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6 Worst Rated Midwestern American Pizzas

Last updated on May 21, 2026
01

Quad City-Style Pizza

2.7 ·

This unique pizza style originates from the Quad Cities region of Iowa and Illinois and is characterized by an unusual strip cut and a slightly spicy sauce. The crust has a nutty taste due to a generous amount of malt syrup, and the sauce contains chili and cayenne pepper flakes. The pork sausage used for the topping should be cooked and allowed to rest in its juices for several hours before being spread over the entire pizza. Due to its malt-enriched crust, this dish naturally pairs well with beer.

02

Stuffed Pizza

3.4 ·

Stuffed pizza is an American pizza that started its way to popularity in Chicago a bit later than the deep-dish pizza, with which it shares many similarities. It has a more solid and smooth crust than the deep-dish pizza. The dough is also a bit drier and sweeter. The pizza is topped with a generous amount of cheese and various other ingredients such as vegetables and crumbled sausages. The next thing that goes on top is another thin layer of dough (hence the name stuffed pizza), usually with slits cut into it so that it lets moisture out while it cooks. And finally, the pizza is topped with tomato sauce before baking.

03

St. Louis-Style Pizza

3.4 ·

St. Louis-style pizza is a unique type of pizza originating in the Midwestern American city of St. Louis, Missouri and the surrounding areas. Unlike regular pizzas, the crust is very thin and cut into squares or rectangles instead of wedges, but it can still be layered with many different toppings. The pizza is typically prepared with Provel, a processed cheese made by combining Provolone, Swiss cheese, and white Cheddar. Although there are various recipes for this dish, they all seem to derive from Imo's, a popular pizza chain from St. Louis.

04

Chicago-style deep dish pizza

3.7 ·

In the late 1800s and the early 1900s, Neapolitan immigrants came to the USA in search of a better life. Shortly after, in 1943, their descendants, Ike Sewell and Ric Riccardo had opened Pizzeria Uno in Chicago, serving a new variety of pizza in a deeper dish, with inverted layers of cheese, meat, and tomatoes, and a crunchy crust. No longer an immigrant tradition, Chicago-style deep dish pizza is now one of Chicago's cultural and culinary icons. The dish is not just popular in Chicago, but all over the world, and its popularity is evident in the fact that there is even a National Deep Dish Pizza Day, celebrated every year on April 5. Thick, hearty and crispy, Chicago-style deep dish is a cheesy and gooey treat for pizza lovers throughout the world.

05

Chicago Thin Crust Pizza

3.7 ·

Apart from the crispy, almost cracker-thin crust, this Chicago-style pizza features a heavily herbed, zesty tomato sauce and generous amounts of shredded mozzarella. As for the other toppings, pepperoni is widely available but often comes second to crumbled Italian sausage, and then there's also bacon, prosciutto, and a variety of vegetables. The number one choice among locals, Chicago thin crust is typically cut into squares—the so-called box cut, tavern-style, or party cut—and unlike its New York counterpart, it doesn't fold up. In fact, the Chicagoans would say you should "fold your laundry, not your pizza".

06

Detroit-Style Pizza

3.8 ·

Detroit-style pizza is a square pizza characterized by a thick deep-dish crisp crust and inverted toppings. Cheese is applied directly to the top of the dough, followed by a thick tomato sauce that is seasoned with garlic and spices. The most common topping is pepperoni, put either on top of the sauce or buried underneath the cheese. Detroit-style pizza can be traced back to Buddy's Rendezvous in 1946, and thanks to its popularity, it is now available nationwide. This dish is best paired with beer or wine.

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About this ranking

TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. For the “6 Worst Rated Midwestern American Pizzas” list until May 21, 2026, 765 ratings were recorded, of which 661 were recognized by the system as legitimate. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.

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