Pizza around the U.S.

We've always wondered about that sign outside of Mother Bear's that touts it as the 4th best pizza place in the nation. It's good pizza, and we're not knocking it, but there are so many other types of pizza around the country of all different shapes and sizes.

Here are just a few.

Hawaiian pizza
To say Hawaiian pizza is from Hawaii is about as uninformed as saying Pizza Hut is Italian. The name derives from the toppings of pineapple and ham, and Honolulu native and IU sophomore Karen Lee doesn’t even care for it.

“Honestly, most people in Hawaii don’t eat Hawaiian-style pizza,” Lee said. “Our menus are very tailored toward Asians with the large Asian population there, so we enjoy pizzas with Thai peanut sauce instead of normal marinara.”

Lee also said the pizza at Aver’s or Mother Bear’s is creative enough to do well in Hawaii.

Chicago pizza
The pizza in Chicago is known as some of the best, and there are four kinds. Whether you want deep-dish, stuffed, pan or thin-crust, there is a pizza for you in the Windy City.

The deep-dish style originated at the still-standing Pizzeria Uno in 1943, and by cooking the crust first and layering the toppings and cheese heavily, Chicago invented a style completely different from the Italian original. That expanded in the 1970s when Giordano’s and Nancy’s added more toppings over crust to create stuffed pizza.
For something “lighter,” as in no fork and knife necessary, Chicago thin crust pizza is still a crunchy yet saucy treat.

“Nothing compares to a Giordano’s deep-dish pizza,” said IU junior Maggie Dunphy, who is from the Chicago suburb of Deerfield, Ill.

Dunphy said you get more of the delicious crust for your pizza in Chicago than anywhere else.

“Thin crust just holds the pizza together, but in deep-dish the crust is definitely accented,” Dunphy said.  

California pizza
Although Wolfgang Puck and California Pizza Kitchen are almost everywhere, the best place to get authentic California-style pizza is still where it originated in 1980: Berkeley, Calif.

IU graduate and Berkeley resident Livy Wilz can’t speak more highly of a pizza style willing to experiment in cheeses, vegetables and meats over sauce and grease. Wilz recommends a Berkeley staple, The Cheese Board Collective pizzeria.

“The pies at the Cheese Board have a fairly thin crust, no sauce and are topped with garlicky-fresh, local and all-vegetarian ingredients,” Wilz said. “The pizza that they serve here is more like a frittata or something that you would get in Italy compared to what you find elsewhere in America. They combine things that you wouldn’t normally expect on a pizza, like squash, kale or sweet corn, but it’s always delicious.”

St. Louis pizza
Memphis has its barbecue and New Orleans has its jambalaya, but those aren’t the only cities located on the banks of the Mississippi River to have a trademark food. St. Louis is known nationwide for its unique brand of thin-crust pizza, which is usually made with Provel cheese.

IU junior and St. Louis native Andrew Blank loves his hometown pie but said he understands the reluctance of others to try it.

“It’s been my experience that many non-St. Louis natives have trouble acquiring a taste for this style of pizza.”

Blank doesn’t hold a grudge against Bloomington pizzerias for not serving his hometown pies, though.

“The pizzas at places like Mother Bear’s or Aver’s, for example, are more substantial, more dense, which is a nice change of pace,” he said.

New York City pizza
No other city in America immediately evokes images of pizza quite like New York. Its thin, foldable slices are as much a staple of American food culture as apple pie and Cracker Jack.

IU freshman and Manhattan native Matt Lederman said he likes his hometown pies so much that eating pizza in Bloomington is a wholly unappealing prospect.

“New York City pizza is amazing. I can’t eat the pizza here because of it,” he said.
Some of that aversion, no doubt, comes from the Midwest’s penchant for a somewhat thicker crust than what they eat on the East Coast. Not being in the world’s biggest grocery center anymore doesn’t help, either.

“It has the perfect-sized crust and always really fresh ingredients,” Lederman said about his beloved NYC pies. In his mind, Monroe County’s pizzerias just don’t stand up.

Detroit pizza
Detroit has a long history with pizza. Domino’s founder Tom Monaghan also owned the Detroit Tigers from 1983 to 1992, and entrepreneur Mike Ilitch currently owns both Little Caesars and the Detroit Red Wings. Beyond the big chains, though, Detroit has forged its own pizza identity by inventing a variation on the Chicago-style deep dish that keeps locals coming back for more.

IU junior Matt Boyd said he prefers Buddy’s Pizza among local Detroit pizzerias.
“They win awards every year, and their pizza is a mix between a basic pan pizza and Chicago-style. It’s not quite deep-dish, but it’s a little thicker and has toppings and sauce below the cheese with another layer of sauce on top,” he said.

Boyd hasn’t found anything like Buddy’s in Bloomington, but he does enjoy Mother Bear’s and Monroe County Pizza. Of course, there is still one way he can feel like he’s furthering the Detroit pizza cause here at IU.

“There is a Little Caesars if I want to support the hometown company,” he said.