My Italian grandfather used to say that there were only two pizza types: good and better. While I agree with him in theory, my travels do not. Within the United States itself, pizza varies from region to region from thin and foldable slices of New York City’s finest to thick and gooey helpings of Chicago deep dish and everything in between.

As Italian immigrants came to the U.S., they brought with them what they knew pizza to be from their corner of the Old Country and restyled it with ingredients on hand in their new home. The son of an immigrant himself, my grandfather knew something about this. In fact, if you really pressed him, he’d probably list Brier Hill pizza from Youngstown, Ohio as the best. Let’s start our pizza journey across the United States there.

Brier Hill Style

Briar Hill is Youngstown’s first Italian settlement. While most of the neighborhood was demolished to make way for the city’s expressway, the legendary pizza lives on in pizza parlors throughout the Mahoning Valley. The pizza is made with the ingredients most poor immigrants had on hand: a thick Sunday gravy, bell peppers and Romano cheese.

Where to order it:

St. Anthony of Padua Church parishioners pump out 300 pizzas every Friday night. It’s take out only. Call on Friday mornings from 6:00am to 10:30am to reserve your pie.

New York Style

Ferociously defended by New Yorkers and adored by tourists from around the world alike, New York style pizza is probably the most famous pizza of all. Like everything else in NYC, the pizza is meant to be consumed on the go. The large, thin slices are easily foldable for consumption while walking down the street and dodging fellow pedestrians.

Where to order it:

Might as well head to the original, right? Di Fara Pizza is America’s first pizzeria. Locals still form lines to order a slice.

St. Louis Style

St. Louis style pizza is probably one of the most unique on the list. To start, the crust is cracker thin and crisp as it’s made from unleavened bread. The sauce falls on the sweet side (some chefs add sugar or corn syrup) with heavy accents of oregano. Finally, the cheese, provel, is uniquely St. Louis. It’s a processed blend of provolone, Swiss and white cheddar, which is oddly reminiscent of Velveeta.

Where to order it:

While Imo’s Pizza didn’t invent St. Louis style pizza, they’re the most famous and craved.

Chicago Deep Dish

There are several styles of pizza served up in the Windy City. Arguably, the most famous is Chicago Deep Dish. You know, the one you eat with a knife and fork. While almost any topping can go into the pizza, the cheese is layered on the bottom and the sauce ladled on top.

Where to order it:

While many recommend Lou Malnati’s, as there are stores throughout the metro area, I prefer Pizzeria Uno and Due.

Detroit Deep Dish

I didn’t know the Motor City had their own style of pizza either—until I tried it. The city definitely deserves credit for being a pizza powerhouse. It’s similar to Chicago in that the sauce is on top and it runs on the thick side. Other than that, it’s uniquely Detroit. The pies are cooked in square blue steel pans that get super-hot in the cooking process, burning the edges and causing a caramelized cheesy goodness that everyone fights over.

Where to order it:

Eat at the original, Buddy’s Pizza.

New Haven Apizza

The Amalfi coast-influenced pies are eerily similar to New York style pizza, but the crust has a bit more ciabatta bread quality. Anything goes for toppings as apizza are often called “artisan” pies. The most famous version is probably the white clam pizza.

Where to order it:

Not only is Frank Pepe’s the original pizza parlor in New Haven, they also invented the famed white clam pizza. Order yours with bacon.

Trenton Tomato Pie

Tomato pie is characterized by its thicker crust and sweet, chunky tomato sauce of herbed crushed plum tomatoes. The sauce goes on after the other ingredients.

Where to order it:

Like the Soprano’s Jersey versus New York rivalry, pizza has a similar cross border beef. Papa’s Tomato Pies claims it is the oldest pizzeria in America as Di Fara (mentioned earlier) closed for ten years. Papa’s also claims they’re the original tomato pie. Whatever the case, it’s where you should order yours from.

Written By:

BRYAN RICHARDS

Bryan M. Richards is a beer, food, and travel writer based in Charlotte. His work has appeared in Men’s Journal, Beer Advocate, and just about anything with the word Charlotte in it. In a previous life, he was a corporate road warrior staying in two to three different hotels a week and often forgetting his room number.