CHICAGO PIZZA EXPERT and author Steve Dolinsky and I take our seats at a red-and-white checkered picnic table out in front of My Pi Pizza in Chicago’s Bucktown neighborhood, just as owner Rich Aronson emerges with a signature deep-dish pizza. Rich cuts the pizza into quarters with the blade of a stiff metal spatula and lifts a slice by its crust, holding it high in the air to show that the crust is sturdy and crisp enough to support the weight of the cheese, sausage, and sauce without bending. “The original Chicago [deep-dish] pie looks like this one. It’s thin, you can hold it with your hands, it doesn’t flop,” Steve says.
The pizza itself is surprisingly light in texture with a noticeable flakiness to the crust. The toppings, an equal distribution of gooey mozzarella cheese, fragrant sausage, and herbaceous sauce, are balanced,
