Historian has definitive answer on who was the first to serve deep dish pizza in Chicago
CHICAGO (CBS) – It's National Pizza Day.
Morning Insider Lauren Victory took a deep dive into deep dish history.
No ifs, ands, or buts – deep-dish pizza is a hot Chicago commodity. But an icy argument sometimes circles the internet: Who first created the city staple?
Cultural historian Tim Samuelson is quite sure the person behind the tomato-y treasure is Ric Riccardo.
"There's no debate at all," he said.
In 1943, the artist-turned-pizza connoisseur took over an Ohio Street bar at what's now Pizzeria Uno. His patrons got hungry, so he got creative in the kitchen.
"They would put samples out on the bar for people to try and it was like, you know, 'What's this?'" Samuelson said.
Riccardo's free bar food eventually took off but the restaurant ran into some financial trouble.
That's why Pizzeria Uno pays homage to a different man named Ike Sewell.
"He wasn't the cook. He wasn't the chef, but he's the one that saved the place," Samuelson said. "If it wasn't for Ike Sewell, this place would've disappeared almost as soon as it started. Nobody would know what this pizza would be today."
Therefore, nobody would ever have tasted Gino's East Pizza - which opened in 1966. Its take on deep dish came from Alice Mae Redmond, who worked as a cook at Pizzeria Uno first. She's not the only employee who left.
"Rudy was here, also his son Lou was a bartender," Samuelson said, referring to the Malnati family.
In 1971, the first Lou Malnati's in Lincolnwood brought a new twist to the deep-dish dining experience.
"It had animal prints on the banquettes," Samuelson said. "Everything but your traditional, little kind of Italian restaurant, and of course, those are all over the place today."
Big pizza player, Giordano's doesn't trace its lineage to Pizzeria Uno. The popular Pequod's and Morton Grove favorite, Burt's Place, also don't have ties.
Still, no matter the online chatter, Samuelson is adamant that culinary credit must go to the artist for inventing Chicago deep dish.
Victory: "And there's no Riccardo family that's paying you so say?"
Samuelson: "Absolutely not. This is totally objective. I mean, I know this is Chicago, but what I'm saying is on the legit."
