Pizza may have been born in Naples, but America turned it into a whole family of regional styles. Every few hundred miles, the crust, cheese, sauce, cut, and even the oven change. A New Yorker folds a thin slice in half, a Chicagoan cuts into a towering deep dish or shares a square cut tavern pie, a Detroiter fights over the crispy cheese edges of a rectangular pan pizza, and a New Havener waits in line for a charred clam pie.
This guide explains 15 popular types of pizza, what makes each one distinctive, where it comes from, and what to order when you find it. It is a practical field guide for pizza lovers and a starting point for planning your next pizza pilgrimage.
The 15 styles covered here are Neapolitan, New York, Chicago deep dish, Chicago tavern style, Detroit, Sicilian, Grandma, New Haven apizza, St. Louis, California, Roman al taglio, Trenton tomato pie, Greek (New England), Quad City, and grilled pizza. They differ mainly in crust thickness, bake method, cheese, sauce placement, and how the pie is cut.
| Style | Home base | Crust | Signature detail |
|---|
| Neapolitan | Naples, Italy | Soft, puffy, leopard spotted | Baked about 60 to 90 seconds in a very hot wood oven |
| New York | New York City | Thin, foldable | Large slices eaten folded |
| Chicago deep dish | Chicago | Tall, buttery pan crust | Cheese under chunky tomato sauce |
| Chicago tavern style | Chicago | Cracker thin | Cut into squares |
| Detroit | Detroit | Thick, airy, rectangular | Crispy caramelized cheese edges |
| Sicilian | Sicily and Italian American bakeries | Thick, spongy, square | Baked in a sheet pan |
| Grandma | Long Island, New York | Thin pan crust | Cheese first, sauce dotted on top |
| New Haven apizza | New Haven, Connecticut | Thin, charred, chewy | White clam pie |
| St. Louis | St. Louis | Unleavened cracker thin | Provel cheese, square cut |
| California | California | Thin, often wood fired | Creative, chef driven toppings |
| Roman al taglio | Rome | Airy, crisp rectangle | Sold by the slice, cut with scissors |
| Trenton tomato pie | Trenton, New Jersey | Thin and crisp | Tomatoes on top of the cheese |
| Greek (New England) | New England | Thick, chewy, oily pan crust | Baked in oiled metal pans |
| Quad City | Quad Cities, Iowa and Illinois | Malt flavored, nutty | Cut into strips with scissors |
| Grilled | Providence, Rhode Island | Thin, smoky, charred | Cooked directly over a grill |
Neapolitan pizza is the ancestor of them all. True Neapolitan pizza uses a soft dough of flour, water, salt, and yeast, stretched by hand, topped simply with San Marzano style tomatoes, mozzarella or buffalo mozzarella, basil, and olive oil, and baked for about 60 to 90 seconds in a wood fired oven heated to roughly 900 degrees Fahrenheit. The result has a puffy, blistered rim (the cornicione) with leopard spotting and a soft, slightly soupy center. The Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, founded in 1984, certifies pizzerias that follow traditional rules, and the European Union granted Neapolitan pizza protected traditional specialty status in 2009. Order a Margherita or marinara to judge a pizzeria. Our guides to where pizza originated and what makes pizza authentic explain the tradition in depth.
New York pizza descends from Neapolitan pizza brought by Italian immigrants. Lombardi's in Manhattan is often credited as America's first licensed pizzeria, dating to 1905. New York pizza has a thin, crisp yet foldable crust, a light layer of tomato sauce, and low moisture mozzarella, baked in gas or coal fired deck ovens. It is sold as large whole pies or by the slice, and locals fold each slice lengthwise to eat it on the go. Read our history of New York pizza.
Chicago deep dish, popularized by Pizzeria Uno in 1943, is baked in a tall, round pan with a buttery, biscuit like crust. The layers are reversed: cheese goes on the bottom, then toppings such as sausage, and finally a chunky tomato sauce on top to protect the cheese during a long bake. Expect a 30 to 45 minute wait and a knife and fork. Our history of Chicago deep dish pizza tells the full story.
Many Chicagoans will tell you the city's everyday pizza is not deep dish at all but tavern style: a cracker thin, crispy crust topped edge to edge and cut into small squares, sometimes called a party cut. It grew up in neighborhood taverns as a salty bar snack. Fennel sausage is the classic topping. See our guide to Chicago tavern style pizza, and browse restaurants in Chicago.
Detroit style pizza was born at Buddy's in 1946, reportedly baked in blue steel pans originally used for automotive parts. The thick, airy, focaccia like crust is topped with Wisconsin brick cheese spread all the way to the edges, where it caramelizes into a crunchy frico crust. Sauce is ladled on top in stripes after baking or near the end. It is cut into squares, and the corner pieces are prized. Read our history of Detroit style pizza.
Sicilian pizza in America is a thick, spongy, square pie baked in a rectangular sheet pan. It descends from sfincione, a focaccia like pie from Palermo topped with tomato sauce, onions, anchovies, and breadcrumbs. Italian American pizzerias usually top it with tomato sauce and mozzarella. It is sold by the square slice in many New York area pizzerias.
Grandma pizza comes from Long Island, inspired by the pan pizzas Italian American grandmothers made at home. Thinner than Sicilian, it is pressed into an oiled sheet pan, topped with mozzarella and then dollops or streaks of uncooked crushed tomatoes with garlic and basil, and baked until the bottom is crisp. It has become a staple of New York and New Jersey pizzerias.
In New Haven, Connecticut, pizza is called apizza (pronounced roughly "ah beets"). Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana, founded in 1925, and later Sally's Apizza made it famous. Apizza is oblong, thin, chewy, and heavily charred from coal or oil fired ovens. A plain pie may come with just tomato and grated cheese; ask for "mozz" if you want mozzarella. The signature order is the white clam pie: fresh clams, garlic, olive oil, oregano, and grated cheese, with no tomato sauce.
St. Louis pizza has an unleavened, cracker thin crust, a slightly sweet sauce, and Provel, a processed blend of cheddar, Swiss, and provolone with a gooey texture and smoky tang. It is cut into squares. Imo's Pizza, founded in 1964, is the best known local chain. Locals love it; visitors are often surprised by the cheese.
California pizza emerged in the 1980s, when chefs at restaurants such as Spago in Los Angeles began topping thin, often wood fired crusts with nontraditional ingredients like smoked salmon, goat cheese, duck sausage, and barbecue chicken. California Pizza Kitchen, founded in 1985, brought the style to malls across the country. It is defined less by crust than by creative, seasonal, chef driven toppings.
In Rome, pizza al taglio ("by the cut") is baked in large rectangular pans from a high hydration dough that produces an airy, open crumb and a crisp base. Shops display long trays with many toppings, then cut pieces to the size you want with scissors and sell them by weight. It is gaining fans in American cities through Roman style pizzerias and bakeries.
In Trenton, New Jersey, the classic pie is the tomato pie: a thin, crisp, round pizza with cheese and toppings on the dough and crushed tomatoes on top. Papa's Tomato Pies, founded in 1912 and now in Robbinsville, is often described as the oldest continuously operating, family owned pizzeria in the United States. Read our guide to New Jersey tomato pie, which also covers the square bakery tomato pie of South Jersey and Philadelphia, and browse restaurants in Trenton.
Across New England, many neighborhood "house of pizza" shops, often run by Greek American families, make Greek style pizza. It is baked in oiled round metal pans, giving a thick, chewy crust with a crisp, almost fried bottom. Cheese is often a blend that includes cheddar, and oregano is common. It is not topped with Greek ingredients by default, though feta and olives often appear on specialty pies.
From the Quad Cities along the Iowa and Illinois border, this style has a malt flavored, nutty crust, a spicy tomato sauce with a red pepper kick, and toppings, often fennel sausage, placed under the cheese. It is cut into long strips with scissors rather than wedges or squares.
Grilled pizza was popularized at Al Forno in Providence, Rhode Island, which began serving it around 1980. A thin dough is cooked directly on a hot grill, flipped, then lightly topped and finished over the flames, producing a smoky, charred, crisp crust. It has spread to backyard grills and restaurant menus nationwide.
- Pan pizza: the thick, fried bottom style popularized by national chains.
- Coal fired pizza: New York and New Haven pizzerias using coal ovens for an intense char.
- Philadelphia tomato pie: a thick, square, room temperature pie topped with sweet tomato gravy and grated cheese.
- Bar pies: small, thin, crispy pies served in taverns across the Northeast and Midwest.
- Love a crispy crust? Try tavern style, St. Louis, Trenton tomato pie, or grilled pizza.
- Love a soft, chewy crust? Neapolitan, New York, or New Haven apizza.
- Love thick and hearty? Chicago deep dish, Detroit, Sicilian, or Greek pizza.
- Love crunchy cheese edges? Detroit style.
- Love creative toppings? California style.
Many pizzerias now offer gluten free crusts, but shared ovens and flour heavy kitchens create real cross contact risks for people with celiac disease; see our guide to gluten free pizza and dedicated ovens. If you are watching cholesterol or saturated fat, thinner crusts with vegetable toppings and less cheese are lighter choices; our article on pizza and cholesterol explains more.
Whether you want a charred Neapolitan pie or a cracker thin tavern pizza, use our Italian restaurants near you directory to find pizzerias in your area, and check out regional favorites such as Barraco's in Evergreen Park on Chicago's South Side.
Pizza in America is not one food but a family of regional traditions, from the soft, blistered Neapolitan pie to New York's foldable slice, Chicago's deep dish and tavern pies, Detroit's crispy edged squares, New Haven's charred clam pie, St. Louis's Provel topped crackers, and Trenton's tomato pie. Each reflects the immigrants, ovens, and tastes of the place that made it. Try a few, pick a favorite, and then argue about it like a local. For more on Italian food history, explore our history of Italian cuisine.
Frequently asked questions
Popular styles include Neapolitan, New York, Chicago deep dish, Chicago tavern style, Detroit, Sicilian, Grandma, New Haven apizza, St. Louis, California, Roman al taglio, Trenton tomato pie, Greek, Quad City, and grilled pizza.
Neapolitan pizza has a soft, puffy, blistered crust and is baked for about 60 to 90 seconds in a very hot wood oven. New York pizza is larger, thinner, crisper, and foldable, baked in gas or coal deck ovens.
Detroit pizza is baked in rectangular steel pans with a thick, airy crust and cheese spread to the edges, where it caramelizes into a crunchy crust. Sauce is added on top in stripes.
Apizza is New Haven's thin, chewy, heavily charred pizza, made famous by Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana, founded in 1925. Its signature is the white clam pie.
St. Louis pizza uses Provel, a processed blend of cheddar, Swiss, and provolone, on a cracker thin, unleavened crust cut into squares.
Not necessarily. Many locals eat thin, square cut tavern style pizza more often than deep dish.
Reviewed and verified by the Restaurant Listings Editorial Team for accuracy and relevance. Our content is researched using official restaurant sources, public records, government agencies, and recognized food safety and hospitality industry resources.
Last reviewed: October 2026
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