[Chicago Pizza News] 2nd Annual Pizza Fest Contest Winners

Contest Winners

Somehow, without the critical guidance of CPC members, the Chicago Pizza Fest judges managed to decide on the winners of their contest.

Best Chicago Style Deep Dish: Nonna's
Best Thin Style: My Pie
Best Gourmet/Unique: Nonna's

We've already been to My Pie, so looks like we definitely need to hit up Nonna's! If you missed it, check out Stu's review below.

[Chicago Pizza News] The Chicago Reader Picks Its Favorite Chicago Pizza

I'll be the first to admit that I'm having a slow work day, and having already read all of today's Obama-centric news stories, kept up to date with my blogs and purchased my new Chicago vehicle sticker a friend suggested I check out the Chicago Reader website for their "Best of Chicago 2008" selections.

Seems a bit early for Best of 2008 picks doesn't it? I mean, we're not even at the halfway mark for 2008 yet...

Anywho, I was kind of suprised to see their pick for Chicago's Best Pizza, though I must say the place they picked does serve a pretty fantastic pie...

Read about their choice right here, and then why not read the Chicago Pizza Club's review of that very same restaurant by clicking your mouse right here.

Do you agree or disagree? Let the endless debates begin!

[Chicago Pizza News] Suburban Family Sending 3,000 Pizzas to Troops in Iraq and Afghanistan

In the 1990s, Air Force officer Mark Evans of Elk Grove, IL, sent 50 Lou Malnati's pizzas to the troops in Bosnia. Recently, he and his son have decided to repeat history, but on a much bigger scale.

They decided to try to raise money to send 300 Lou Malnati's pies to the troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan for a Fourth of July pizza party. The response has been so tremendous that they have increased their goal to 3,000 pizzas.

Anyone interested in helping can send an email to Evans. Kudos to DHL for offering free shipping for all of the pizzas the Evans buy for this project.

[Chicago Pizza News] Piece Offers a Truly Special Delivery

Piece, the New Haven style pizzeria in Wicker Park, is raising money for PAWS Chicago in a rather unique manner. Rick Nielsen, lead guitarist for Cheap Trick, who is an investor in Piece, will turn into a pizza delivery boy for one night and will deliver pizzas to the highest bidder on eBay.

The winner gets five pizzas delivered anywhere within 40 miles of the restaurant, a couple of Rick Nielsen autographed Piece t-shirts, some guitar picks, and they can hang with Rick Nielsen for a bit. None of Piece's award-winning beer is included in the auction.

The auction ends just before noon (Chicago time) on Monday, June 23.

[Chicago Pizza News] Just a Reminder...

2nd Annual Pizza Fest Chicago
Racine & Fullerton, Chicago (Google Maps)

Post a comment if you plan on attending!

[Chicago Pizza News] Fun Pizza Facts

According to this article, the following are all true:

• There are almost 70,000 pizzerias in the United States
  
• More than 66 percent of them are independently owned
  
• 17% of all U.S. restaurants are pizzerias
  
• Nearly 33 percent of all U.S. restaurants have pizza on their menus.
  
• Chicago is the largest frozen pizza market in the world
  

[Chicago Pizza News] My Pie Down to One Location

When the Chicago Pizza Club recently visited My Pie in Lincoln Park, we were surprised to learn that there had once been 23 different locations in 9 states, but that according to the website there were now only two locations, one in Lincoln Park and one in Bucktown.

It turns out that the out of state locations were franchises and that at some point in the 1980s, the owner decided to stop franchising My Pie and the restaurant went back to being exclusively owner-operated and in Chicago.

In much more recent news, it seems the CPC were among the final visitors to the Lincoln Park location, as it is now closed! The Bucktown location is still open and the company is looking for a new location in Lincoln Park.

[Chicago Pizza News] Vito & Nick's II Expands Again

Vito & Nick's II is owned by Nicholas Barraco II, son of Nicholas Baccaro, who is the Nick in Vito & Nick's, the southside institution at 84th and Pulaski that is home to many Pizza Clubbers favorite thin crust pie. Vito is Nick II's grandfather.

Initially, I assumed that the two were part of the same company and that Vito and Nick's II, which has multiple locations, was just an extension of the original. When I came across this article announcing the opening of another V & N II location, I did some investigating. While Vito and Nick's II emphasizes its ties to the original Vito & Nick's , the original states in block letters on its website, NOT AFFILIATED OR ASSOCIATED WITH VITO AND NICKS II IN MOKENA IL OR ANY LICENSEE OR FRANCHISEE. It seems likely that some family squabble got overblown and that there is some bad blood.

In any event, V & N II seems to be looking to become the Uno's of the thin crust world - the pizza that is the definition of Chicago style in the minds of the rest of the country. Not only does V & N II have six locations in the Chicago suburbs, it also has a location in Gilbert, AZ and is opening one soon in Coral Gables, FL. They also ship frozen pizzas and they are looking for people interested in franchise opportunities.

Perhaps the CPC should invest. But first, we should definitely plan a trip out there to see if the son is as talented as the father.

[Chicago Pizza News] Ordering Pizza Gets All High Techy...

So, Papa Johns is in the news this week for hitting over $1 Billion in online pizza sales. You can read about it over here.

Papas Johns was always my prefered chain pizza while I was in college down in Champaign/Urbana, but they don't seem to be too widespread up here in the city. I actually researched the possibility of getting some delivered for the Chicago Pizza Club's Chain Pizza Extravaganza, but there were none in my delivery area.

Anywho, I love ordering food online with the interwebs, I think it cuts down on mistakes with your orders, people writing down the wrong addresses, etc., and while Domino's and Pizza Hut both offer online ordering, I much, much prefer to use websites that offer the option of ordering local, non-chain pizzas right to my doorstep. Both Foodler.com and GrubHub.com let you enter in your address, see what local restaurants deliver to you, browse menus online and let you place your order through their websites. Also handy is how they have their menus broken down into handy categories such as; Pasta, Mexican, Sushi, Chinese, etc... oh, and of course, Pizza! And while I haven't used this site yet, it looks like Delivery.com also offers similar services to the Chicago area.

So, if you're lazy like me and are hungry for pizza rejoice in knowing that your online ordering needs (oh yeah, it's a need) can be met by more than just the big pizza chains.

[Chicago Pizza News] Let's All Mark Our Calendars!

2nd Annual Pizza Fest Chicago
Racine & Fullerton, Chicago (Google Maps)

If there two things we can say about the members of the Chicago Pizza Club it's that they love Pizza and they love Festivals. So news of the 2nd Annual Pizza Fest Chicago will know doubt resound in the ears of our readers and contributors as nothing less than spectacular news.

The Fest this year takes place on June 21 & 22, from noon to 10pm both days.

Further details (and there are many further details to behold) can be found here!

Chicago Pizza Club members let's all do our best to attend and cover this glorious event in detail!

[Chicago Pizza News] Homer Simpson's Wildest Dream Has Come True

If you read this blog, the chances are you love pizza. If you love pizza, the chances are you love beer. You probably even love pizza with beer. But what about pizza-flavored beer?

Too good to be true, your inner Homer says? Well, a suburban Chicago couple has developed Mamma Mia Pizza Beer. It's being brewed and bottled by Sprecher Brewing Company in Wisconsin.

If you are in Chicago, head over to Sam's and pick it up for $1.99/bottle. If you are not in Chicago, you can order it online.

[Chicago Pizza News] Pizza.com sells for $2.6 million

In 1994, Chris Clark registered the domain name pizza.com when he had a consulting company and was hoping to get some contracts with a pizza company. He sold his consulting company in 2000, but continued to spend $20 a year to keep the website. He just sold it for $2.6 million.

Perhaps someday, some fool will give the CPC $50 for our website. That would be awesome.

[Chicago Pizza News] Pennsylvania Town Has Delusions of Grandeur

Chicagoans have enough trouble dealing with self-important New Yorkers declaring their hometown to be the best place in the world for pizza. But now it appears there's another whose populace we're going to have to listen to. Old Valley Forge, PA, population 10,000, has
declared itself to the Pizza Capital of the World.

This is obviously silly, but the town, located 5 miles outside of Scranton, does seem to have an interesting pizza history and a high concentration of pizzerias. For one thing, the local places do not use mozzarella cheese. I'm not sure what cheese they actually use - it's apparently a secret. The pizzas there are rectangular and come in two varieties, red, which has sauce, and white, which has none. The white pizza is particularly unique as it has an equally-thick layer of crust on top and on the bottom.

[Chicago Pizza News] Uno's Seeks to Move Further From Chicago Pizza Roots

Last week, I wrote about Uno's Chicago Grill being named the healthiest chain restaurant in America. Well, the Boston-based pizza chain (yes, you read that right - Uno's has been a Boston corporation for years) is not content in its quest for healthy food.

The Boston Globe reported today that Uno's is getting close to unveiling a low-calorie, gluten-free deep-dish pizza.

[Chicago Pizza News] The Gestalt of Pizza?

Hey Pizza Lovers! I just read an interesting article in the new issue of Wired Magazine and wanted to share it with all of you. Ok, ok... so this news item isn't about Chicago pizza per se — the author here focuses on the differences between New York and California pizza — but it does bring up some pretty interesting ideas about some of the overlooked aspects that go into making a delicious pizza. You can read more in the latest issue of Wired, or just follow this handy link here to read it online. Enjoy!

[Chicago Pizza News] You Think Gas Has Gone Up - Check Out Pizza Ingredients

In what could be the most devastating story so far in this recession that everyone but the current President seems agree we are entering, the prices for some key pizza ingredients are skyrocketing. According to the New York Times,

Flour prices are up 93 percent from February 2007 to February this year, and cheese jumped 25 percent, federal statistics show.

However, relief could be on the way. According to this profile of how rising costs have affected a couple small pizzerias in Malden, MA,

Ramsey said he expects wheat and flour prices to fall in the next six months, as U.S. farmers begin to harvest winter wheat in June. Ramsey said he also anticipates that tomato prices — assuming that the weather cooperates — and cheese costs will come down, too.

[Chicago Pizza News] Uno's Named Healthiest Chain Restaurant

Health Magazine has named Uno's Chicago Grill (the national version of our local institution) the healthiest chain restaurant in the United States. Sadly, this is not because deep dish pizza is a treat for dieters, but because of other offerings on the menu. But if you're not counting calories and happen to be in a mall somewhere with someone who is, Uno's can be a good compromise. There are currently over 200 Uno's spread across 29 states.

[Chicago Pizza News] Madison, WI pizza chain is coming to Chicago

Chicagoist.com is reporting that Madison, WI based pizza chain, Ian’s Pizza, will be opening up a new location in Chicago on or around June 1st. It looks like Ian's is a New York style pizza place with emphasis on new and unusual pizza offerings, as evidenced by their menu. Ian's will be located at 3463 N. Clark, just a little bit south of Wrigley Field. For the full Chicagoist.com article, just click here!