Pizza may technically be Italian cuisine, but it's morphed into an American fast food staple. American pizza is very different from the Continental version, which generally has less cheese, whole basil, and comes in an unsliced pie. Here in the States, most of our pizza is one of two types-- New York or Chicago style. I'm from Brooklyn, so I'm completely biased in favor of New York pizza, but I'm going to attempt to open my mind and determine once and for all which style is truly superior.

History: Pizza came to New York in 1905 when Gennaro Lombardi opened his eponymous restaurant Lombardi's in Little Italy. Though New York pizza is famous for having a thin crust, it's thicker than what you'd find on authentic Italian pizza. John Brescio, the current owner of Lombardi's says that "Neapolitan pizza is cracker thin, single serving smaller pies, eaten as a snack" while New York style pizza is "a take on Neapolitan style designed to feed a family {that's] typically eaten by the slice." Though it's hard to find truly bad pizza in New York, most of the places to get a slice in the city are far from gourmet. Like most of the best pizza places in New York, Lombardi's only serves whole pies and not individual slices. If you just want to grab a slice, but still want something good, I recommend Joe's in the West Village or Pizza Plus in Brooklyn.

Chicago style pizza wasn't invented until the original Pizzeria Uno opened on the corner of Ohio Street and Wabash Avenue in 1943 and founder Ike Sewell began piling ingredients in a deep dish pan on top of a baked cornmeal crust. Today, Uno is a crappy chain restaurant, but the original location in the Windy City still serves up some of the city's best deep dish pizza. Gino's East, Giordano's, and Lou Malnati's also come highly recommended. Since it's been around longer, bears more resemblance to pizza from the motherland, and hasn't had it's birthplace sullied by franchising, New York style pizza beats Chicago deep dish when it comes to history and authenticity.

Crust: No bread baked in a pan could possibly compare to a crispy, thin New York-style pizza crust made in a brick oven. The smoky taste is the perfect complement to tomato sauce and mozzarella and deep dish pizza crusts have a tendency to get overly soggy. As far as I'm concerned, New York style pizza wins this one in a landslide. To see what I mean, try the best brick oven in the Big Apple at John's Pizzeria on Bleecker Street. No one could make it through a meal there without becoming a thin crust disciple.

Toppings: Chicago-style and New York City pizzas can both come loaded with a wide variety of toppings, but Chi-town pies can hold much more meat, cheese, and veggie goodness. Pizzeria Uno's web site says their original recipe "combined some of Italy's old, authentic recipes with impressive quantities" of food. When it comes to toppings, even a fully loaded New York style pizza can't weigh in against a deep dish Chicago style pie.

Verdict:

New York style pizza has a tastier crust and is way more old school. Chicago-style pies may be able to pack on more toppings, but quantity never beats quality when it comes to food.