• Established: 1966
• Signature dish: Deep-dish pizza, chicken wings

Looking for some delicious pizza near you in Illinois? No worries, you're at the right place - welcome to Gino's East! We're a classic pizzeria where you can find outstanding food and service. Plus, we have a location in California as well, so if you're around Sherman Oaks, do give us a visit.

Origin Story

Gino's East has a long history of serving irresistible pizzas. In fact, our first location was opened in Chicago back in 1966. The owners were two cab drivers by the names of Sam Levine and Fred Bartoli, as well as their associate, George Loverde.

As part of their job, they would drive on the Magnificent Mile all the time, and so they realized there was a potential for a successful restaurant at a busy spot along the road. Their idea came to fruition when they opened the original Gino's East location on 162 E Superior St.

As for their backstory, George was from Sicily while Fred was a born and raised Italian American. However, it wasn't them who came up with our famous recipe that produces amazing pies to this day. That accomplishment goes to the phenomenal Alice Mae Redmond who had a long experience of working as a pizza chef for nearly two decades. And when she became a part of Gino's East, she would go on to make some of the best pizzas in the city for the next 30 years.

We'll touch more on Alice's cooking methods below, but for now, we joyfully invite you to stop by at one of our locations and indulge yourself in a truly unforgettable meal!

Pizza Culture

The secret behind our popular pizza is in the cooking process and the ingredients.

What Alice was able to do is take the whole thing slowly. In other words, she would gently spread the dough into the pan rather than slapping it around. And she would also carefully place the sauce into every pizza instead of splashing it. But another very special thing she also did was introduce a unique dough conditioner. What this does is give the pizza crust its recognizable texture and taste.

With that being said, let's take a closer look at our excellent pizza selection. For a start, you can create your own pie, be it a deep-dish or gluten-free one. Of course, you get to pick the toppings you like but we don't recommend having more than five.

In addition, we offer combinations of our own. Hence, you can get some of our scrumptious deep-dish pies. One great example is our Gino's Supreme which comes with pepperoni or patty sausage with onions, green peppers, and mushrooms. Or we also suggest our Spinach Margherita with spinach, cherry tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and basil.

Moreover, we serve a number of tavern-style thin-crust pizzas. These are basically the same combinations as our aforementioned deep-dish options, so feel free to check our menu for details and see what fits your taste.

The Menu

Even though pizza is our specialty, our menu also features many other awesome dishes. These can be a great option to pair with your meal or share with your friends. Plus, we only use the freshest ingredients that we source from family-run businesses, which is to ensure that all our food items are great-tasting.

Wondering what to try first? Well, our choice of appetizers and salads is always a great place to start. We have some great options such as our chicken wings, homemade Buffalo mozzarella sticks, Kale Caesar salad, Caprese Pasta salad, and others.

Furthermore, we offer some awesome pasta dishes and sandwiches. The former include our Fettuccine Alfredo and spaghetti Marinara, whereas the latter feature our Italian sub, veggie sandwich, chicken parmigiana sandwich, and more.

Last but not least, you have to try our toothsome desserts. You can treat yourself to our deep-dish brownie, tiramisu, or ice cream sandwich, to name a few. Oh, and we have some great lunch specials, too.