Pan Pizza at Renaldi’s Pizza Pub in Lakeview

Pan pizza is often overlooked in Chicago. It lacks the panache of deep dish, and the convenient portability that makes thin crust ubiquitous. The apathy toward pan pizza isn’t limited to consumers, though. Many Chicagoland pizzerias don’t even offer pan pizza.

For the uninitiated, a pan pizza is baked in a pan with raised sides. The pan can be a circle or rectangle, and the crust of a pan pizza is thicker and chewier than the thin crust variant. The layering of pan pizza ingredients is conventional: cheese over sauce, on top of crust. Some unimaginative pan pizzas amount to little more than a remixed version of the thin crust variety on a thicker bed of dough.

Renaldi’s Pizza Pub in Lakeview doesn’t come up short with their pan offering.

Aesthetics
When I visited Renaldi’s on a Saturday evening, diners packed the sidewalk seating area. I caught a glimpse of two different thin crust pizzas as I walked by, and neither seemed particularly appealing. The cheese was a uniform white color, like a clean bedsheet stretched tight over the surface of the pie. I prefer for cheese to be of varied color and texture instead of a monochromatic look. In fairness, I didn’t end up trying the thin crust. It may have been delicious, despite its bland appearance.

In contrast, the pan pizza was an aesthetic marvel. In Renaldi’s, pizzas bask in the glow of heat lamps behind a cafeteria-style counter. Massive black pizza ovens are behind the counter, right in the front of the restaurant. A pan pizza with sausage—a thing of beauty, really—greeted me as I walked in the door. It was fresh from the oven. Sausage, cheese, and sauce blended on the surface of the square pie, creating a lively blend of reds, yellows, and grays. It was almost as if it were not a real pizza but an impressionist painting of one.

I ordered the Cezanne—I mean, a single slice of sausage—along with a medium pop, which set me back $6.30. In the grand tradition of Chicago pizzerias, the fountains at Renaldi’s are armed with RC Cola.

Taste
Renaldi’s sauce was sweet and a bit tangy, with a hint of onion flavor. The cheese was adequate: flavorful and springy, though a bit sparse. This was not to the detriment of the slice, though. The star of the show was the crust and the harmonious interplay between the sauce and dough.

The texture and taste of the crust varied, just as one would hope for in a balanced slice of pan pizza. The edges of the slice were golden brown, crusty on the outside with a chewy inside and a mild buttery flavor. The crust beneath the surface of the cheese was airy, like a cloud of carbohydrates, its top side made smooth and sweet by the sauce. From edge to edge, the bottom of the crust was crisp, but not dry, providing a satisfying crunch with each bite.

The sausage was enjoyable, though Renaldi’s could stand to be a bit less stingy with it. It was a bit spicier than the average, adding a burst of flavor without distracting from the other ingredients. The sausage was rather juicy, owing to its high fat content. At one point, I bit into a chunk of chewy fat, though this was a small price to pay for how moist the meat was.

Walls, Plates, Napkins
Dining at Renaldi’s is a no-frills affair. The plates are white and the tumblers are clear. White paper covers the tables. There are three seating areas: the sidewalk seating, a dining area on the side of the restaurant with the pizza ovens, and a bar area. There was nothing to distinguish the bar area from any other bar in the Chicago area. There are tables and chairs and booze and TVs.

The other dining area has a charming shabbiness to it. Italian-themed photos are haphazardly affixed to the walls. I wondered if they were a sentimental nod to the old country, or if the owners felt pressure to adhere to this pizzeria stereotype.

A massive round table sits in the center of the dining room and is equipped with wooden lazy susan that could hold several pizzas. Renaldi’s can handle large group dinners. I would have liked to have sat there, but I was dining alone and my single slice and notepad would have looked kind of sad at the grandiose table.

Verdict
My experience at Renaldi’s presents me with a conundrum. Given how good the pan slice was, I’m inclined to try other things on their menu, branching out to deep dish and thin crust. But I’m a creature of habit. I know that when I do go back to Renaldi’s, it will be to eat their exceptional pan pizza. You should do the same.

Renaldi’s Pizza
2827 N Broadway
Chicago, IL 60657
Phone: 773-248-2445
www.renaldispizzachicago.com

Hours
Monday – Thursday: 11:00 AM-12:00 AM
Friday – Saturday: 11:00 AM-2:00 AM
Sunday: 12:00 PM-12:00 AM