Family-owned local chain for Italian classics & Chicago-style, deep-dish pizzas with butter crusts.
Considered the oldest family name in Chicago pizza, Lou Malnati's is as rich in history as its pizza is in flavor.
Lou Malnati got his start in the 1940's working in Chicago's first deep dish pizzeria. He took his pizza expertise to Lincolnwood, a northern suburb of Chicago, where he and his wife Jean opened the first Lou Malnati's Pizzeria on March 17, 1971. Lou was known for his fun-loving character as well as making Chicago's best pizza. Loyal patrons lined the streets on opening day for a taste of his delicious deep dish creations. Lou always thought it was funny that an Italian should open a pizzeria in a Jewish neighborhood on an Irish holiday. But that was Lou's style; he loved all types of people and didn't care much about what people thought.
Very yummy pizza. True Chicago style deep dish and tavern style thin crust. The sauce is absolutely divine. I don't think I've had anything like it. So good. The butter crust is really great too. I loved all the cheese they use. Definitely a must have if you like Chicago style pizza.
Chicago style pizza is my favorite pizza ever and since Lou Malnatis is a standard when speaking of deep dish pizza, I had to try it. Unfortunately, I wasn't impressed. I've had better Chicago style pizza before and Lou's didn't live up to its hype. The crust tasted pretty old and had no flavor. But I will say the service was great and the pizza was ready at the promised time and they got my order correct.
Newest Lou's location in a brand new space! Lou Malnati's will always be near and dear to me... and the best of the best when it comes to Chicago-style deepdish pizza!
With the pandmic being in full swing, the friendly mask-wearing Lou's team comes out to your car when you pull up... confirms your order... and then runs in and brings it out to you! It's that easy!
Fresh, hot, DEEEEE-licious, and beautiful pizza brought right out to your car... there are only like three things I can think of that are better than that!
So go get your pizza!
I was initially a bit hard on Malnati's when they first opened up in Phoenix. Since roughly half of our population is from Chicago (and mention this every five minutes), my expectations were way, way too high going in.
But honestly, in terms of deep dish pizza chains, this is probably your best option. Malnati's is pretty good about quality and consistency. And based on what I've experienced in the past, they are very quick to correct any mistakes or frustrations from dissatisfied customers.
This particular plaza is scheduled to eventually get a Matt's Big Breakfast and Barrio Queen, two restaurants that are incredibly popular in much more trendier areas. Finally, West Valley gets to join in on the fun.
This is a take-out only location, so if you're expecting dine-in, you'll need to venture over to Camelback or Scottsdale Road. But hey, we'll take what we can get and it's nice to have a Malnati's option so close to my house for delivery or takeout.
Our first experience was pretty much what I expected. A large butter-crust pepperoni deep dish pizza that most normal human beings can munch on for at least a few days. It tastes good fresh and is even edible while reheated. It's definitely not something most people would eat daily, but great for an occasional indulgence. We've already had two other popular Chicago-based pizza chains open in Phoenix. One failed miserably while the other is still around, but struggling. Malnati's seems to have no such issues, thankfully.
I'm a bit concerned, given that this plaza is kind of tucked away and on an intersection that primarily gets commuter traffic, but once word gets out, I'm sure this place will do just fine.
Highly recommended for a deep dish fix!