Six Chicago Pizzerias Just Earned National Acclaim — Here's How to Pick Yours

Chicago's pizza scene just scored a national double win. In October 2026, Food & Wine named two Chicago pies among its 27 "most essential pies in America right now," while DoorDash placed four local pizzerias on its national Top Pizza Spots list. That's six acclaimed spots across two separate lists — and none of them are the deep dish the city is famous for. Here's how to compare them and choose the one that fits your crust.

Chicago's Nationally Acclaimed Pizzerias: A 2026 Guide

Food & Wine's list, as reported by NBC Chicago, honored two very different Chicago pizzas: the No Comply at Milly's Pizza In The Pan and the Housemade Italian Beef and Giardiniera at Pizz'amici. Milly's earned its spot for "bringing back pan pizza" with inventive toppings — the No Comply layers 'nduja, ricotta and Italian saba syrup. Pizz'amici, meanwhile, was called "the herald of Chicago's tavern-style pizza renaissance," with a signature pie of thinly shaved, jus-simmered Chicago beef and hot giardiniera that the magazine says is "uniting the city (and perhaps the world) around this lesser-known style."

DoorDash's list, covered by Time Out Chicago, works differently. It draws from restaurants with fewer than 10 locations and at least 1,000 DoorDash reviews, ranked by average ratings from September 2025 through September 2026. Out of thousands of national contenders, four Chicago pizzerias made the cut: Happy Camper Pizza, Jimmy's Pizza Cafe, Piece Pizzeria & Brewery, and Robert's Pizza & Dough Company.

Chicago's Nationally Acclaimed Pizzerias: A Comparative Table

Use this table to match each spot's award source, style and signature offering to your own preferences. The Food & Wine honorees were selected by the magazine's editors; the DoorDash spots were ranked by customer ratings over a full year of delivery orders.

Six Chicago pizzerias recognized nationally in October 2026
Pizzeria	Recognized By	Pizza Style	Acclaimed For
Milly's Pizza In The Pan	Food & Wine's "most essential pies in America"	Pan	The No Comply — 'nduja, ricotta and Italian saba syrup; cited for "bringing back pan pizza"
Pizz'amici	Food & Wine's "most essential pies in America"	Tavern (cracker-thin crust)	Thinly shaved, jus-simmered Chicago beef and hot giardiniera
Happy Camper Pizza	DoorDash Top Pizza Spots	Thin-crust	Creative toppings and a fun, energetic vibe at this Old Town spot
Jimmy's Pizza Cafe	DoorDash Top Pizza Spots	New York-style	Giant, foldable slices with a crackly, light crust
Piece Pizzeria & Brewery	DoorDash Top Pizza Spots	New Haven-style	Crispy, chewy, charred pies in red, white or plain tomato base
Robert's Pizza & Dough Company	DoorDash Top Pizza Spots	Artisanal thin-crust	Slow-fermented crusts with toppings like caramelized onions and specialty cured meats

Understanding Chicago's Diverse Pizza Landscape

The clearest takeaway from these two lists: nationally acclaimed Chicago pizza in 2026 spans far more than one style. Here's what each crust means for your order.

Pan pizza (Milly's): A sturdy, golden-crusted pie baked in a pan, sturdy enough to carry inventive toppings like 'nduja and saba syrup. Food & Wine credits Milly's with reviving the style.
Tavern-style (Pizz'amici): Defined by its cracker-thin crust — the style Food & Wine says Pizz'amici is leading a renaissance of, with its beef-and-giardiniera pie as the flagship.
New York-style (Jimmy's): Giant slices you can fold in half, with a crackly, light crust — the classic street-corner experience.
New Haven-style (Piece): Crispy, chewy and charred, offered in red, white or plain tomato bases at this Wicker Park institution.
Artisanal thin-crust (Robert's): Slow-fermented dough treated as the centerpiece, topped with ingredients like caramelized onions and specialty cured meats.

Happy Camper's thin-crust pies round out the spectrum with creative toppings and a lively atmosphere, showing the DoorDash list rewards neighborhood favorites as much as technical craft. As DoorDash's head of U.S. restaurants, Ruth Isenstadt, put it: "Every neighborhood has a spot people are fiercely loyal to."