David Dobrik's Favorite Pizza Every Time He's In Chicago - Exclusive
Opinions on Chicago as a pizza town are varied. Of course, there are some New Yorkers who claim that the pies that Chicago produces don't even count as pizza (Jon Stewart's infamous rant on "The Daily Show" is the ultimate example of this). But love it or hate it, there's no denying that the Windy City puts its own unique spin on this classic comfort food.
Vlogger, content creator, and Chicago native David Dobrik is trying to break new ground in the pizza world with his Los Angeles restaurant Doughbrik's, which opened in November 2022. The restaurant serves thick, substantial pizza in a new style dubbed "doughy" by its creator. It's not Chicago deep dish, nor is it a Detroit-style pie, but it takes some inspiration from those regional styles. As David Dobrik told Tasting Table in an exclusive interview, "People call it a Detroit-style pizza, or Chicago-style; they're a little bit confused about it — that makes me really stoked. ... There's so much pizza out there, so we wanted to make something that felt a little bit new and you could identify it easily as being ours."
It seems as though Dobrik's experiment is a success, judging by the long lines and huge crowds that Doughbrik's has attracted since it opened (via LA Magazine). But just because he's forging new ground doesn't mean he's forgotten his roots — he still has love for Chicago pizza. Dobrik shared the spots he likes to go to when he's back home.
Dobrik grew up on tavern pizza, but he loves deep dish
Although deep dish is the primary type of pizza that many people associate with Chicago, it's not actually the most common style eaten by locals. Instead, Chicagoans favor thin, tavern-style pies. "That's the actual pizza I grew up on: tavern-style pizza, cut into squares, cracker-thin. That was my favorite," David Dobrik said. These small, crispy slices of pizza are perfect for snacking. "You can pop them in your mouth like they're Cheez-Its. That's my favorite part about them — you can have about 30 and then you're still not full," he described. Dobrik plans to roll out tavern-style pizza at Doughbrik's soon as a complement to his signature doughy pizza.
Tavern may have been the pizza of his childhood, but these days, Dobrik loves visiting the famous deep-dish parlors in his hometown. Don't ask him to pick just one: "I love going to Gino's East. I love Lou Malnati's. My friends love to pick up Pequod's. Due's Pizzeria — I go there for deep dish every time I'm there."
Despite his love for Chicago's casserole-like deep dish, Dobrik acknowledges that it's a divisive pizza style. "It seems like not too many people like deep dish. You've got to be born into it," he said. As for us, we think pizza is beautiful in all its regional forms. Why can't we just celebrate the deliciousness of sauce, cheese, and toppings on bread, no matter how it's shaped?
You can eat Doughbrik's Pizza at its location at 8363 Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood.