a taste of chicago

mmmmmm, chicago style stuffed pizza. one of the most enjoyable foods that the windy city has to offer...and one that we miss dearly.

last weekend, after an afternoon of walking, we headed into east bay to try a local pizza legend, zachary's, rumored to have "deep dish that's the best this side of the mississippi".

the restaurant was packed for a sunday night, with the wait at about 45 to 50 minutes for a table in the tiny and extremely crowded dining area. people stood shoulder to shoulder in the entry way, spilling out onto the sidewalk surrounding the restaurant, all eager to enjoy what we were hoping would even slightly resemble good pizza.

thankfully the management had the good sense to understand that once seated, hungry tummy's don't want to wait through the additional half-hour for baking time. we were offered the opportunity to order our pizza's ahead of time (excellent option!), and we waited in anticipation.

once seated, mark quickly received his sausage-pepperoni-and-extra-cheese-with-anchovies-on-the-side pizza, and i, zachary's "pride and joy" spinach and mushroom combination, stuffed into a whole wheat crust.

we dug in. and what we tasted was a little piece of home.

it was authentic, i tell you. even mark - a tough critic of stuffed pizza - thought it was delicious! we agreed that the original crust most closely resembles that of giordano's- our favorite deep dish in chicago.

we left that night with lots of leftovers, full to the brim, extremely content, and proud that "chicago style" has made a name for itself on the west coast.