5 Styles Of Pizza Hut Pizza, Ranked

Ordering pizza is a happy ritual in my family, both now as a parent and when I was but a wee lass. It's a simple meal, and the hardest part is deciding what pizza to order. It's even harder to do if you're ordering for multiple people with varying taste preferences. Pizza Hut is a big player in the pizza chain-restaurant game, along with places like Papa Johns and Domino's. I've previously ranked several Little Caesars pizzas, and I wanted to test the Hut's various pizza styles to find which one was the best. 

I opted for pepperoni since it's a classic flavor and can show how each style holds up against greasy toppings. It doesn't hurt that you can find pepperoni at many pizza chains, so it's a great way to show what the Hut does best. Ordering two types of pepperoni (traditional and crispy cupped) is one of the best ways to upgrade Pizza Hut's pepperoni pizza, so I went that route. I tested the 'zas based on the taste and texture of the crust and how well it held up against the other ingredients (sauce, cheese, and pepperoni; granted, there was quite a lot of crossover there). Let's find the best. I'll save you a slice.

Pizza Hut's Tavern-style option has a thin, square crust with Hut Dust sprinkled on top. The pizza lives up to its description; it is indeed quite thin with a crispy exterior crust. However, it doesn't seem like the employees put the dust on, as it is clearly visible in other customer photos. On the plus side, the toppings hold up against the very thin crust. Of course, this is a great option if you don't want something as crust-heavy, since it's not only thin but also has very little crust on the edge. It is like a crunchy, flaky, buttery cracker with sauce and melted cheese.

That said, it doesn't exactly hit the pizza craving; it's more like the tortilla pizzas I make at home when I'm running low on ingredients. Given that it's not much different in price from pretty much every other pizza on the list, it doesn't seem like a very good value, especially with the so-so execution. 

The bottom portion is quite crispy and flaky, so I will say it holds up after cooling without getting soggy. I can appreciate the crunch of the pepperoni and the overall structure of the crust; there's certainly a time and place for this option. However, compared to the other styles, it's not the most flavorful or interesting. Additionally, given that Hut Dust can make any Pizza Hut pie better, I was certainly missing the added flavor.

You don't have to guess when it comes to the Thin 'N Crispy; the pizza's appearance is all in the name. You can expect exactly that. However, I initially could not tell the difference between this and the Tavern. It wasn't until I did some side-by-side comparison and looked it up on the website that I really figured out what the difference is: While they are both the same thickness, the Thin 'N Crispy is a bit larger and has a more obvious external crust around the border. Its crust is smooshed into the box, whereas Tavern had some space to slide around — which was a noticeable difference in size. Tavern's sauce and cheese almost covered all the edges, leaving it nearly crust-less, while this one has a more defined edge.

So that said, I don't have a lot to tell you that I didn't already articulate in Tavern. Some confusion occurred because mine was cut into squares, but the description doesn't advertise that; from what I see online, this would typically get a standard triangular pizza cut. Thin 'N Crispy only ranks a little higher just because it's slightly bigger and cheesier. Because the slices are cut into squares, there are more cheesy interior pieces than Tavern. That's a win for me.

If you can't get enough cheese, then Original Stuffed Crust is likely calling your name. I get it. I'm a sucker for a stuffed crust, and I think part of it is because I rarely had it growing up. My parents never opted for this type of pizza, so it always seemed a little more elevated and fancy, at least to my '90s-child eyes. I enjoy the cheese and the creaminess of Pizza Hut's crust, since the extra fat and flavor make it taste ultra rich. However, this pizza style has some issues that keep it from ranking higher. First off, the cheese in the crust is extremely salty, like something I would expect from a brined cheese like feta. It tastes like it needs a thorough rinse and a good soak in water before serving.

On top of that, the crust takes up so much of the actual pizza. If you look at the photo, you can see just how hefty and doughy it looks. For whatever reason, it seems to be the most undercooked of all the pizzas. I can somewhat understand this because you don't necessarily want a firm, crisp stuffed crust. While I can deal with the slightly underbaked quality, the high sodium content made it less enjoyable than I expected, so this has to stay a third-place pick. I really love stuffed crusts, but I feel like even this is a little too much crust-to-interior ratio.

The Hand Tossed pie advertises a crisp exterior with a fluffy interior and a finishing touch of Garlic-Parm Hut Blend. That blend does a lot of legwork to make every bite really fragrant and flavorful, but it's pretty oily. I can see its application, whereas I couldn't see any on the Tavern-style pizza. Despite the oil slick it leaves on my hands, I would definitely recommend including this flavorful add-on whenever possible based on taste alone. As for the pizza style itself, the exterior crust is fantastic. 

It has a more homemade appearance; it's rustic and not totally uniform. It's wonderfully airy and easy to eat. However, the underside of the pizza loses some points. It is a little softer and not super cooked, with a lot of tiny speckles from the holes in the pizza pan. This texture and cooking style offer a disruptive mouthfeel without as much enjoyment. If it were just the external crust, this would rank No. 1. Since the underside takes up a lot of real estate, I'm giving it the runner-up spot. It's not that it is bad at all, it's just that the first-place pie is considerably better.

Taking a bite of the Original Pan pizza felt like being transported to a simpler time, when I used to call my friends on the house phone and was just learning long division. Probably every '90s kid has tried or at least heard of Pizza Hut. That's to say it is a familiar favorite that has stood the test of time. However, the Original Pan holds up based on flavor alone, not because of any nostalgia. Here's why: The crust is superior. 

This option has a more traditional pizza-chain appearance. It's very precise and uniform, whereas the Hand Tossed had more personality and various lumps or air pockets. While I like the airiness and fluffy nature of Hand Tossed's border crust, Original Pan has all the personality on its underside. It is crisp and buttery, as if it were lightly fried — which I'm sure it effectively is, given its oil content visible on the cardboard container. 

It has golden-brown speckles and a somewhat crisp bottom that gives way to a softer interior. This makes all the difference. For the previous two 'zas, it was all about the border crust, and that part alone held all the personality; however, Original Pan will get you to eat the entire piece. There's a satisfying textural balance that holds up well against the ingredients, and it clearly tastes best on its own. If I were buying one crust style for a party, guests, and of course, myself, the Original Pan would be my first pick. I can totally see why it is marked as a customer favorite on the website.

Given the economy and cost of going out to eat, it's always beneficial to save some dollars, right? Please check out Pizza Hut's deal section on the website before you buy; there might be an offer on the item you were already going to purchase. I did this, and it was a more cost-effective way to try the five pizzas. I bought a medium size of each style, except for the Stuffed Crust, which (because of the deal) was cheaper than buying a medium size. 

As for the taste test, given that the pizzas all had the same ingredients with different crust styles, I put some focus on the crust, how it tasted, what it contributed to the pizza, and how well it held up. Cheese, sauce, pepperoni, and even any dusts and blends were taken into account, but there was significant overlap among the options. While the Udi's Gluten-Free Crust is available at select Pizza Hut locations, it was not on the menu near me.