New York vs. Chicago

Last week, we saw a show on Food Network (or some other channel that makes us hungry) about New York vs. Chicago style pizza. We have been on a major New York style pizza kick thanks to the Hi-Tone. I am absolutely addicted to their hot wing pizza. The boys are content to eat regular old pepperoni. The Hi-Tone is happy to make us a giant pizza with half hot wing and half pepperoni.


This delicious monster costs about $15. The Hi-Tone also does an amazing lunch buffet where you can order as many slices in as many flavors as you want. They are made to order, not hanging out under heat lamps! The buffet comes with a salad for $8. If you want a drink, it's $9. Lots of days they do a special where you can get a slice and a PBR for $4.

How awesome is that?

Now, I know you are thinking that the Hi-Tone isn't the most kid-friendly place ever, but it actually is. There's no reason why you can't take kids in at lunch, during Sunday brunch, Sunday afternoon family-friendly shows, or any evening before 8pm.

Well, after eating the Hi-Tone's amazing New York pizza more times than I care to admit, the aforementioned TV show got me craving a Chicago-style pizza. Ace's immediately came to mind, but when I called to see if they were open on Sunday, I found out that the number was no longer in service.

Bummed, I Googled "Chicago pizza + Memphis." The first (and only) thing that came up was Jimmy's. Oh yeah, Jimmy's! On our first visit, we only ate hot dogs, so I had forgotten that they served Chicago style pizza. They were closed on Sunday, so we made plans to go on Thursday.

Chicago style pizza takes a long time to cook, so Jimmy's recommends calling at least an hour in advance. I was super hungry by the time I called and initially ordered a large Chicago classic pizza and a small pepperoni for the kids. Then I started thinking about how deep Chicago pizza is and changed our order to two smalls. We couldn't wait to get there so we went a little early with plans to get a hot dog appetizer.

Warren had never been to Jimmy's so I was counting on him to get something exciting. He didn't disappoint. He went for the Chicago Fire dog. Behold:


It was so freaking hot! Look at those peppers!

The kids each got a plain hot dog and all of the hot dogs came with French fries. I had a few bites, but I was (not so) patiently waiting for the pizza. It finally arrived, piping hot, fresh out of the oven. It was about two inches thick and smelled great. I couldn't wait to dig in.


The pizza came with a knife and a spatula for us to serve ourselves. We probably should have waited a few minutes for it to cool down, but we were too excited.


It was really frustrating trying to cut through the thick crust and the pieces we scooped out melted into a pile of cheese.


We didn't let the aesthetics get in our way, we dug right in.


It was really, really good. But oh my, it was soooooo filling! Even after skipping the hot dog appetizer, I couldn't eat more than one piece. The kids could only eat about half a piece. I was really glad that I had changed our order to two smalls. Next time we'll definitely split one small. (And maybe try the Brat Obama sandwich!)

Jimmy wasn't there during our dinner, which was a bummer, since he is a character, but we enjoyed reading all of the funny "Chicago attitude" signs and Chicago newspaper clippings on the wall. We were also pleased to see several other families in the restaurant. (There's a Taekwondo studio next door and lots of people seem to come over after class.) On Wednesdays, Jimmy's now offers a kids eat free special.