Easily the best pizza I've ever had in my life. Easily. Josh, you shoulda been there.

The setting: I went to Black Thorn a couple Sundays ago with a group of friends. It's a tiny place, tucked away so much that I never knew it was right around the corner from my best friend's house. It was decorated mostly with grafitti covering the walls, everything from stickers to intricate doodles to large chalk drawings. It was dark, it was kinda creepy, and it had games.

I played some mean shuffle board, despite the fact that the table was low on that grain/salt stuff. I still won. A lot. Also there was Ms. Pac Man, a $4 golfing video game, Galaga, Donkey Kong, air hockey, foosball, darts, and a Terminator 3 pinball machine.

Thankfully they had all those games; we ordered pizza... and waited about an hour for it to be ready. It was worth it. It claims to be Chicago-style, but, having eaten actual Chicago-style in Chicago, it wasn't.

It was however, the best pizza I've eaten in my life. (See above) It's also made from scratch. The sauce was garlicy and almost spicy. It was super cheesy, and good cheese too. Sausage and pepperoni. It may not have been Chicago-style, but damned if it wasn't just as filling. I ate a slice and (reluctantly) a half and was considerably uncomfortable for the rest of the evening.

It was well worth the wait, though I must say, by the end of that hour or so, all I could do was sit at the table and complain with everyone else about how hungry I was. It was comparable to when your mom fixed dinner when you were a kid. You'd ask how much longer, and when she said, "About 15 minutes," you thought you were going to die waiting for those minutes to pass.

Who knew that such a dingy, hole-in-the-wall looking pub could host this miraculous gift to the pizza world?

Full, Kate

Black Thorn Pub
3735 Wyoming Street
St. Louis, MO 63116

Everyday on my way to work I pass by a place called Got Pizza? It boasts "authentic New York style giant slices." And while I love the Chicago Style pizza with which I have grown up, every now and then I want a big slice that I can just fold in half and go to town on. So when I decided to stop in today I was a little sad that all I ended up with was a big slice of disappointment.

The first thing I saw when I walked in was a guy sitting behind the counter reading the help wanted ads. Encouraging! Then I asked for a slice of cheese (which was way overpriced), and was left waiting for three minutes while they heated it up. I then watched in horror as the guy took my beautiful giant slice and cut it down the middle, making two smaller slices. What is the point of boasting giant slices if you are just going to cut them in half?! Sigh. In the end it didn't even taste that great.

Chicago may be the second city to New York, but it's clearly not second when it comes to pizza.

Sliced, Josh

Got Pizza?
1234 N Halsted St.
Chicago, IL 60622

When you come to St. Louis, basically you have a couple places to choose from for "authentic" St. Louis style pizza: Imo's and Cecil Whitaker's. Last night I had the pleasure of having Imo's pizza. First, a description of St. Louis Style pizza:

A thin, cracker-like crust. ...that's pretty much all I know about it.

Imo's pizza has this super thin, saltine-esque crust, with a "zesty" tomato sauce, provel cheese, and it's cut into squares. I had the veggie pizza which had broccoli, green peppers, mushroom, onions, and tomatoes on it. A lot of toppings for such a fragile (read: frah-GILE) crust. But it held its own. It really held its own.

The cheese is unusual. It's the kind where it gets stuck behind your front teeth after you take a bite. But it's really very good. I recommend it. I have yet to try CW's, and, believe me, you'll be the first to know what it's like.

Love, Kate

Imo's Pizza
1100 Hwy. 157 S.
Edwardsville, IL 62025