There are a few pizza threads. Bump this one because Pizza Hut can go to hell.

I was trying something different today because Pizza Hut had a special but it reminded me of why I only eat Papa Johns or local restaurants.

Pizza Hut is awful. I don't know how people eat that stuff. I have different favorite places for different types of pizza. That said, I am a pizza traditionalist. All this weird stuff on pizza doesn't sit well with this Sicilian. BBQ pizza, Hawaiian pizza, Thai Chicken pizza... those are not REALLY pizza, it's other stuff on a pizza dough, but it's not really pizza.

Faves: deep dish: Hands down, Buddy's (a Detroit chain- Detroit, Warren, Livonia, Dearborn, Farmington Hills) The mozzarella is wonderful and they get a crispiness on the edge of the crust that is divine. The sauce is perfection.
New York Style: Tomatoes Apizza in Farmington Hills- The super thin crust, the cheese, the sauce, the pepperoni- all amazing.
Chicago Style: I like them all- Giovanni's, Gino's East, UNO's.

Of all the things I miss the most since not being able to eat any bread of any kind since July, it is pizza crust. I order pizza and eat the toppings off, but it just isn't the same. It's good, but not the same.

Mellow Mushroom has excellent thin crust pizza and only use high quality cheeses. They are a chain out of Atlanta and frequently in college towns in the south.
When I can eat pizza - I'm allergic to cheese (sigh)

I love CPK. I love the Garlic chicken pizza from there! DH hates CPK :(
In Chicago: Geno's East or Lou Molinari's

And for chains in Iowa who don't cut round pizza into the traditional wedge slices: WTF dude? :confused:

Current favorite pizza place: Coalhouse Pizza in Stamford, CT. The restaurant has a definite jazz theme (I'm not really into jazz, but that's ok) and a lot of their specialty pizzas and other dishes have jazz-inspired names. They also have an awesome beer list. At one point they offered a promo of $5 flights ... I guess too many people took advantage of it, and they lost money, so that was the end of that :( , but they do still offer flights. I often stop in when I have business in Stamford.

Least favorite pizza places:
1. Savor Pizza in Norwalk, CT. They bill themselves as "healthy" and "organic", but their crust tastes like cardboard. I'd rather eat matzo pizza.
2. Planet Pizza, a chain in Fairfield County, CT. Their pizza was actually decent, but they lost my business through poor customer service - e.g. they left something out of my order, charged me for it, and then outright lied to me about it.

I love wood fire oven pizzas from local restaurants. They make the best pizzas. The topics are more authentic and the crust tastes better. Cibo in Phoenix was a favorite for the years I lived there and was only 4 short blocks from my condo. I haven't found a place that I love in LA yet, but I've been more obsessed with pasta, sushi and ramen.

I truly miss Pizza House in East Lansing. Great pizza and late night delivery. Yum!

Kansas City,
two small chains:Minskys and Pizza Shoppe are great!
Many small single Pizza shps, Nigros for one.

K C, Pizza and BBQ! Oh, cannot forget Steaks, LOL.

Pizza is one of my favorites, too. Serious cheese addict here.

I live in the city where Papa John's got its start. I had Papa John's when it was coming out of the back of his dad's bar in Southern Indiana. However locally we have some really good pizza. Wick's is nice and cheesy, all of the toppings are under the cheese. The only downside to Wick's is that you have to order exactly what you want because you can't see the ingredients to pick off anything you don't want. Also, good here is Boombazz Taphouse. You can order a standard pizza or create your own from a list of ingredients. It's been on Food Network.

In my college town, Bloomington is home of Mother Bear's pizza. Always named one of the best in the state. There's also Cafe Pizzaria downtown. And, as HoosierGirl can attest to, Pizza X. However one does not go to Pizza X for the pizza as much as the breaksticks. They are warm and fluffy with a hint of garlic. Eight breadsticks, two dipping sauces and a drink in a big plastic cup is $5. It's the first thing I get when I get back into town. And their marketing is excellent, but that's another story.

Mother Bear's is about the only good thing about Bloomington. ;-) It's REALLY good pizza.

In West Lafayette (and I believe in a select few other locales around the state) we have Mad Mushroom Cheese Stix: Pizza dough coated with garlic butter and cheese and broiled to perfection. Dipping them in ranch dressing makes them even more delicious.

Indy: Hands down, Bazbeaux pizza. Their Quattro Formaggio is amazeballs

Region aka Northwest Indiana: Tie between Giordano's and Gelsossmo's. I try to eat at least one of these places whenever I go back to NWI.

Chicago: Malnati's or Exchequer

Bloomington--Mother Bears and Pizza X (just for the breadsticks and the cups!). Mother Bears has some of the best pizza I've ever eaten, and I come from the pizza motherland of the Chicago/Region area

Chicago/Region: Giordanos, Lou Malnati's, and Gelsossomos (Region)

Indy: Bazbeaux's...nothing else is good there. And yes, I've had that stupid Hotbox pizza (gal)

DC: Pete's Apizza and Matchbox. I haven't found anything else particularly good, although we do have a Mellow Mushroom that just opened up here. The pizza was good, but they forgot our order and we waited 2+ hours for a medium pepperoni pizza. When we finally opened the box at home, it had a dead fly in it...ew.

In Cincinnati - The Green Lantern pizza from Dewey's Pizza
Name Brand chain - Dominos or Papa Johns
In Ada, OH (home of my alma mater) - white sauce, bacon or chicken with pineapple from Padrone's pizza
In my hometown - Anything from Cameo Pizza

I do not care for the Ohio regional chains of LaRosa's or Donato's.

I had Lou Malnati's in March when we took a trip to Chicago. It was good.

Sorry, IrishLake. LaRosa's, the world's best pizza pie, dominates in Cincinnati (my hometown)!!

Question: can someone please explain thin crust? I mean, if I want pizza on a cracker, I'll reach for the saltines.....

I don't like thin crust.

I tried to like thin crust because less bread was supposed to be healthier but it removed the enjoyment.

I'm also not a fan of veggie pizza. I can get a salad.

@ IndianaSigKap: serious cheese addicts unite. :)

The best pizza that I've had in a long time is in a stall at the Nashville's Farmers Market. Bella Nashville has a wood fired oven and freshly sourced local ingredients. It's the absolute bomb diggity.