The Great Pizza Debate

Published on August 8th, 2022
Updated on October 1st, 2026

New York vs. Chicago vs. Detroit & More: Which Pizza Style Wins?

Few food fights run hotter than pizza. New Yorkers swear by the fold, Chicagoans defend deep-dish (and quietly eat tavern-style), Detroit claims the crispiest edges, and New Haven insists its apizza isn’t pizza at all. With more than 20 regional styles across America, here’s the case for each one, plus where to order the most iconic versions shipped nationwide on Goldbelly, so you can be the judge.

Settle the debate for less: Pizzas are on sale all October long for National Pizza Month, with up to 30% off in the Pizza Month Sale.

New York Style: The Quintessential Slice

When you think of pizza, this is probably what you picture. New York-style pizza means big, thin-crusted slices with a crisp-chewy bottom, cut wide enough to fold in half and eat on the go. For a virtual trip to a New York street corner, look no further than these iconic purveyors:

• Di Fara Pizza
• Lombardi’s (Read More: America’s First Pizzeria!)
• John’s of Bleecker Street
• Joe & Pat’s
• Juliana’s
• Prince Street Pizza, home of the SoHo square
• Artichoke Basille’s
• Table 87
• Tony Boloney’s
• Mother Kelly’s

The case for it: It’s the slice that defined American pizza, and the only one you can fold and eat on the walk.

Sicilian & Grandma Style: New York’s Square Pies

New York’s pizza story doesn’t end with the round slice. Sicilian pizza is baked in a rectangular pan with a thick, airy, focaccia-like crust. Brooklyn’s L&B Spumoni Gardens has been famous for its saucy Sicilian squares since 1939, and Fort Worth’s Zoli’s NY Pizza brings the style to Texas.

Grandma pizza is its thinner Long Island cousin: dough pressed into an oiled pan, topped with cheese, and finished with dollops of tomato sauce. Umberto’s Pizzeria in New Hyde Park is often credited with popularizing it. Try it from Umberto’s, Washington Squares, or Loring Place.

The case for it: All the crispy, golden corner pieces you could want, in one pan.

Read More: What Is Grandma Pizza? The NY Square Slice Explained

Chicago Style: Not Just Deep-Dish

The Windy City is synonymous with deep-dish pizza: a high-edged, buttery crust filled with gooey cheese, ample toppings, and chunky tomato sauce on top. These are some of the most legendary deep-dish pizzerias:

• Lou Malnati’s
• Gino’s East
• Giordano’s
• Pequod’s, famous for its caramelized cheese crust

Chicagoans will tell you the pizza they actually eat most is Chicago thin-crust. Its crust is almost cracker-thin, and it’s cut into squares, “tavern-style.” For an authentic taste, look no further than Lou Malnati’s, Labriola, Connie’s, and Candlelite.

Then there’s stuffed pizza, deep-dish’s even taller sibling, with a second layer of dough sealing in the cheese and toppings beneath the sauce. Nancy’s Pizza has been a stuffed-pizza standard-bearer since the 1970s.

The case for it: Three distinct styles from one city. No other pizza town can match that range.

Read More: What is Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza?

Detroit Style: Thick, Crisp & Chewy

Invented in the mid-1900s, Detroit-style pizza was originally baked in rectangular steel trays used to hold automotive parts. These square pies have an airy, chewy crust with a crisp bottom, cheese baked all the way to the edges, and “racing stripes” of tomato sauce on top. Bring a taste of Detroit home with Buddy’s Pizza, where the style was invented, and Detroit Style Pizza Co. The style has gotten so popular that Brooklyn’s Emmy Squared built a following on Detroit squares with a New York twist.

The case for it: Those caramelized, crispy cheese edges. Every piece is a corner piece.

New Haven Style: Don’t Call it Pizza!

In New Haven, Connecticut, it’s called apizza (pronounced “ah-BEETZ,” from an old Neapolitan dialect). It may resemble New York-style pizza, but it’s totally different: coal-fired, slightly charred, chewy, and a little oblong. One bite and you’ll be hooked. Crowds line up for the state’s most iconic pizzerias, including:

• Sally’s Apizza
• Zuppardi’s Apizza
• Carmine’s Pizzas
• Piece Pizzeria, a New Haven-style pizzeria in Chicago

The case for it: Coal-fired char and a chewy crust that devotees happily wait in line for.

Read More: What is “Apizza,” New Haven Style Pizza?

Neapolitan Style: Straight Outta Naples

Naples obviously isn’t in America, but we’d be remiss to leave the birthplace of pizza off this list. Traditional Neapolitan pizza has a soft, puffy, leopard-spotted crust surrounding tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, and few other toppings, with a slightly soupy center. It’s the pizza every other style descends from, and some of America’s best versions come from:

• San Francisco’s Pizzeria Delfina
• Phoenix’s Pizzeria Bianco
• LA’s Pizzana
• New York’s Motorino

The case for it: It’s the original. Every other style on this list starts here.

Roman Style: Pizza by the Slab

Rome’s answer to Naples is Roman-style pizza, especially pizza al taglio, which means “by the cut.” It’s baked in long rectangular pans with a light, crackly, open-crumb crust, then sliced to order with toppings that change with the seasons. Get the real deal from Bonci Pizza, the famous Roman pizzeria that brought its slabs to Chicago.

The case for it: A crust so light and crackly it practically shatters.

Colorado Style: Thick-Crusted “Mountain Pies”

Colorado-style pizza is big, bold, and unapologetic. These pies are heavy, doughy, and loaded with toppings, often ringed by a braided crust meant for a drizzle of honey. One is enough to feed a family. Try this lesser-known regional style from Idaho Springs’ Beau Jo’s and Fort Collins’ Panhandler’s.

The case for it: It’s the only pizza with dessert built in: just add honey to the crust.

Philadelphia Style: A Different Type of Tomato Pie

Visit any of Philly’s classic old Italian bakeries and you’ll find a close relative of pizza that’s rarely seen outside the City of Brotherly Love: the tomato pie. These pies are light, airy, and crisp, served at room temperature, and topped with a sweet tomato sauce and a sprinkling of Romano instead of mozzarella. Corropolese Bakery has been making one of the city’s most iconic tomato pies since 1924, and Iannelli’s Bakery has been a local landmark since 1910.

The case for it: Pizza that’s meant to be eaten at room temperature, so no reheating required.

New Jersey Style: Tomato Pies on the Shore

Head to the Jersey Shore and you’ll find a style that resembles its cousin to the north but is a style all its own: the Jersey tomato pie. These pies are big and cheesy, sold by the slice along the boardwalk, and best identified by their swirl of tomato sauce on top. To transport yourself to the shore, order from Seaside Heights’ Maruca’s Tomato Pies, the tomato pie gold standard since 1950.

The case for it: That sauce swirl is a work of art, and every bite tastes like summer on the boardwalk.

Bar Pie: Thin, Crispy & Built for a Pint

Bar pie is a tavern classic in two corners of the Northeast: New Jersey and Massachusetts’ South Shore. These personal-size pies have an ultra-thin, crispy crust, with cheese baked right up to the edge of the pan until it caramelizes. Get a taste from New Jersey’s The Columbia Inn and Massachusetts’ Cape Cod Cafe.

The case for it: Crispy, cheesy edge to edge, and sized so you never have to share.

St. Louis Style: Square Beyond Compare

Meet me in St. Louis for some insanely good pizza. St. Louis-style pizza has a cracker-thin, yeast-free crust topped with an oregano-heavy tomato sauce and Provel, a white processed cheese that melts into gooey deliciousness, all cut into squares. Picture-perfect St. Louis pizza comes from the city’s renowned Imo’s Pizza, going strong for more than 60 years.

The case for it: Provel. Love it or hate it, no other pizza tastes like this.

Old Forge Style, PA: The Dark Horse

It takes some nerve to call yourself “The Pizza Capital of the World,” but that’s exactly what the tiny town of Old Forge, Pennsylvania, has done. Old Forge pizza has a thick crust that’s light and airy, topped with plenty of cheese and sauce. You can try it without a trip to Lackawanna County by ordering from the town’s renowned Arcaro & Genell.

The case for it: It’s the self-proclaimed pizza capital of the world. Bold claims deserve a taste.

Buffalo Style: Thick, Cheesy & ‘Roni Cups

Buffalo-style pizza has a soft, fluffy crust and enough cheese to guarantee an epic cheese pull. Its signature topping is pepperoni, but not the wide, flat slices of a New York corner joint. Buffalo’s pepperoni is smaller and cut thicker, so the edges curl into little cups that fill with savory oil as it bakes, known as “cup & char” or “‘roni cups.” Get the real thing from Picasso’s Pizza, a Buffalo icon for more than 40 years, and La Nova.

The case for it: ‘Roni cups. Need we say more?

Baltimore Style: A Taste of The Chesapeake

Baltimore may not be the first city that comes to mind as a pizza town, but it has a style all its own. Baltimore pizza has a thick, focaccia-like crust and a whole lot of melty, stretchy cheese. Matthew’s Pizza is the city’s oldest pizzeria, and its signature crab pie is loaded with fresh Maryland crab, a nod to the state’s place on the Chesapeake Bay.

The case for it: Crab on pizza. Only in Maryland.

Minnesota Style: Thin, Crispy & Party-Cut

Minnesota-style pizza is all about a thin, crispy crust with toppings spread right to the edge, cut into squares so everyone at the table can grab a piece. Taste it from Hibbing’s Sammy’s Pizza on the Iron Range and Milaca’s Heggies Pizza, famous for its thin-crust pies in flavors from classic pepperoni to breakfast.

The case for it: Party-cut squares were made for sharing, so nobody fights over the last slice.

Miami Style: Square Pies in the Sunshine State

In Miami, the name that comes up first is Frankie’s Pizza, which bills itself as the city’s first pizzeria and is known for its square cheese and pepperoni pies. Explore more Miami-style pizza on Goldbelly.

The case for it: A homegrown square-pie tradition most pizza fans have never tried.

California Style: All About the Toppings

California-style pizzas are usually single-serving, with a crust similar to New York-style. Where they really stand apart is the toppings. When Wolfgang Puck popularized the style at his West Hollywood hotspot Spago in the 1980s, toppings like goat cheese, duck sausage, smoked salmon, prosciutto, and zucchini flowers were simply unheard of, inspired by the local, seasonal “California cuisine” movement. Order a taste of the original from Wolfgang Puck.

The case for it: It turned pizza into a canvas for fresh, seasonal ingredients.

Read More: What is National Pizza Month and How to Observe?

Pick Your Side: Taste Every Style From Coast to Coast

Where do you stand? The only way to settle the great pizza debate is to taste them all, side by side. Pizzas are on sale all October long for National Pizza Month, with up to 30% off in the Pizza Month Sale.