfect crust.
drinks
100.0% positive
  1. GREAT pizza takes time to cook, and the conversations at the bar pass the time while you wait!
  2. call in my order, sit at the bar and chat with the nice bartender, and eat at the bar, and take the rest home.
  3. The services is great, the wines are great and the ambience is very nice.
  4. We went to the bar and were blown away by their extensive beer listing - all 8 of them, all lagers.
  5. I'd recommend Uno's or Due's if you have the 2 hours to wait at the bar and don't mind a table the size of a postage stamp (to seat 6), but you still lose out on Lou's Butter Crust.
  6. There is a wait, especially on Friday and Saturday nights, but there's a bar, friendly bartenders, and it's about 20-45 minutes.
  7. It's a great, casual spot for after-work drinks.
  8. Pizza was great - selection of beer more than adequate!
  9. We wanted to order an additional pizza to take home with us- and our waitress literally disappeared, my husband approached a woman by the bar to request to order our "take home" pizza, and was told "oh your server can handle that for you" to which he repl
  10. The pizza and beer were excellent.
  11. $6.95 for a huge drink, personal pizza and a side salad.
  12. This place has the best of everything, the sevice is awesome, the food is fabulous, and it also has a family sports bar kinda atmosphere to it.
food quality
86.30999565124512% positive
  1. All you have to do is throw it in the oven and you have great Chicago pizza!
  2. Perfect - great crust, great sauce, nice amount of cheese.
  3. excellent pizza-great recommendation-filled up-no left over-not oversold
  4. Both good, but Giordano's is the court jester to the Lou Malnati king of deep dish.
  5. The pizza here is AWESOME!
  6. While some of the places cited serve decent pizza, the smaller, independent places who make great pies were omitted, like Cafe Luigi--granted they make New York-style pizza in Chicago, but it's so delicious.
  7. Had a great time in a great pizza joint!
  8. Overall, we thought the pizza was mediocre.
  9. Fresh ingredients, tasty crust, lots of sauce - DELICIOUS!
  10. There's no place like Lou's for a good deep dish pizza.
  11. in response to the previous reviewer, of course you won't like lous Pizza,you have been easting pizza in N.Y. after folding it in half "like microwaved tombstone" Most N.Y. pizza s****, welcome to chicago,where we take pride in our cracker thin crust and
  12. If u want good pizza go to GINO'S
  13. pizza from lou's or ginos east are not as good as advertised
  14. only wish they would franchise a location in Northwest Indiana so I wouldn't have to go so far for a good pizza.
  15. Lou Malnati's deep dish pizza has been a family favorite for so many years we can't remember and our family has tried most.
  16. The part I really did not like was instead of a nice smooth pizza sauce on top, they use chunks of tomato for a sauce.
  17. For a really good stuffed pizza try Giordano's.
  18. great pizza with peppers
  19. My second best pizza in Chicago besides Baccinos in Lincoln Park they have the best stuffed sausage pizza.
  20. went there to have some good pizza and it didn't work out that way.
  21. This place has the best of everything, the sevice is awesome, the food is fabulous, and it also has a family sports bar kinda atmosphere to it.
  22. The pizzas are so AWESOME!
  23. Love the deep dish.
  24. this is the best pizza i have ever had, hands down.
  25. after reading the reviews on this site, my wife and i decided to try this place, and it became our new favorite chicago-style pizza place.
  26. bad pizza, bad service and too long of a wait.
  27. The pizza is smothered in delicious cheeses and topped with fresh tomatoes.
  28. Great pizza.
  29. The pizza- we got a large deep dish with buttercrust- was fantastic.
  30. But to my taste, Chicago style, deep dish, is by far the best.
  31. love this place, best pizza in the city!
  32. not my favorite pizza - crust not tender and flaky
  33. On a recent visit, friends convinced my husband and I that Lou Malnati's was the best Chicago-style pizza in town so we went there instead of to our usual place.
  34. The prices are resonable while having the best pizza in the city.
  35. Truly a magnificent restaurant with incredible food.
  36. As a pizza afficianado, I can truly say that Lou's is the best pizza in the city.
  37. but after all, the pizzas are good here.
  38. Personally, I prefer stuffed pizza to deep-dish, but the best of Chicago's deep dish pizzas are a classic.
  39. If you order a pizza in heaven this is probably where it will come from.
  40. Friendly service, satifying food and wonderful atmosphere.
  41. have ordered from here many times (always the deep dish) and the pizza is great to reheat as 2-3 slices is more than enough for a meal.
  42. The pizza is delicious, but save room for dessert!
  43. They say it takes 30 min to cook a pizza -that is not true; I believe that was a ploy to convince us to buy some disgusting apetizers.
  44. Lou's is by far the best pizza anywhere!
  45. Anyway, it is the best pizza anywhere around my neighborhood!
  46. Their pizza is wonderful and their salads are fresh and, most importantly, WATER FREE.
  47. Besides the fact they "THE BEST" pizza anywhere, they treat their customers with respect and service is top priority.
  48. It was my third visit to Chicago, and I am always being told how great Chicago pizza is.
  49. outstanding pizza, a sense of community with its locations and neighborhood involvement, and the diversity of its work force.
  50. Pizza is one of the best pizza's I've tried
  51. Bottom line, fresh ingredients = good food, Lou Malnati's = cheap ingredients & over rated food.
  52. great pizza!
  53. The crust was more tasteless and boring than a grocery brand of frozen pizza.
  54. juicy pizza
  55. Even their thin crust pizza is outstanding, compared to other local joints.
  56. Good food, NO PARKING!
  57. Without being overly dramatic, this is probably the worst pizza experience I've ever had considering expectation/price and the awful quality of the pizza.
  58. The deep dish pizza was good, but the thin crust pizza is not the Yale New Haven Pizza that I truely love.
  59. think Lou's is the BEST pizza I have ever had.
  60. grew up in Chicago with some of the best deep dish pizza in the world, so you can understand my disappointment when I am trying to find good pizza in the Washington D.C. area.
  61. Overall, good pizza and a worthwhile departure from other chains like Geno's, Uno's, Giordano's, Pizano's, etc.
  62. $6.95 for a huge drink, personal pizza and a side salad.
  63. love pizza and I love this place.
  64. In my opinion, Lou Malnati's Pizzeria has the best pizza in the world!
  65. The pizza was horrible from the sauce, to the tastless cheese, from the soggy bread.
  66. Like usualy though, with great pizza comes a great wait, but at a place like this you can understand why "perfection takes time.
  67. The best pizza in chi-town
  68. Lou's is the best pizza ever!
  69. am telling you if you are a big pizza fan this will become your favorite restaurant!
  70. I'm so glad to be able to travel to Chicago to get my fill of their fresh ingredients and amazing pizza crust.
  71. Lou's has one of the best deep dish pies around.
  72. If you like a layer of under-cook meat and tastless sauce, crust that hard and does not have substance, then you would like Lou's.
  73. best pizza
  74. Beer, Lou's pizza, and a Cubs game made for a great evening.
  75. they have great crust and real chunks of tomatoes on the pizza!
  76. Great pizza, but not the most fun place to eat.
  77. This pizza is sooo good you will want to order more and more!
  78. The pizza is good, but not great, and certainly not even close to the best that chicago has to offer.
  79. Crust was crunchy and chewy, tons of cheese and great sauce.
  80. wish I could get great pizza like Lou Manaltis down here in south florida but I guess I have to wait until I get home.
  81. The sauce is great, and the butter crust is to die for.
  82. We drive from Joliet to Elk Grove Village whenever we can just to enjoy the pizza.
  83. Can anyone explain to me how the Malnatti's pan pizza, served for only ten days a year at Taste of Chicago, can be so fantastic, so perfect
  84. Malnati's is probably the worst pizza I have ever had - the crust is like eating a thick piece of day old corn bread, and the sauce and cheese are blah, boring, and ordinary.
  85. This has to be the WORST pizza ever!
  86. This is the best darn pizza in the world.
  87. Even though it is not straight from the oven, it is still the best pizza ever.
  88. The pizza is always outstanding and is a true representation of Chicago-style pizza.
  89. This is the best thin-crust pizza I have ever had.
  90. know nobody who was born and raised in Chicago that likes Malnati's, or Gino's East pizza (the worst pizza ever).
  91. The food is terrific no doubt about it but the service is very poor, if they changed the service I would agree Lou's is number one in Chicago.
  92. This is the best pizza I've ever had in my life!
  93. the pizza is really bad, every time its dry and to hard to even bite in to or cut.
  94. You should try "The Lou", the perfect Chicago pizza!
  95. It is by far the best pizza my wife or I have ever had.
  96. Not the best pizza in Chicago, but still pretty good.
  97. Not great pizza
  98. This works in NY where rushing the pizza means only the difference between a perfect slightly blackened crust and done, but for Lou's this rude rushing means the difference between perfect and soggy.
  99. Lou Malnati's is simply the best pizza place in the Chicagoland area.
  100. The food and Drinks are great.
  101. Last but not least the famous malnati pasta was dry, bland and overall bad!
  102. My wife and I had a medium "the Lou" pizza which was good, but by the time i took my second slice, the bottom of the pizza was soggy!
  103. By far, it's the best stuffed pizza we've ever had.
  104. Their pan pizza is the best in the city - hands down!
  105. The large fresh tomatoes are heavenly.
  106. Over all I think they still serve the best "Chicago" style pizza in town.
  107. Decent thick-crust pizza but not consistent.
  108. certainly agree that Lou Malnati's is the #1 pizza not just in the Chicago area, but in the "good 'ole whole United States of America"!
  109. The basic patty sausage pizza is probably the tastiest thing on the menu, but appetizers are good too.
  110. Malnati's pizza is filling- so it might be good if youre a local looking for some convenient grub as it is reasonably priced.
  111. Awesome pizza, bad service
  112. The crust on the bottom was totally soggy, and the crust around the edges was totally greasy and the consistency of stale corn bread or else something like polenta.
  113. Just like the other Chicago leaders they turn out consistently tasty pizza even though they have many locations.
  114. This is Chicago, the best pizza is not some restaurant for $10.00 a slice, its the .99 cent slices that kick ass!
  115. Always fresh, but never as good as it is in Chi-Town.
  116. From downtown to the original location to mail order (yes, I said mail order) I have never in 25 years of eating Chicagoland pizza had anything other than a fabulous pie at Lou's.
  117. The pizza and beer were excellent.
  118. think Lou Malnati's is "The Best" Chicago pizza!
  119. Please - go to those mom & pop, small neighbor pizza joints and taste what a real pizza tastes like!
  120. The sauce is metallic and that big wad of ground meat they throw on top of the sausage pie has a bizarre rubbery texture that overrides any flavor that might be present.
  121. this is the best pizza in chicago, step back uno and ginos
  122. One of the best pizza places in Chicago.
  123. Thats how great the pizza really is.
  124. liked the pizza at the taste of chicago.
  125. had a memorable experience at Lou Malnati's, not only was the pizza the best I have ever eaten,but the service was excellent.
  126. ate there with another person and we both thought it was the worst food we had ever had.
  127. Lou Malnati's Pizzeria serves the very best pizza, with the finest ingredients, more cheese and sausage, than any other pizzeria.
  128. Unfortunately the service was poor and the pizza tasted like it was mass produced.
  129. I've tried them all--many times--and Lou's is simply the best Chicago style pizza in town.
  130. Being a Chicagoan my whole life, I know good pizza.
  131. Nice piled on sauce and toppings and the buttery crust makes for a full meal of it's own.
  132. have traveled throughout the US and have eaten in many restuarants, only to come back to Chicago's own and deem it the best pizza anywhere.
  133. The pizza did have a great taste and good combination of flavors (romano cheese, spinach, mushrooms, fresh tomatoes).
  134. It's not the worst pizza I've ever eaten, but it sure doesn't deserve the accolades it gets.
  135. The Malnati salad was also great!
  136. can say lots of good things about the pizza at Lou Malnati's: ingredients are fresh, perfect texture, great sauce, and you can take a fresh one home and cook it yourself.
  137. Lou Malnati's is the best pizza on earth.
  138. Absolutely the worst pizza we have ever had.
  139. We have enjoyed Lou Malnati's pizza from the Lincolnwood restaurant for many years.
  140. We really enjoyed our meal here!
  141. It's deep dish with wonderful crust and large, delicious tomatoes.
  142. As a bellman years ago in Newport Beach, Ca, I used to ask everyone from Chicago who made the best pizza in Chicago?
  143. The sausage is unique and tasty.
  144. Lou Malnati's has the best pizza by far!
  145. is the best pizza also their lowfat cheese is good
  146. just checked Chicago's rating to see if you had any clue if you knew good pizza from a hole in the ground, and imagine my suprise to find you gave the only answer a true Chicago Pizza fan could give.
  147. However, this is the BEST deep dish Chicago pizza in Chicago.
  148. The pizza is phenomenally delicious (though heavily spiced - garlic lovers are in heaven with many menu selections), and truly a meal of themselves.
  149. Nowhere on this earth I think that anyone can ever match this awesome creation of a pizza pie.
  150. Probably the best pizza place in Chicago.
  151. Horrible pizza
  152. The sauce is good but does not pop.
  153. If you are in the Chicago area and want the best Chicago deep dish pizza, go to Malnati's!
  154. have grown up on Lou's and let me just say, if you want a fabulous pizza, you MUST go to Lou's.
  155. Every time go back home to Chicago for a visit, I make sure I call them up to order a half baked pizza so that I can eat it back in Indy.
  156. We wanted to order an additional pizza to take home with us- and our waitress literally disappeared, my husband approached a woman by the bar to request to order our "take home" pizza, and was told "oh your server can handle that for you" to which he repl
  157. Great crust, awesome sausage pizza.
  158. But all in all, if you wanna taste the best pizza in the world you gotta go with Lou's.
  159. Chicago for visitors means finding great pizza places !
  160. good salad, too.
  161. lived in Chicago for 41 years and "I KNOW AND LOVE PIZZA" and this is NOT the best pizza!
  162. Lou is the best pizza in chicago you must go there
  163. My favorite pizza for over 25 years.
  164. can't wait to get back to Chicago and have some great pizza with my family.
  165. pizza is consistently awesome there, and across locations so you can be sure to have great food.
  166. love the pizza, as well as the friendly staff and would recommend them to anyone!
  167. The deep dish - especially - Lou's special - is delicious.
  168. This pizza is terrible.
  169. My husband and I had heard how great the pizza was at Lou's, we were told we "just had to try it" before we left Chicago.
  170. This pizza is not as good as everyone thinks it is.
  171. Naturally, while on vacation in Chicago, I sought out the most authentic deep dish- something that I could remember and crave when I got back home.
  172. GREAT pizza takes time to cook, and the conversations at the bar pass the time while you wait!
  173. Pre-order your pizza to save time, or just order some cubes and a Lou's Salad.
  174. My test for good pizza is whether or not you can re-heat it with out losing too much of it's original pizzazz!
  175. Aside from the crust, the sausage, the sauce and almost everything about the pizza was awful.
  176. Many have tried to copy or create something close to the Chicago style pizza, and I'm sorry there aint noway that anyone can stand up to Lou's creation of herbs and spices all rapped up in a big pizza pie!
  177. Best pizza you can get
  178. think it's because the sauce is tasty and the crust is crunchy, but not messy.
  179. The service, food and atmosphere are good overall.
  180. Salad is delicious.
  181. liked Giordanos better for the real cheesy pizza, but I definitely liked the crust that came here.
  182. The different fresh ingredients are excellent.
  183. We often times will order a pizza for pick up on the way home from work, since we do not live near a Lou Malnati's.
  184. There is good pizza anywhere, but if you want GREAT pizza, stay away from Malnati's.
  185. We now have pizza fed-ex'd to us in Florida so we can enjoy terrific Chicago-style pizza!
  186. They have the best pizza around and Im so happy they are finally getting recognize for it.
  187. The pizza is great, though.
  188. Try a neighborhood pizza parlor for good pizza, not an assembly line.
  189. The atmosphere could be improved, as it was pretty boring, although I guess the focus in a place like this should just be on great pizza.
  190. There is authentic Italian sausage in every bite.
  191. The deep dish pepperoni was awful - the crust was not good at all, the sauce non-descript and pepperoni was disgusting.
  192. The trendy North Ave/Damen corrider is home to PIECE, who makes one of the best pizzas in Chicago.
  193. My husband and I agree that this was the best pizza we have ever had.
  194. love sausage pizza, especially deep dish.
  195. Try their thin crust cheese pizza topped with giardiniera and fresh spinach (enhanced with garlic, basil and onion), its the best pizza anywhere!
  196. overrated not true chicago pizza
  197. Something always goes wrong, but I still go back because the pizza is so good.
  198. Knocks out that big chain pizza and thin crust with an almost sly sucker punch.
  199. Service was bad and the food was not outstanding.
  200. I'd recommend the pepperoni, sausage and green peppers for a truly awesome meal!
  201. And the Chocolate Chip Cookie dessert is a perfect ending to a perfect pizza.
  202. am not a great pizza lover but Malnati's is in a class by itself-
  203. the best pizza
  204. But when I arrived at Chicago, that was the most memorable pizza that I ever tasted.
  205. love their traditional pizzeria atmosphere, great tasting pizza and affordable prices.
  206. The tomato sauce is much too gloppy with big chunks.
  207. Lou is very thin and if you like meats, they are short on the toppings.
  208. Before I begin I must say that pizza is one of my favorites and I enjoy all types of pizzas- especially a good deep dish pie.
  209. Enjoy a cocktail and salad and let your pizza do it's thing.
  210. If you have never had authentic Chicago deep dish pizza, this is the one to try.
  211. Portions were huge, and that's coming from a couple with a LARGE appetite, especially for pizza.
  212. This is my all-time favorite deep dish pizza.
  213. N Ashland, and Pats on lincoln are the best around, if this doesen't please you,then go to jewel or dominics and pick up the best N.Y. pizza money can buy in the freezer section.
  214. Have tried all locations, and they are consistant on one thing, their overrated, tasteless, out of the can sauce and wierd tasting sausage.
  215. The pizza Lou is famous for is most outstanding!
  216. Find a place that has the time (and less greed) to make a great pizza that's actually made fresh at some point in the day.
  217. You have dozens of great pizza places to eat at it would be hard to say that Lou Malnati's is "The Best.
  218. We had noticed over the last year that both the deep dish pepperoni and the thin crust deluxe - what we normally order - were not near as tasty as in the past.
  219. Over all the food was good.
  220. went it was a bad day and the service was horrible and i had to wait over two hours for my pizza and the waiter was very rude.
  221. It has a great atmosphere and the pizza is incredible.
  222. The pizza was great.
  223. This is consistently good pizza, and I've had it at several of their locations.
  224. This is the best pizza I have ever tasted and I've eaten a LOT of pizza!
  225. The biggest difference between the two is that Geno's has a better sauce, ie: Sweeter, with a little spice; on the other hand Lou's has the best toppings, ie: sausage was great and the the crust was amazing.
  226. don't know who rated Malnati's the best pizza in Chicago - but obviously they have never eaten at the many neighborhood pizza joints around chicago that serve up some good real Chicago style pizza (thin crust, spicy sauce, cut in squares).
  227. Eating at Lou Malnati's was a great experience and the pizza was delicious!
  228. The best pizza sauce tops all recmmendations of Lou's.
  229. Now there pizza is nothing more than mediocre.
  230. Lou Malnati's has been my favorite pizza since I was a kid.
  231. Lou Malnati's pizza is pretty good, but the crust is too dense and dry.
  232. am not a fan of the thick crust and have not been able to find a decent thin crust pizza in this town.
  233. The sauce was outstanding and the crust was nice and buttery.
  234. The only thing i would change about Lou's pizza is to use Due's old tomato sauce recipe (richer flavor) instead of the whole tomatoes tend to be more watered down and flavor is less rich.
  235. So be patient and courteous and your pizza will be perfect.
  236. Lou Malnati's have the best pizza in the Chicago land area.
  237. malnati's is not a bad pizza,but their making money can't argue with success.
  238. This is hands down the best pizza anywhere I've had so far.
  239. This is by far the best deep dish in Chicago!
  240. -nasty tasting pizza sauce
  241. However, I will say that if I have family/friends visiting from out of town who want to have "famous chicago style pizza", I will always take them to Giordano's.
  242. The toppings are great -- crushed tomatoes, fresh Italian sausage and veggies, but the greasy crust tends to overwhelm.
  243. The sauce is thick, the crust is superb, and the sausage screams CHICAGO!
  244. Nothing about the experience made me feel Lou's was authentic pizza, especially since I am of Italian ancestry.
  245. This is not pizza,it is more like Alpo on dry dough.
  246. lou's is the best pizza in the WORLD!
  247. The best pizza in the Chicago area - particularly their pan pizza with buttercrust.
  248. Awesome pizza
  249. had heard it was the best pizza in town.
  250. Lou's has some of the best pizza I ever tasted!
  251. The pizza is consistently delicious.
  252. Best Chicago pizza in town
  253. Their sauce is fantastic with real chunks of juicy tomatos and the perfect blend of seasonings.
  254. they have some really good pizza.
  255. They advised me to order the pizza 'well done' next time, and to ask for it 'uncut,' and seemed to think that the pizza was normal and i was just being difficult.
  256. It is the best place for pizza in the city!
  257. This is definately the BEST pizza in Chicago!
  258. Without a doubt, Lou Malnati's deep dish pizza with sausage is the best to be had.
  259. only suburbanites thinks lous pizza is great.
  260. That said we were excited to try this "great" pizza and we were very disappointed.
  261. Deep dish pizza was excellent and the service was even better.
  262. Whiole I love the pizza and everything about the place there is only one better.
  263. The crust is tasty and crisp, the tomato sauce is a perfect blend of spices and not overwhelming, the cheese is just stringy enough, and the sausage is plentiful.
  264. Not the best pizza in Chicago by far - check out Gino's, Giordano's, for better.
  265. The Deep Dish Deluxe pizza was awesome.
  266. Deep dish pizza is the best.
  267. Must order Deep dish with BUTTER CRUST.
  268. You still can't beat the best deep-dish in the city or burbs
  269. To see this place rated high makes me know that the people who rated this restaurant as good did not know food at all.
menu variety
100.0% positive
  1. Pizza was great - selection of beer more than adequate!
  2. We went to the bar and were blown away by their extensive beer listing - all 8 of them, all lagers.
  3. The pizza is phenomenally delicious (though heavily spiced - garlic lovers are in heaven with many menu selections), and truly a meal of themselves.
  4. The basic patty sausage pizza is probably the tastiest thing on the menu, but appetizers are good too.
overall
100.0% positive
  1. It is the best place for pizza in the city!
  2. Probably the best pizza place in Chicago.
  3. nice little place to hang out with friends.
  4. This is Chicago, the best pizza is not some restaurant for $10.00 a slice, its the .99 cent slices that kick ass!
  5. Lou Malnati's is simply the best pizza place in the Chicagoland area.
  6. Like usualy though, with great pizza comes a great wait, but at a place like this you can understand why "perfection takes time.
  7. On a recent visit, friends convinced my husband and I that Lou Malnati's was the best Chicago-style pizza in town so we went there instead of to our usual place.
  8. great restaurant
  9. This is a great place for people that live in the neighborhood.
  10. The place does have great atmosphere, but its not a big place, so expect to wait a while.
  11. am telling you if you are a big pizza fan this will become your favorite restaurant!
return potential
100.0% positive
  1. Something always goes wrong, but I still go back because the pizza is so good.
  2. have traveled throughout the US and have eaten in many restuarants, only to come back to Chicago's own and deem it the best pizza anywhere.
  3. love this place and will come here again and again.
  4. Every time go back home to Chicago for a visit, I make sure I call them up to order a half baked pizza so that I can eat it back in Indy.
service
72.6200008392334% positive
  1. This is a great place for people that live in the neighborhood.
  2. place to eat with a big group of people or on a date.
  3. The atmosphere is great and so is the wait staff.
  4. went it was a bad day and the service was horrible and i had to wait over two hours for my pizza and the waiter was very rude.
  5. As for the recent negative reviews, I suggest people page back and look at the 12/30/06 review.
  6. For the taste and the service, the price you pay is absolutely ridiculous.
  7. service was extremely slow.
  8. Friendly service, satifying food and wonderful atmosphere.
  9. Unfortunately the service was poor and the pizza tasted like it was mass produced.
  10. There is a wait, especially on Friday and Saturday nights, but there's a bar, friendly bartenders, and it's about 20-45 minutes.
  11. This works in NY where rushing the pizza means only the difference between a perfect slightly blackened crust and done, but for Lou's this rude rushing means the difference between perfect and soggy.
  12. The waiter mumbled and the hostess was aesthetically displeasing!
  13. Great atmosphere, good service!
  14. call in my order, sit at the bar and chat with the nice bartender, and eat at the bar, and take the rest home.
  15. The wait staff is friendly.
  16. Service is mostly friendly and prompt.
  17. The food is terrific no doubt about it but the service is very poor, if they changed the service I would agree Lou's is number one in Chicago.
  18. When you eat there, the service is friendly and attentive.
  19. To see this place rated high makes me know that the people who rated this restaurant as good did not know food at all.
  20. The service, food and atmosphere are good overall.
  21. Pat and Bill are great bartenders, and they always make sure my order gets in fast!
  22. The service and atmosphere are outstanding!
  23. Deep dish pizza was excellent and the service was even better.
  24. Besides the fact they "THE BEST" pizza anywhere, they treat their customers with respect and service is top priority.
  25. love the pizza, as well as the friendly staff and would recommend them to anyone!
  26. Sauce is awful, service stinks, and crust is soggy.
  27. Pizza was pretty good, but service made it not worth it
  28. Unlike some of the other reviewers, we had no problems with rude service which is always nice.
  29. bad pizza, bad service and too long of a wait.
  30. Awesome pizza, bad service
  31. Totally recommend that as the way to go because the service at the restaurant I go to always is below par.
  32. had a memorable experience at Lou Malnati's, not only was the pizza the best I have ever eaten,but the service was excellent.
  33. The waiters and waitresses were extremely kind and the atmosphere was great.
  34. Now that's friendly service!
  35. The tomatoes are real, not canned runny stuff, and the service is great.
  36. Service was friendly from start to finish, including hostess, cashier, busboy and a great server.
  37. the service has always been good every time im there the only thing i dont like is parking sometimes.
  38. I've also had terrible service there.
  39. The service is outstanding and the company is politically correct.
  40. We wanted to order an additional pizza to take home with us- and our waitress literally disappeared, my husband approached a woman by the bar to request to order our "take home" pizza, and was told "oh your server can handle that for you" to which he repl
  41. Friendly service - an overlooked order was remedied quickly and discounted well!
  42. very slow service
value
81.82000160217285% positive
  1. $6.95 for a huge drink, personal pizza and a side salad.
  2. Portions were huge, and that's coming from a couple with a LARGE appetite, especially for pizza.
  3. love their traditional pizzeria atmosphere, great tasting pizza and affordable prices.
  4. N Ashland, and Pats on lincoln are the best around, if this doesen't please you,then go to jewel or dominics and pick up the best N.Y. pizza money can buy in the freezer section.
  5. Pizza was pretty good, but service made it not worth it
  6. For the taste and the service, the price you pay is absolutely ridiculous.
  7. Bottom line, fresh ingredients = good food, Lou Malnati's = cheap ingredients & over rated food.
  8. The prices are resonable while having the best pizza in the city.
  9. malnati's is not a bad pizza,but their making money can't argue with success.
  10. Also, they make great salads and lunch deals.
  11. Without being overly dramatic, this is probably the worst pizza experience I've ever had considering expectation/price and the awful quality of the pizza.
wait time
25.0% positive
  1. bad pizza, bad service and too long of a wait.
  2. very slow service
  3. There is a wait, especially on Friday and Saturday nights, but there's a bar, friendly bartenders, and it's about 20-45 minutes.
  4. service was extremely slow.
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

03/01/12

Love this place

by JaneMcNair

Lou Malnati's Pizzaeria is a great place together with you friends. This place is good for conversation. The quality of food is always at its standard. The service is always great.

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

09/07/11

Pizza is so good here!

by CherryPickerSuperman

I love Lou Malnati's pizza. It is SO good. You will wish you could eat a whole pie if possible. Pass the word on this place, great food.

4 Star Rating: Recommended

08/15/11

Best All Around Pizza

by MJ113355

Like the headline says - best all around pizza in the city!

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

08/15/11

Best pizza in Chicago

by Rebecca Solis

This pizzeria is by far the best in Chicago. The tomatoes are fresh, the calamari is fried to perfection. The wait time is super long, but totally worth the wait. I order for pick up after waiting over one hour!!

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

06/05/11

Awesome!

by PhilDan

Simply my favorite pizza place. My friends and I always hang out at Lou Malnati's every Friday night to chow down on our favorite pizza!

The Details on Lou Malnati's Pizzeria

Place Categories:

  • best pizza
  • great butter crust
  • friendly service
  • worst lous pizza
  • best pizza lou
  • great sauce
  • great traditional pizzeria atmosphere
  • love little place
  • best lou malnati
  • great side salad
  • best deep dish pizza
  • best chicago deep dish
  • best pizza pie
  • fresh different fresh ingredients
  • great deep dish chicago pizza
  • fantastic large lou malnatis cheese
  • bad everything
  • great taste
  • fresh large fresh tomatoes
  • best real chicago style pizza
  • more tasteless genos crust
  • tasteless sausage
  • favorite restaurant
  • good food
  • great italian sausage

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