Upper Crust
Thin crust, thick crust, white sauce, red sauce, sweet sauce, no sauce. Pizza in Indy has many different forms, and, expanding waistlines be damned, we tried them all. From Chicago-style in Noblesville to a New York slice on the south side, here are our picks for the 20 Best Pizzas in Town.
By Beth A. Clayton and Maggie Richmond
Photos by Tony Valainis, Illustrations by Aaron Meshon
Best Pizza With Which To Test Date Compatibility
Deep Dish
Union Jack Pub(
924 Broad Ripple Ave., 257-4343, unionjackpub-broadripple.com)
Can you compromise? Let Union Jack’s Chicago-style deep-dish pizza (left) put your relationship to the test. Stack up to eight toppings (or “crowns,” as UJ calls them) on the quarter-inch-thick crust, and that’s after you agree on one of five sauces and nine cheeses. Will it be the chunky Napa tomato sauce and UJ’s mozzarella blend with sausage, pepperoni, basil, spinach, and minced garlic? Or maybe sweet barbecue sauce, cheddar cheese, bacon, chicken, and green peppers? With 12 meats and more than 30 veggies to choose from, you have some big decisions to make.
Best One-Dish Meal
Bacon Cheddar Cheeseburger Pizza
Hungry Howie’s Pizza(
various locations, hungryhowies.com)
Burgers are great. Burgers-as-pizza just might be better. When you can’t decide between the two, try the bacon cheddar cheeseburger pizza at Hungry Howie’s. The thick, buttery crust is loaded with ground beef and bacon, and then sprinkled liberally with cheddar and mozzarella so every crevice is filled in. While there are no fries to accompany your permutated burger, order your pie on Howie’s ranch-flavored crust, and you have a built-in order of breadsticks for a similar starchy finish. It’s the best of both worlds.
The Best Bang for Your Buck
The Big Chicago
Dom Di Carlo’s(
654 Logan St., Noblesville, 776-6500)
Two slices of pizza and two sodas for $7.36 is a steal no matter the pizza flavor, but when you snag a piece of the Big Chicago at Dom DiCarlo’s, you’ll have trouble believing your good fortune. The mammoth pie begins with a double-thick crust that is filled with twice the usual amount of shredded mozzarella and covered with a thick blanket of the house red sauce. Add big chunks of Italian sausage for an extra-savory meal. We were full long before we finished our lunch, but with flavor this intense, we couldn’t let a single bite go to waste.
Best Use of a Fermented Vegetable
Sauerkraut Special
Maria’s Pizza
(
1106 E. Prospect St., 786-9283)
We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again. Even if you don’t care for sauerkraut, you’ll be hard pressed to turn down a slice of the sauerkraut pizza at Maria’s Pizza. The tomato-sauce base is piled high with Italian sausage, bacon, and onions, all of which help tone down the tang of the kraut while enhancing the savory taste of the meats. Keep a glass of water handy; you are going to need a big gulp (and possibly a breath mint) after enjoying this salty treat.
