Pizza at Pequod's

Last Sunday, my family was in the mood for some good ole 'za. While I have spent my whole life in the Chicagoland area and have tried numerous deep dish pizzas, I have never been to Pequod's (2207 N. Clybourn Ave). However, I have seen it referenced on several lists as the best deep dish in Chicago, including Serious Eats. One thing you should know about me: while I am a DIEHARD White Sox fan (the Cubs suck) and often play into many of the Chicago "rivalries," I have never really landed on a favorite deep dish pizza that I am super passionate about. I love deep dish - and I've never really had any BAD deep dish. I love Giordano's, I love Lou Malnati's, I love Connie's, you name it. However, multiple sources have said that Pequod's is the hidden gem of Chicago. Everyone seems to rave about the caramelized crush on their pan deep dish, so I decided it was finally time to check it out. 

Slice of medium deep dish sausage

My dad and I shared a medium deep dish sausage pizza, while my mom and sister shared a medium thin crust cheese. All in all, I was not that impressed with this pizza. It wasn't bad by any means, but best deep dish I've had in Chicago? Definitely not. The sauce was good and plentiful, but no better than any sauce I've had from Giordano's. My dad didn't care for the large chunks of sausage (as opposed to the traditional, smaller pieces of sausage in pizza), but I thought the sausage was tasty. My biggest problem with the pizza is exactly what it seems to be so famous for - the crust. While I appreciate the caramelization, I would not really call the crust on Pequod's pizza a crust. I prefer my crust to be substantial. I like it to be something that I can hold on to while I devour the rest of the pizza, and then dip in extra sauce when I'm left with just the crust. This crust is not substantial at all. It is merely a burnt, caramelized version of the rest of the pizza and is not very "handheld" friendly. Maybe I just have weird taste in crust, especially since so many people seem to think that Pequod's crust is revolutionary, but this was just not my cup of tea. The crust on the bottom was also very bread-y. I did not mind this at all, but my dad did not care for it as much. I tried a bite of my mom's thin crust which had what I would definitely consider a "substantial" crust. This crust was rolled and easy to hold onto, as well as dip into leftover sauce. The thin crust was nothing amazing, but I at leaf appreciated the crust over the deep dish. All-in-all, this was certainly not bad pizza but it was not my favorite. I generally don't like to get involved in the Chicago deep dish wars, but I would take Giordano's or Connie's (especially on the South Side before a Sox game) over this pizza any day. I guess I'll just have to categorize this one under Unpopular Opinions! 

Back in Action for the Fall: Wrigley BBQ

Happy first day of autumn! It seems like summer just began and already it is over. Luckily, this means that we are back at school and more importantly back to food blogging! I have recently moved into a new apartment and therefore have an exciting new stomping ground right in between Wrigleyville and Boystown. Last weekend, my roommate and I decided to try a local business by the name of Wrigley BBQ. It is located on N. Broadway just south of Addison and right next to the Jewel Osco. Barbecue is not a cuisine I get to enjoy frequently and I had been craving some, so a stop at Wrigley BBQ seemed essential. It was a gorgeous Saturday night at the patio area outside the restaurant was completely packed with happy BBQ enthusiasts. Wrigley BBQ is BYOB, so many customers had brought their own craft beers to enjoy with their meals. The man who took our order appeared to be the owner, and was extremely friendly.

I opted to go with the beef brisket platter, maple sweet potato mashed potatoes, and corn bread. Andrea (my roommate) got the beef brisket player, corn bread, french fries, and extra "Wrigley Fire" sauce. The cook warned her that the Wrigley Fire sauce is very hot, but Andrea can take it :) Each of our meals were just over $13. We got our food to go because it was the perfect night to enjoy a meal on our patio that, pretty soon, will probably be covered in snow (kill me). 

I was a naughty food blogger (I'm a bit rusty after a summer off) and only took one photo of our meal. This photo still manages to capture how delicious this meal was, especially with some cider in my 2005 World Series Championship cup. First things first, the beef brisket. I didn't get any extra BBQ sauce for mine, and I felt it was a little bland. The meat was nice and smoky but did not fall apart like traditional BBQ does. However, I added a bit of Andrea's Wrigley Fire sauce to it and that completely did the trick. I'm not a fan of super super spicy food, but this sauce was definitely good. The cornbread was absolutely perfect. It was hot and straight from the oven, and the crust was nice and sugary. The show stealer of this meal was probably the sweet potato mashed potatoes, though. They were perfectly whipped with maple and tasted much more like a dessert than a side dish. All in all, this meal was absolutely delicious and the portion sizes were big enough that Andrea and I both had leftovers for the next day. I also tasted one of Andrea's fries and it was just how I like fries: crispy and browned on the outside but tender and pillowy on the inside.

All-in-all, I'm very glad we stopped at Wrigley BBQ. We discovered that they do deliver, so I'm sure in the winter months when we are hibernating in our apartment we will be using GrubHub to get some BBQ. The staff is extremely friendly and there is a great BYOB atmosphere, should you choose to dine in. My only recommendation is to get extra sauce with the beef brisket because it makes all the difference. There were some very intriguing looking items on the dessert menu, including carrot cake and cherry chocolate bread pudding, so I'm sure we will be back. Caitlin and I can't wait to be blogging regularly again! We hope you all are having a great start to fall.