Lou Malnatis Pizzeria
Company Details
Tuesday: 11AM-11PM
Wednesday: 11AM-11PM
Thursday: 11AM-11PM
Friday: 11AM-12AM
Saturday: 11AM-12AM
Sunday: 11AM-11PM
Contact Information
Chicago, Illinois, 60654
United States
Lou Malnatis Pizzeria Reviews
Submitted by Iva Nu on 08/31/2022
Iva Nu 4 stars rating.
Friendly place to get an authentic Chicago deep pan pizza. We had to wait around 10-15 minutes for a walk in table but our waiter was quick and attentive. Excellent pizza with a very buttery pastry! The decor is classic with dim lighting and prices are OK ish.
Submitted by Theresa Moore on 08/21/2022
Theresa Moore 2 stars rating.
I wish I had a better review this time. We went to one Lou Malnati's and the weight was about an hour and 30 minutes. So we decided to walk another 10 minutes to the River North Lou Malnati's. We ordered a salad salad was delicious ordered a couple of drinks the drinks were great when we got our pizza 45 minutes later it was actually burn. Super disappointed I can't believe the waiter actually brought it over to our table and told us that if we didn't like it he could see if the manager could take something off. We took one bite and identified we could not eat it. Then we got the manager and the manager said she could Rush one out for us in 20 minutes. No thanks we cut our losses.????
Submitted by Matthew Crawford on 08/15/2022
Matthew Crawford 5 stars rating.
The pizza was very delicious. The suave was the right consistency and flavor. The cheese was stringy and thick. Make sure to get the butter crust and crumble the sausage or it will be a flat sheet. The service was very good with really nice staff. I order a chicken breast sandwich too and it was good. We also ordered the family salad and it was very fresh with tasty dressing.
Submitted by Lucas Daneri on 08/14/2022
Lucas Daneri 5 stars rating.
The staff was super friendly. I also do have to commend them for changing my mind about deep dish pizza.
I had it many years ago and I still remember hating it. I went because my best friend recommended and I was touring my fiance around and now I can honestly say I like it!
Thank you Lou!
Submitted by Leanne Taylor on 08/13/2022
Leanne Taylor 5 stars rating.
On August 10 I went to Lou’s for a work-event dinner - there were 10 of us who arrived around 6:00pm (Wednesday). There are no reservations allowed so we took our chances. We ended up waiting about 20 minutes at the bar (where we were all served a fabulous round of cocktails, beer and wine) before being moved to our tables. Now we couldn’t all sit together but that was ok! We did take the hostess’s advice and that was to pre-order our pizza because it would take 35-40 minutes to prep and cook. Yes - each pizza is made fresh to order. Once we got to our tables we were greeted by a lovely server bringing us big glasses of water and another round of drinks. We ordered family style salad (blue cheese, olives, tomatoes, fried minced pieces of salami - this salad is to die for!!). As promised, our pizza was delivered around 40 minutes after initial arrival and personally dishes out by the server. This by far was the best pizza, let alone deep dish - that we/I had ever tasted! We had the meat lovers and the Lou Special. Two large pizzas and one small gluten free pizza fed all 10 of us with four pieces taken to-go. We also had calamari appetizer. The group of us had such a great time, and I was so impressed with the pizza, that two days later I came back with my hubby for lunch. We arrived around noon and had a lovely table for two on the patio - it was great!! We shared the salad and the Lou’s small special pizza. Plenty enough food. Highly recommend for lunch or dinner. Just know you cannot make a reservation and the pizza does take 30-40 mins. In other words, chill out, have a cocktail, pre-order your pizza and enjoy yourself. It’s worth waiting for!!
Submitted by Tianhui Yang on 07/26/2022
Tianhui Yang 4 stars rating.
Heard a lot of great things about deep dishes in Chicago and had to try it. Ordered the small “Lou” with pepperoni on top to share with a friend. It was delicious but I think sausage would have been better instead of pepperoni. A small was a little too much for my friend and I so if I were to come back I would probably share a personal size. WARNING: because of the nature of this dish, we waited over one hour for our dishes to arrive (the server said it would be a 45 minute wait). I would recommend ordering an app to snack on while time passes. My other 2 male friends ordered a medium Malnati Chicago classic with green peppers on top. I personally liked the Lou more because it tasted lighter.
Submitted by Ashley Johnson on 07/11/2022
Ashley Johnson 5 stars rating.
Lou Malnati's never disappoints! As someone who comes to Chicago regularly and has for years, it's one of my favorite places for deep-dish pizza.
Arrive early or prepare to wait awhile. Everyone pizza takes a full hour to cook, but it's so worth it. If you're looking for a true Chicago-style pizza, this is a great option.
Submitted by Star Bourboli on 07/04/2022
Star Bourboli 5 stars rating.
After living for years in Chicago, it was nice to be back for business and to be able to enjoy some deep dish pie just like the old days. I love that their crust is vegan unless you order the butter style. So check the website before you order. I did mine as a tomato pie with veggies and the crust still made my individual pizza amazing and worth the price tag. This location also did a great job delivering to us on site at work downtown, so I highly recommend them both based on the quality of their product and their service. For work we did thin crust and it was cut into little squares and we were provided serving utensils, napkins and plates, which made a company lunch super easy. Lou's always wins the Chicago deep dish battle with me! I have a lot of friends on the other side of this fence, but until they're vegan friendly and offer such great service, I'll be hanging with Lou.
Submitted by Scott Ring on 06/28/2022
Scott Ring 5 stars rating.
We went to the Michigan Avenue location first which is a tourist heavy area. Since there was a 30 minute wait there, we walked over to this River North location. We walked in and were seated immediately. The service was good and the food was great. We ordered the combo appetizer plate and a Lou Malnati small sausage pizza for the two of us. There is a relaxed vibe here. I highly recommend this location. This is my second time visiting this location with great experiences both times.
Submitted by Vee Ly on 06/20/2022
Vee Ly 5 stars rating.
We got deep-dish pizza here and it was amazing! We built our own pizza with sausage, pepperoni, onions, and basil. It was amazing! I feel like the vegetables made the pizza a little too saucy. But it was still really good! The server was amazing! Really friendly! They do make it to order so you do have to wait 30 to 45 minutes for the pizza to be ready after you order. They do recommend you call and order ahead before you get to the restaurant so you do not have to wait as long. It is a much try!
Submitted by OpticShogun on 06/18/2022
OpticShogun 4 stars rating.
The dine-in experience was great. The atmosphere was cozy and the staff was friendly. The original mule they have on the bar is one of the best I’ve ever had. We had a pepperoni deep dish with some garlic bread as appetizers. The food was delicious, although it was a bit much for two people to finish. I’d definitely visit again and try a different dish of pizza.
Submitted by Rafael Marfil on 06/08/2022
Rafael Marfil 5 stars rating.
You can't come to Chicago and not stop in for the best Deep Dish Pizza in the city. The cheese pull in my picture should tell you all you need to know. We were able to call ahead and reserve a spot while we were walking up to the location, and they had a table ready for us by the time we got there. Great food, good service, cold beer. This is our favorite location (the same can't be said about the Michigan Ave location). We'll always come back.
Submitted by Gaguk Yudiarinto on 06/05/2022
Gaguk Yudiarinto 5 stars rating.
Lou Malnati's Pizzeria
Lou Malnati got his start in the 1940s working in Chicago's first deep dish pizzeria. In 1971, Lou took his pizza expertise to Lincolnwood, where he and his wife Jean opened the original Lou Malnati's Pizzeria...and the rest is history! Dig in to a slice of Chicago's best deep dish pizza today.
Considered the oldest family name in Chicago pizza, Lou Malnati's is as rich in history as its pizza is in flavor.
Lets enjoy it as I did..!
Submitted by Luis Fonseca on 06/01/2022
Luis Fonseca 4 stars rating.
Service was fast and right on point. Pizza is amazing, the personal size is more than enough for one hungry adult. Good price x good pizza. Better is you reserve your place as most of the time in prime time or weekend there are waiting lists... Especially in downtown branches.
Submitted by Huong Dang on 05/31/2022
Huong Dang 5 stars rating.
I came to a Chicago deep dish pizza restaurant and ordered everything but the pizza. And honestly, I think I made a great choice for myself because my friend didn’t seem to like her pizza. The bruschetta was my absolute favorite out of everything. A close contender was the tiramisu. I was so content with all the carbs that I consumed here. I’ll definitely be back the next time I’m in town.
Submitted by Michael Moroz on 04/30/2022
Michael Moroz 5 stars rating.
Great pizza and great service!
We enjoyed our meal here :)
Deep dish pizza and coffee were delicious!
Music is great too, we felt ourselves comfy here))
Will come back here for sure!
Thank you so much Lou!)))
Submitted by Mark West on 04/19/2022
Mark West 5 stars rating.
Outstanding pizza, unique to Chicago. The service, local feel and deliciousness were all on display. We ate here twice over a long weekend!
Submitted by Kelsey Contreras on 03/07/2022
Kelsey Contreras 5 stars rating.
I tried a deep dish and a thin crust pizza. I thought both were delicious and meet all of my expectations for Chicago deep dish pizza. The ingredients were fresh and good quality. The bar drinks were also good and well priced.
Submitted by Ryan Kwong on 01/23/2022
Ryan Kwong 3 stars rating.
I'm from NYC and was visiting Chicago for the first time with my parents. Of course, we plan to try Chicago deep-dish pizza and with careful research, Lou Malnati's turned out to be our to-go spot for it. During my research, I learned there are slight variations of the deep dish pizza but Lou Malnati's deep dish is one of the closest that anybody can get to the original deep dish recipe.
We arrived late afternoon and waited about 15 minutes to get a table, then another 30 minutes for the "The Malnati Chicago Classic Pizza" pie. We decided to order the BBQ chicken wings as an appetizer as we waited for the pie. The BBQ wings were better than I expected; the BBQ sauce was not too overpowering and each chicken wing consistently had a nice delicate crunch as I bit down on it.
Then the deep dish pie arrived and it looked so amazing. Our server sliced the pie for us, then left us alone to experience the deep dish and all of its glory. After the first few bites, I feel like something was missing. I try to read my parent's reactions and concluded they were also in the same boat. We were eating this pizza with the same mannerisms as we were eating pizza from Costco. The pizza was good; the ingredients were fresh and the crust was buttery, but it needed something to take it to the next level.
Maybe I had high expectations, but nevertheless Lou Malnati's deep dish pizza was not memorable nor will I accept this as THE deep dish pizza. My quest to experience Chicago's glorious deep dish pizza continues...
Submitted by Harout A on 12/06/2021
Harout A 5 stars rating.
Widely known Chicago pizza spot for a reason! A handful of options to pick from.. pretty sure all are super delicious, at least the ones we tried were heavenly! The place is huge and spacious with lots of seating. Highly recommended if you wanna experience the authentic Chicago style pizza.
